Sunday, April 30, 2023

Best of the Bunch (April 2023)

Best of the Bunch header

Today I'm sharing the best book I read in April.

It was a super slow reading month for me. I only finished 5 books (including one very quick read with my 8-year-old), and the only 5-star read I had was a reread, so while I usually don't count those, I'm going to make that the best of the bunch for April!

It was a different experience rereading Out of My Mind since one of my main praises of the book is that it doesn't go in the direction you might expect, but I still enjoyed the read and think it's a fantastic book. Told from the perspective of a nonverbal young girl with cerebral palsy, this middle grade book exquisitely demonstrates how disability is as much about the ways that we as a society treat others as it is about anyone's physical limitations. I'd recommend it in any format, but I especially enjoyed it the way I first experienced it, as an audiobook superbly narrated by Sisi Aisha Johnson.

What is the best book you read this month? Let me know in comments, or write your own post and link up below!

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: The Time Machine, Atomic Habits, and Not Your Backup
Five years ago I was reading: Magician's Gambit and America's Public Schools
Ten years ago I was reading: American Gods and Basic Black

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Monday, April 24, 2023

Top Ten Audiobook Narrators


I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

This week we're sharing some of our favorite audiobook narrators! I am a big audiobook listener, so I know that narrators can make or break the book. These ten are some of the best I've experienced.

1. Cassandra Campbell
Campbell narrated two heartwarming reads I enjoyed, The Art of Hearing Heartbeats and The School of Essential Ingredients, as well as one of my favorite nonfiction books, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.
2. Rachel Dulude
Dulude did a stellar job narrating all four books in Becky Chambers' Wayfarer series; I was very glad after listening to the first one to discover that she narrated the following books as well!
3. Hugh Fraser
As many of you know, I've been working my way through Agatha Christie's complete works, and my absolute favorite way to experience these books is via the audiobooks narrated by Hugh Fraser. Most of the ones with female protagonists are narrated by Emilia Fox — who's also excellent — but Fraser reads the largest number, and his voice is part of what makes these books a comfort read for me. (Also it's fun to watch him play Captain Hastings in the old Poirot series!)
4. Dion Graham
Graham's name has now shown up on several excellent YA listens, including Concrete Rose and Dear Martin, and I also enjoyed his narration of one character's chapters in the full-cast Lovely War audiobook.
5. Martin Jarvis
Jarvis' narration of David Copperfield blew me away; he managed to create distinct voices for at least 30 different recurring characters in this lengthy story. I also got to experience his excellent narration of the books Family Matters and Metamorphosis.
6. Katherine Kellgren
Kellgren's narration of the first five books of the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place series is likely one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much; she manages the perfect balance of sincere and wry that these books require. I was devastated to learn that cancer took her before she could narrate the sixth and final book of the series, as the replacement narrator did her best but couldn't fill Kellgren's shoes.
7. Robin Miles
I greatly enjoyed Miles' narration of the Binti series, as she brought to life the books' first-person Himba narrator, and she also did a great job narrating the audiobook of Hidden Figures.
8. Will Patton
Whenever I recommend someone read the Raven Cycle series (and the subsequent Dreamer trilogy), I tell them they have to listen to the audiobook to get the full effect of Will Patton's narration. I'm glad he returned to narrate the Dreamer trilogy, as it wouldn't have been the same without his voice. It was also fun to hear him pop up to narrate part of the multi-narrator audiobook of Killers of the Flower Moon.
9. Bahni Turpin
Turpin is a powerhouse audiobook narrator whom frequent audiobook listeners have probably heard at least once. When her name's on the audiobook, you know it will be excellent. Some of the titles I've heard her narrate are Everything, Everything, So You Want to Talk About Race, and The Hate U Give, and she also narrates part of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.
10. Julia Whelan
Whelan, like Turpin, is a name that pops up everywhere in the audiobook world. Some of the books I've listened to her read are The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, The Last Time We Say Goodbye, and Educated.

Who are some of your favorite narrators?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, Not Your Backup, and Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
Five years ago I was reading: Magician's Gambit and America's Public Schools
Ten years ago I was reading: American Voices of World War I, Quiet, and Basic Black

Monday, April 17, 2023

Ten Titles with Animals in Them


I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

This week's theme is a non-book freebie, but I decided to do last week's theme instead because I hadn't done it yet! These are ten books whose titles contain types of animals.

1. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
2. The Blue Parakeet by Scot McKnight
3. Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater
4. Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese
5. Kingbird Highway by Kenn Kaufman
6. The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary
7. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
8. The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough
9. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
10. The Year of the Dog by Grace Lin

What other great books have animals in the title?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: SLAY, Not Your Backup, and Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
Five years ago I was reading: A View from the Bridge, A Soldier of the Great War, The Shallows, and America's Public Schools
Ten years ago I was reading: American Voices of World War I, Thirteen Reasons Why, and Moby-Dick

Saturday, April 15, 2023

What I've Been Reading Lately (Quick Lit)

Today I'm linking up with Modern Mrs. Darcy's Quick Lit to bring you some short and sweet reviews of what I've read in the past month. For longer reviews, you can always find me on Goodreads.

It was an unusually light reading month for me! I had a lot of travel as well as a lot of illness, both of which cut into my reading. I'm close to finishing my current audiobook, though!

Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie: I'd call this one a classic Christie. The solution is surprising and not surprising and involves elements that are somewhat but not overly farfetched. Overall it was an enjoyable read and one of those I think anyone could pick up to get a good sense of Christie's style.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell: I'm pretty sure that Rainbow Rowell and I have vastly different ideas about what a healthy romantic relationship looks like. Aside from that piece, I liked this book a lot and it prompted me to want to read Carry On.

Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper: This was definitely a different experience rereading this, since one of my main praises of the book is that it doesn't go in the direction you might expect. The switching of verb tenses bothered me more in the print version compared to the audio, but I still think it's a fantastic book and I'm glad my book club picked it for our next discussion.

When Pigmen Fly by Cara J. Stevens and Mitchell Creeden: Stevens tries to do a lot with this last book, which works about as convincingly as anything else in the past few books. I don't have strong feelings about this book one way or another, but I am glad this series provided a connection point for me and my 8-year-old.

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: SLAY, Not Your Backup, and Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
Five years ago I was reading: Bird by Bird, A Soldier of the Great War, and America's Public Schools
Ten years ago I was reading: American Voices of World War I and Moby-Dick