Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Aubiobook Month: My Top Five Favorite Audiobooks

You may be aware that every June, Audiobook Publishers Association celebrates Audiobook Month. You may also be aware that I am a big fan of audiobooks. I love to listen to them as rereads and I try to read at least one audiobook a month. They're perfect for long drives and to listen to while I do work around the house. I'm seriously a fan.

So because I'm such a fan, I would be remised if I didn't take this chance to talk about some of my all-time favorite audiobooks.

The All-Time Favorites

1.) Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
Narrator: MacLeod Andrews
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

This was my first ever Brandon Sanderson book and it honestly blew my mind. The world-building, the magical system, the plot twists. It was all incredible creative and engaging. But what made it all the more engaging is that I listened to the audiobook. This is a really fun book with tons of humor and a diverse cast of characters that the narrator perfectly captured. If you are an audiobook fan, a superhero fan, or you just like nice things listen to this book.

2.) Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Narrator: Wil Wheaton
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

This was probably the first audiobook I listened to when I returned to blogging and I loved everything about it. The world-building was so visual that for an auditory learner like myself it played so perfectly in this format. Plus it's a complex and emotional story that is just great in general. With the nerdy protagonist and the 80's nostalgia, Wil Wheaton is the perfect narrator and totally captured the book's tone and Wade's "voice" along with the other characters.

3.) Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Narrator: Libba Bray
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

Beauty Queens is one of those books that perfectly lends itself to the audiobook format. It's an action-packed novel with lots of humor that will have you laughing out loud and on the edge of your seat. It also has these fun commercials that break up the narrative in a creative way. Plus the book is full of quirky and diverse characters who you can't help by love. The fact that it's narrated by Libba Bray, the author makes it all the better. I mean who knows this book and it's tone better than her? Answer: no one.

4.) The Martian by Andy Weir
Narrator: R.C. Bray
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

This was one of my most recent audiobooks and I absolutely loved it! Similar to some of the other books on the list it perfectly lends itself to the audiobook format. The book is told mostly through logs that the main character, Mark Watney writes while he is trapped on Mars. Not only does that work so well but his narration is snarky and interesting comments that make this book full of so much humor. Plus there's the whole survival angle that I also loved.

5.) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Narrator: Stephen Fry (the Martin Freeman versions are also pretty amazing)
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

Well, now that I see all these audiobooks in one place I clearly notice a trend. I love Science Fiction audiobooks. Whatever, I don't care. But in all seriousness this one had to be on the list because it was the audiobook that got me interested in audiobooks. I listened it to it on a sixteen hour train ride and people probably thought I was crazy with all the laughing and I was doing. But the version narrated by Douglas Adams is flawless!

Honorable Mentions


6.) The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)
This is a series that lends itself well to the audio format. I listened to the audio and read the book at the same time. I ended up listening to The Hero of Ages on a long road trip and loved it.

7.) A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible)
Another series that I listened to some audio and read some book. I liked the audio a lot and it helped to read those 1000+ pages a little quicker.

8.) Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)
Lin-Manuel Miranda is a fantastic narrator and the poetic nature of the writing of this book made it a really great audiobook.


9.) Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham.
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)
Kristen Bell, the actress who played Veronica Mars narrates this audiobook and therefore it is flawless. It gave the audio so much more depth and a genuine feel.

10.) The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss
(Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)
The atmosphere of this book and the complex plot development makes for a great audiobook. It's long but totally worth the time and investment.


A Few Audiobooks on My TBR

1.) The Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas
I need a serious reread before Queen of Shadows. I listened to the audio for The Assassins Blade so I'm excited to hear the rest of the series.

2.) The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
Again, I need a serious reread before Winter comes out. I've heard these audiobooks are phenomenal (cough cough Nikki) so I'm really excited.

3.) The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stifevater
I know a lot of fellow bloggers who like audiobooks would probably list this in their top five which is a great sign. Plus These narrators also did An Ember in the Ashes which I liked.

How do you feel about audiobooks? Do you have any favorites? Are there any that you suggest I listen to? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!


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