Audiobooks by Steve Lopez

Independence Day: What I Learned About Retirement from Some Who’ve Done It and Some Who Never Will

'Steve Lopez is insightful, ingenious, and often hilarious as he navigates one of life's biggest questions.' --Michael Connelly, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Dark Hours Four-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and longtime Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez explores the meaning of work and how it defines us in this captivating book that combines memoir, investigatory interviews, and practical application. Grappling with his own decision of whether to retire, Lopez uses his reporter skills not only to look inward but also to interview experts and peers to collect a variety of perspectives as he examines the true nature of a person's time, identity, and ultimate life satisfaction. In Independence Day, Lopez talks to those who have chosen to extend their working life to its (il)logical extreme--people like Mel Brooks, still working at 94--those who have happily retired and reinvented themselves outside of the constraints of work, and those who would like to retire but can't because of financial constraints. He also turns to professionals on the matter, like two aging scientists, a geriatric specialist, and a psychiatrist, to understand the research-based reasons to retire. With his trademark poignancy, wisdom, and humor, Lopez establishes a useful polemic for himself and others in planning ahead, as he also evaluates questions of identity, financial limitations, and ultimately what to do with your life when the obituary pages are no longer filled with strangers.

Steve Lopez (Author), Steve Lopez (Narrator)

Audiobook

Play Sample Listen For Free

Third and Indiana

Set in Philadelphia's badlands, where drug gangs rule the streets, this debut novel has the explosive authenticity, the narrative drive, and the tender passion to knock you out of your seat! Fourteen-year-old Gabriel's father skipped two years ago. Now his mother, Ofelia, is searching for her runaway son, riding her bicycle at night through the city's darkest, most violent stretch. The pavement beneath her is mysteriously painted with chalk outlines of bodies. Each time a child is killed, another white outline appears. While Ofelia tries to outrun a vision of her son's death, her son tries to outrun the neighborhood, taking cover with a drifter; but Gabriel is already trapped, at the mercy of Diablo, the ugliest of the dealers, a man who kills for fun.

Steve Lopez (Author), Robert Lawrence (Narrator)

Audiobook

Play Sample Listen For Free

The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music

When journalist Steve Lopez sees Nathaniel Ayers playing his heart out on a two-string violin on Los Angeles' skid row, he finds it impossible to walk away. More than thirty years ago, Ayers was a promising classical bass student at Juilliard-ambitious, charming, and also one of the few African-Americans-until he gradually lost his ability to function, overcome by schizophrenia. Over time, the two men form a bond and Lopez imagines that he might be able to change Ayers's life. The Soloist is a beautifully told story of devotion in the face of seemingly unbeatable challenges. "With self-effacing humor, fast-paced yet elegant prose and unsparing honesty, Lopez tells an inspiring story of heartbreak and hope."-Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Steve Lopez (Author), William Hughes (Narrator)

Audiobook

Play Sample Listen For Free