Coming of Age Audiobooks | Fiction & Literature

In Wally Lamb’s pitch perfect new novel, it is 1964. LBJ and Lady Bird are in the White House, Meet the Beatles is on everyone’s turntable, and ten-year-old Felix Funicello (distant cousin of the iconic Annette!) is doing his best to navigate fifth grade—easier said than done when scary movies still give you nightmares and you bear a striking resemblance to a certain adorable cartoon boy. But there are several things young Felix can depend on: the birds and bees are puzzling, television is magical, and this is one Christmas he’s never going to forget.

Wally Lamb (Author), Wally Lamb (Narrator)

Audiobook

Shades of Blue

Brad Cutler, twenty-eight, is a rising star at his New York ad agency, about to marry the girl of his dreams. Anyone would agree he has it all ... a great career, a beautiful and loving fiancee, and a fairy tale life ahead of him---when memories of a high school girlfriend begin to torment him. Lost innocence and one very difficult choice flood his conscience, and he is no longer sure what the future will bring except for this: He must find his old love and make amends. Haunted by the past and confused about the future, he turns to God seeking forgiveness and redemption. Three people must work through the repercussions of a decision made long ago before any of them can look toward a new future.

Karen Kingsbury, Roxanne Hernandez (Author), Roxanne Hernandez, Zondervan Publishing (Narrator)

Audiobook

A Slow Burn

Burying her grief, Emory Chance is determined to find her daughter Daisy's murderer---a man she saw in a flicker of a vision. But when the investigation hits every dead end, her despair escalates. Not even the kindness of her persistent suitor Hixon can soften her heart towards the community of friends that long for her healing. And as the questions surrounding Daisy continue to mount, and Emory's safety is shattered by the tattooed man's dark pursuit, she can't shake the sickening fear that her own choices contributed to Daisy's disappearance. Will she ever experience the peace her heart longs for? A gripping suspense novel, A Slow Burn is about courageous love, the burden of regret, and the bonds that never break. It is about the beauty and pain of telling the truth and letting God take over. Most of all, it is about the strength of forgiveness and what remains when shame no longer has power. Mary DeMuth's distinctive new voice in Christian fiction will keep readers enthralled as they ask soul-searching questions in this second book of the Defiance, Texas Trilogy.

Mary E Demuth, Mary E. DeMuth, Renee Raudman (Author), Renee Raudman, Zondervan Publishing (Narrator)

Audiobook

Huge: A Novel

For precocious twelve-year-old Eugene Smalls, growing up isn't easy. His bad reputation precedes him, public school considers him a lost cause, and his own family seems out to get him. He insists on being called 'Huge,' and though small, he's tough, just like his heroes, pulp detectives Philip Marlowe and Sam Spade. When his grandmother hires him to solve a case of vandalism, he misreads clues, misinterprets motives, and mistakes mundane incidents for diabolical schemes as only an inexperienced adolescent with a restless imagination can. 'A coming-of-age tour de force'Huge will occupy a, yes, huge place in readers' affections and memories.''Booklist (starred review)

James W. Fuerst (Author), Jeff Woodman (Narrator)

Audiobook

Invisible Life: A Novel

Available at last, E. Lynn Harris's beloved first novel in a hardcover edition. Just a few years ago, E. Lynn Harris was selling his self-published novel Invisible Life out of the back of his car. Today he is a bestselling publishing sensation, with more than one million copies of his four novels sold. To celebrate Harris's incredible success, and offer his fans the opportunity to own, at last, a hardcover version of Invisible Life, Doubleday is proud to announce a special edition of the book so many have cherished. Invisible Life is the story of a young man's coming of age. Law school, girlfriends, and career choices were all part of Raymond Tyler's life, but there were other, more terrifying issues for him to confront. Being black was tough enough, but Raymond was becoming more and more conscious of sexual feelings that he knew weren't "right." He was completely committed to Sela, his longtime girlfriend, but his attraction to Kelvin, whom he had met during his last year in law school, had become more than just a friendship. No matter how much he tried to suppress them, his feelings were deeply sexual. Fleeing to New York to escape both Sela and Kelvin, Raymond finds himself more confused than ever before. New relationships--both male and female--give him enormous pleasure but keep him from finding the inner peace and lasting love he so desperately desires. The horrible illness and death of a friend force Raymond, at last, to face the truth. Invisible Life has been hailed as "one of the most thought-provoking books--since James Baldwin's Another Country" (Richmond Voice), and Harris's "stories have become the toast of bookstores, reading groups, men, women, and gay and straight people" (Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Proceeds from the sale of this special fifth anniversary edition will go to the E. Lynn Harris Foundation, a charitable organization that gives young people across the country the opportunity to study writing with established authors, and also aids emerging artists.

E. Lynn Harris (Author), Mirron Willis (Narrator)

Audiobook

Bright Lights, Big City

With the publication of Bright Lights, Big City in 1984, Jay McInerney became a literary sensation, heralded as the voice of a generation. The novel follows a young man, living in Manhattan as if he owned it, through nightclubs, fashion shows, editorial offices, and loft parties as he attempts to outstrip mortality and the recurring approach of dawn. With nothing but goodwill, controlled substances, and wit to sustain him in this anti-quest, he runs until he reaches his reckoning point, where he is forced to acknowledge loss and, possibly, to rediscover his better instincts. This remarkable novel of youth and New York remains one of the most beloved, imitated, and iconic novels in America.

Jay McInerney (Author), Daniel Passer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Labor Day

With the end of summer closing in and a steamy Labor Day weekend looming in the town of Holton Mills, New Hampshire, thirteen-year-old Henry'lonely, friendless, not too good at sports'spends most of his time watching television, reading, and daydreaming about the soft skin and budding bodies of his female classmates. For company Henry has his long-divorced mother, Adele'a onetime dancer whose summer project was to teach him how to foxtrot; his hamster, Joe; and awkward Saturday-night outings to Friendly's with his estranged father and new stepfamily. As much as he tries, Henry knows that even with his jokes and his "Husband for a Day" coupon, he still can't make his emotionally fragile mother happy. Adele has a secret that makes it hard for her to leave their house, and seems to possess an irreparably broken heart. But all that changes on the Thursday before Labor Day, when a mysterious bleeding man named Frank approaches Henry and asks for a hand. Over the next five days, Henry will learn some of life's most valuable lessons: how to throw a baseball, the secret to perfect piecrust, the breathless pain of jealousy, the power of betrayal, and the importance of putting others'especially those we love'above ourselves. And the knowledge that real love is worth waiting for. In a manner evoking Ian McEwan's Atonement and Nick Hornby's About a Boy, acclaimed author Joyce Maynard weaves a beautiful, poignant tale of love, sex, adolescence, and devastating treachery as seen through the eyes of a young teenage boy'and the man he later becomes'looking back at an unexpected encounter that begins one single long, hot, life-altering weekend.

Joyce Maynard (Author), Wilson Bethel (Narrator)

Audiobook

Though None Go with Me

One woman's costly decision will touch a lifetime of hearts. Born at the turn of the century, Elisabeth Grace LeRoy longs for something more in her life. Something only an eternal love can offer. It is a love she encounters at last---one that promises to fill her passionate heart completely and that calls forth her utmost in return. In response, Elisabeth makes the commitment that will shape her entire life: a decision to follow Christ always, no matter the cost. So begins a remarkable love story---a legacy of faith that weaves together two world wars, the Great Depression, and deep personal sorrows as the dramatic background for displaying the courage, grace, joy, and far-reaching impact of a life lived truly and fully for God.

Jerry B. Jenkins, Ssandy Burr (Author), Sandy Burr, Ssandy Burr, Zondervan Publishing (Narrator)

Audiobook

Rooftops of Tehran

With Rooftops of Tehran, Mahbod Seraji delivers a debut novel that has won immediate acclaim for its affecting portrait of life in Iran's capital city. A 17-year-old boy finds his rooftop the perfect escape for taking in the night sky, smoking cigarettes and catching occasional glimpses of his beautiful neighbor. But when his lofty perch allows him to witness the brutality of the regime under which he lives, everything changes for the boy and those close to him.

Mahbod Seraji (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

Audiobook

English

"I loved this book and can't stop talking about it. . . . Transcendent." —Carolyn See, The Washington Post In the tradition of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, Wang Gang's English is a captivating coming-of-age novel about the power of language to launch a journey of self-discovery. When a new teacher comes to school—a tall, elegantly dressed man from Shanghai carrying an English dictionary under his arm—twelve-year-old Love Liu turns away from Chairman Mao's little red book and toward the teacher's big blue book for answers to his most pressing questions about love and life. But as a whole new world begins to open up for him, Love Liu must face a test more challenging than any he'll take in the classroom.

Wang Gang (Author), Michael Sun Lee (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Homeplace

Lanie took out her journal and dated it April 12, 1928. She started the habit of writing down everything that happened to her when she was no more than eight years old, and now she had six journals completely full. She thought about the prize at school, almost prayed to win, but somehow she could not. 'God,' she finally said, 'I'll do my best, and if you'll help me, that's all I ask.' Fourteen-year-old Lanie Belle Freeman of Fairhope, Arkansas, has high hopes for her future. Happy on the five-acre family homeplace, she dreams of going to college and becoming a writer. And with her father launching a new business and her mother expecting the fifth baby, the bright days of an early Southern spring seem to herald expansive new beginnings for the Freeman family. But her mother isn't as strong as she should be, and it's going to take time for the business to pay back the mortgage. When unexpected tragedy strikes, it is left to Lanie to keep the family together and hold on to their home. In a world shaken by the Great Depression, it is faith in God and love in a tightly knit family that will help Lanie and her siblings overcome the odds and create a future that promises the fulfillment of love. The Homeplace offers a warmhearted and inspiring saga of a courageous young woman who holds her family together through the Depression era.

Gilbert Morris, Judith West (Author), Judith West, Zondervan Publishing (Narrator)

Audiobook

Daisy Chain

The abrupt disappearance of young Daisy Chance from a small Texas town in 1973 spins three lives out of control---Jed, whose guilt over not protecting his friend Daisy strangles him; Emory Chance, who blames her own choices for her daughter's demise; and Ouisie Pepper, who is haunted by dreams of Daisy while pierced by the shattered pieces of a family in crisis. In this first book in the Defiance, Texas Trilogy, fourteen-year-old Jed Pepper has a sickening secret: He's convinced it's his fault his best friend Daisy went missing. Jed's pain sends him on a quest for answers to mysteries woven through the fabric of his own life and the lives of the families of Defiance, Texas. When he finally confronts the terrible truths he's been denying all his life, Jed must choose between rebellion and love, anger and freedom. Daisy Chain is an achingly beautiful southern coming-of-age story crafted by a bright new literary talent. It offers a haunting yet hopeful backdrop for human depravity and beauty, for terrible secrets and God's surprising redemption.

Mary E Demuth, Mary E. DeMuth, Renee Raudman (Author), Renee Raudman, Zondervan Publishing (Narrator)

Audiobook

Coming of Age Audiobooks in Fiction & Literature