The Council of Wise Women

In this stand-alone novel that fits into his “Village Life” series, Abrahamson—a pen name for author, storyteller, and Audie Award–nominated narrator Mark Binder (The Fuck Ups)—returns listeners to the fictional unnamed Jewish village on the edge of the Black Forest, somewhere between Russia and Poland (and occasionally Germany). Villager Sarah Cohen has been unexpectedly blessed (or perhaps burdened) with newborn twins, Rachel and Yakov. As the Cohens’ marriage enters rocky territory, the other villagers contend with encroaching famine and shifting social dynamics. Enter the Council of Wise Women, a secret society of women who may be the only ones who can set the village to rights. Award-winning performer Kate Reading offers a stellar narration, employing subtle shifts in tone, pitch, and pacing to give each woman a unique, readily distinguishable voice and personality, whether they are young women seeking guidance or matriarchs who’ve seen it all, and ably captures the complex group dynamics.