2012 Favorite Audiobooks

Since the number of audiobooks I listened to this year was about half of what I listened to last year, I thought it appropriate that I choose my top five, otherwise my top 10 would be almost 50 percent of what I listened to. That's kind of silly. Staying to five is a challenge because I listened to some great audiobooks this year, but I'm up for it.

Here are the five audiobooks that I felt overall were the best listening experiences of my 2012 year (note that they were not necessarily produced this year; I listened to them this year):

5. Mr Timothy. Written by Louis Bayard and narrated by Mark Honan for AudioGo. This audio kept me company on my drive back from Washington D.C. the week before Christmas (how appropriate). The time period and atmosphere were communicated beautifully through Honan's narration. He brought out the age and maturity levels of the characters and nailed the spunk of the young Collin. Louis Bayard is a brilliant writer and none of his eloquence or art was lost in Honan's translation. Wonderfully done.

4. The Wind Through the Keyhole. Written and narrated by Stephen King for Simon and Schuster Audio. Believe it or not, this was my first foray into King's written work. I've seen several of the movie adaptations of his work, but this was the first time hearing his actual words. And while I'm not typically a fantasy reader, I loved the layers of meaning in this story. The biggest shocker, however, is that King is a fantastic narrator. I typically shy away from audios narrated by their authors because writing a book does not make a person a good narrator. As a matter of fact, very few authors have the performance talent necessary to narrate their own work. But this was stellar, so it was a treat to hear King's own interpretation of his work.

3. Invisible Murder. Written by Lene Kaaberbøl and Agnete Friis, narrated by Katherine Kellgren for AudioGo. Kellgren did such a spectacular job with the various dialects in this suspense thriller. The ease with which she handled all ages and genders made the audio flow so smoothly that the fact it WAS an audio simply faded into the background as the story took center stage.

2. Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend. Written by Matthew Dicks, narrated by Matthew Brown for Macmillan Audio. It's not technically a crime fiction audiobook, but there is a crime element. And regardless of genre, it's an amazing audiobook. The story is heartwarming but also extremely challenging. Brown had to bring out the additional dimension of imaginary friends, the dimension in which they reside and people are only tangentially connected. Brown nailed it; the recording is brilliant and unforgettable.

1. Gutshot Straight. Written by Lou Berney, narrated by Edoardo Ballerini for Audible, Inc. There are probably a lot of people tired of hearing me recommend Lou Berney this year. I had a copy of Gutshot Straight in print for quite awhile, but hadn't gotten around to reading it. So, I picked up the audio and kicked myself for not reading it sooner. However, had I read it sooner, I would not likely have picked up the audio and enjoyed the best listening experience of 2012. Ballerini did such a magnificent job narrating this all-around fun crime caper. He seemed to be on the same wave length with both Berney and Shake. I was entranced; I laughed; I exercised extra just so I could listen longer. Superb! My favorite audiobook of 2012.

There you have it! My favorite audios. Now let me know what you listened to this year that you really liked. Did anyone try audios for the first time? Anyone putting them on their list to try for 2013? The hardest list is next. Narrowing down my favorite reads of 2012. Check back on Monday. In the mean time, have a wonderful weekend and HAPPY READING!

MEMOIRS OF AN IMAGINARY FRIEND - Matthew Dicks

My review of the unabridged audio of MEMOIRS OF AN IMAGINARY FRIEND appeared last week (as a starred review) in Shelf Awareness for Readers. I am reprinting it with their permission. While this is not a traditional crime novel, I'm sure you'd find it in the general fiction section of most book stores, I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook and wanted to share it with you all here. I hope you enjoy this review.

In place of my usual first sentence, I'm sharing with you the first chapter:

"Here is what I know:

My name is Budo.
I have been alive for five years.
Five years is a very long time for someone like me to be alive.
Max gave me my name.
Max is the only human person who can see me.
Max's parents call me an imaginary friend.
I love Max's teacher, Mrs. Gosk.
I do not like Max's other teacher, Mrs. Patterson.
I am not imaginary."

Kids say the darnedest things, and so do their imaginary friends. Matthew Brown is tasked with voicing those darnedest things in the audio version of Matthew Dicks’ new novel Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend.

Budo, the novel’s narrator, declares that imaginary friends are real; they’re just a different kind of real. Budo is imagined by Max, an autistic child who, Budo explains, “lives mostly on the inside.” Budo understands Max’s special needs and he doesn’t try to change Max; Budo helps his human friend cope with the challenges of his life, including his greatest challenge, being kidnapped by a trusted adult.

Budo points out that each imaginary friend is different. They appear as their human friends imagine them. Matthew Brown brings those differences to life through each distinct persona he creates for these friends: a flat outline drawing, a puppy, a fairy, even a giant. Brown doesn’t merely give them voices; he gives them whole personalities, making the listening experience expand beyond audio and into the other senses.

Dicks creates a whole different dimension co-existing with the human world; Brown steps into that dimension and melds the two worlds seamlessly together. While the rules of Dicks’ imaginary microcosm aren’t always consistent—after all it is imaginary—Brown treats the imaginary sphere as though it is as normal as…well, reality.

Readers may find themselves on an emotional roller coaster as Brown puts not only sound but also soul into the humor, the frustrations, the fears and the realizations of these unique characters. Dicks has written a heart-warming tale and Brown ratchets up the warmth with his endearing narration.

MEMOIRS OF AN IMAGINARY FRIEND is available from Macmillan Audio (ISBN:978-1427225887). It is also available in hardcover from St. Martin's Press (ISBN: 978-1250006219)