Best Audiobooks of 2002

What is the future of audiobooks? Right now, cassettes rule the day, but the transition to CDs seems to be progressing rapidly. According to LJ's recent AV survey ("The Format Dilemma ," LJ 11/15/02, p. 38–41), library collections currently hold 90 percent of their audiobooks in cassette form, but that number is projected to decrease to 70 percent over the next three years as CD players replace tape players in new cars and listeners shift to that format. No matter what format, however, audiobooks will have a long shelf life. This year's "best" list includes works by Walter Mosley, Alice Sebold, Jonathan Franzen, Nikki Giovanni, and Rudolph Giuliani. Thanks go to LJ's reviewers for their help in selecting these titles and for their longstanding commitment to audio.

Barnes, Julian. Love, etc. Chivers Audiobks. 6 cassettes. 63/4 hrs. ISBN 0-7540-0764-2. $54.95.
A love triangle among a wife, an ex-husband, and a current husband is the focus of this work, appropriately narrated by a cast of British performers. The reading is like a radio play, delivering a rare "case where audio surpasses the printed page" (LJ 9/1/02).

Bohjalian, Chris. The Buffalo Soldier. Random Audio. 8 cassettes. 12 hrs. ISBN 0-553-71500-3. $39.95.
This novel of loss and love is "a great marriage of story and weather with six finely crafted voices," each excellently read with individual flair by Alison Fraser. Bohjalian has created a "community of conflict and understanding of both grief and need" (LJ 10/1/02).

Brett, Simon. What Bloody Man Is That? Clipper Audio, dist. by Recorded Bks. 4 cassettes. 5½ hrs. ISBN 1-4025-1944-3. $40.
In this delightful bonbon, Charles Paris becomes the chief suspect in the murder of one of his fellow actors but manages to clear himself by solving the murder. Brett's "brilliant mixture of mystery, mayhem, humor, and the theater bubble over," well matched by the excellent performance of the "incomparable" Simon Prebble. (LJ 11/15/02)

Burke, James Lee. Jolie Blon's Bounce. S. & S. Audio. 4 cassettes. 6 hrs. ISBN 0-7435-2463-2. $26.
Will Patton's "slow Southern drawl captures the varied Louisiana accents" in this version of Burke's latest, which pits Dave Robicheaux against pure evil. The listening experience brings alive the lost Louisiana of his character's past so "lyrically it becomes Arcadia" (LJ 12/02).

Karon, Jan. In This Mountain. Penguin Audiobks. 4 cassettes. 6½ hrs. ISBN 0-14-280005-8. $24.95.
Read with "lively and interesting voices" by John McDonough, Karon's latest novel features the retired Father Tim, who longs for a mission until he rediscovers how he's needed by his wife and other assorted characters. The tale "compels the listener to become a caring and concerned part of the community" (LJ 10/1/02).

Kidd, Sue Monk. The Secret Life of Bees. Books on Tape. 9 cassettes. 13½ hrs. ISBN 0-7366-8555-3. $72.
In 1964 South Carolina, a 14-year-old girl escapes her abusive father and finds safety and more with three mothers of mercy who teach her about beekeeping. This terrific first novel can be "forgiven for its predictability because of the humor," captured nicely by Karen White's reading. A "well-paced and -crafted Gothic debut" (LJ 9/15/02).

Krentz, Jayne Ann. Summer in Eclipse Bay. Brilliance Audio. 4 cassettes. 6 hrs. ISBN 1-58788-260-4. $62.25.
A series of misunderstandings (driven by town gossip) keep handsome widower Nick and beautiful Olivia apart in this romance. In full voice, Joyce Bean delivers the many characters Krentz creates "with all the elements her legions of fans enjoy" (LJ 9/15/02).

Mosley, Walter. Bad Boy Brawly Brown. Books on Tape. 6 cassettes. 9 hrs. ISBN 0-7366-8649-5. $54.
Murder, gunrunning, and betrayal spark against 1964's racial unrest in Mosley's latest Easy Rawlins mystery. The action is "well paced and plausible," and the author's "sense of time and place…near-perfect" (LJ 11/15/02).

Perry, Anne. Southampton Row. Brilliance Audio. 8 cassettes. 11 hrs. ISBN 1-58788-914-5. $89.25.
This Thomas Pitt mystery tracks Charles Voisey's run for Parliament and Superintendent Pitt's charge to stop him—after Pitt figures out who murdered a medium mysteriously related to the pol. Perry's "enthralling tales are equally fine as mysteries and explorations of the minutiae of Victorian culture." This work is no exception. (LJ 10/15/02)

Sebold, Alice. The Lovely Bones. Recorded Bks. 9 cassettes. 113/4 hrs. ISBN 1-4025-2406-4. $77.
In this best-selling first novel, 14-year-old high school freshman Susie Salmon watches from heaven as her family reels through the aftermath of her rape and murder by a neighbor. In this excellent recording, our reviewer found that Alyssa Bresnahan reads so well that Susie's story "sounds just like her own" (LJ 1/03).

Vreeland, Susan. The Passion of Artemisia. HighBridge Audio. 6 cassettes. 9½ hrs. ISBN 1-56511-525-2. $34.95.
Gigi Bermingham's clear, warm reading brings the characters to life in this tale of the 16th-century painter who is publicly humiliated after accusing her mentor of rape. Vreeland "skillfully captures the detail of the paintings and of Artemisia's joy in creating beauty" (LJ 9/1/02).

Wells, Rebecca. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. HarperAudio. 10 cassettes. 14 hrs. ISBN 0-06-009481-8. $39.95.
With her colorful descriptions of small-town life in Louisiana in the 1930s and 1940s, Wells has created a cult classic in this popular novel about a strained mother-daughter relationship. "Judith Ivey's portrayal of the eccentric characters…could certainly be described as 'divine'" (LJ 11/1/02).

Caro, Robert A. Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson. Books on Tape. Pt. 1: 11 cassettes. 16½ hrs. ISBN 0-7366-8444-1. $88; Pt. 2: 13 cassettes. 19½ hrs. ISBN 0-7366-8454-9. $104; Pt. 3: 14 cassettes. 21 hrs. ISBN 0-7366-8696-7. $112.
Grover Gardner's excellent narration "never flags" in this portrait of Johnson's work as a U.S. senator. According to our reviewer, Caro depicts the future President as a "paradox—an abusive, tyrannical genius with depth of feeling for mankind but weak interpersonal skills." The print version won the National Book Award and was chosen as one of LJ's Best Books of 2002. (LJ 11/1/02)

Crafts, Hannah. The Bondwoman's Narrative. Time Warner Audiobks. 6 cassettes. 9 hrs. ISBN 1-58621-272-9. $32.98.
Discovered by Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr., this "highly remarkable literary and historical work by a self-educated woman…gives a slave's experience of slavery from a humanistic view." Read by Anna Deavere Smith, this unique book provides a black female writer's semifictionalized account of the "brutalities of her society" (LJ 10/15/02).

Davis, Sampson & others. The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream. HighBridge Audio. 6 CDs. 53/4 hrs. ISBN 1-56511-651-8. $32.95.
Providing their own narration, three friends describe their pledge to become doctors, which they do despite "innumerable daunting experiences." Central to the theme in the authors' lives is "giving back": at-risk teens will see an "extraordinary model of self-determination" (LJ 12/02).

Franzen, Jonathan. How To Be Alone. S. & S. Audio. 6 cassettes. 9 hrs. ISBN 0-7435-2829-8. $39.95.
Franzen, whose novel The Corrections won the 2001 National Book Award for Fiction, presents an "engaging collection of essays focusing on how commercialism affects Americans." Although this is scholarly terrain, Brian d'Arcy James's "lucid, well-paced narration makes this collection accessible and interesting" (LJ 1/03).

Fridson, Martin S. How To Be a Billionaire: Proven Strategies from the Titans of Wealth. Blackstone Audiobks. 10 CDs. 11½ hrs. ISBN 0-7861-9499-5. $80.
This fascinating look at how billionaires made their fortune focuses on the techniques used by such magnates as Ross Perot, John D. Rockefeller, and Bill Gates. Johanna Ward's solid narration "maintains interest throughout this substantial addition to the financial literature" (LJ 11/15/02).

Giovanni, Nikki. The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection. Caedmon: HarperCollins. 2 cassettes. 2 hrs. ISBN 0-06-051428-0. $18.95.
Renowned poet Giovanni reads and introduces her own work in this well-edited collection. The poet vivifies her works with a "rhythmic voice [that] can be heard in the comments, giving new shape to the poetry's structure." The result? "Hearing her read, dogma is replaced by passion" (LJ 2/1/03).

Giuliani, Rudolph W. Leadership. Hyperion Audiobks. 4 cassettes. 6 hrs. ISBN 0-7868-7069-9. $25.98.
Although Tony Roberts's reading can sometimes "seem more than a bit somber and self-absorbed," these stories from the former mayor of New York City demonstrate how he used his leadership principles to rejuvenate the city and then to help it recover following September 11. What results is an "absorbing and intimate portrayal of a born leader with a strong will, strong convictions, and a strong heart" (LJ 2/1/03).

Greenlaw, Linda. The Lobster Chronicles: Life on a Very Small Island. Brilliance Audio. 5 cassettes. 7 hrs. ISBN 1-59086-099-3. $69.25.
In this new memoir, Greenlaw—known for The Hungry Ocean, which recounts her life as a swordfisher as it was linked to the events in Sebastian Junger's The Perfect Storm—describes her return to a simpler life in Maine, where she now harvests lobsters on the Mattie Belle. Her "salty remarks and wry observations make this an enjoyable listening experience" (LJ 11/1/02).

Kingsolver, Barbara. Small Wonder. Sound Library: BBC Audiobooks America. 8 cassettes. 9 hrs. ISBN 0-7927-2629-4. $69.95.
Kingsolver's Kentucky lilt "adds intimacy...as if she were a friend chatting over a cup of tea" to these essays on various topics, from September 11 to her own vegetable garden. "This gentle, intelligent gadfly will provide intellectual stimulation, whether or not the listener agrees with her positions," advised LJ's reviewer. (LJ 12/02)

Knight, Bob with Bob Hammel. Knight: My Story. Audio Renaissance. 5 CDs. 6 hrs. ISBN 1-55927-727-0. $28.
This tale calls into question Knight's dismissal from the head coaching position at Indiana University for alleged bad behavior that ranged from throwing a folding chair to mistreating players. "A good story," remarked our reviewer, that teaches the listener "about coaching basketball and leadership along the way" (LJ 8/02).

Richardson, Cheryl. Finding Your Passion. Hay House Audio. 4 cassettes. 6 hrs. ISBN 1-56170-970-0. $23.95.
In this work, Richardson offers "valuable insights into how to identify and follow one's true passion(s)," as well as practical advice on "recognizing and dealing with personal, familial, and social blocks to following one's heart" (LJ 11/15/02).

Smith, Dennis. Report from Ground Zero: The Story of the Rescue Efforts at the World Trade Center. HighBridge Audio. 4 cassettes. 9 hrs. ISBN 1-56511-678-X. $29.95.
Excellently performed by a cast of actors presenting the testimonies of survivors, this eyewitness account of the heroism of those workers who responded to the tragedy of September 11 captures the "raw emotion of the event" (LJ 9/1/02).