Essays & Anthologies Audiobooks | Fiction & Literature

Diana Evans (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Rage: On Being Queer, Black, Brilliant . . . and Completely Over It

A debut book from Entertainment Weekly writer and former Out magazine editor Lester Fabian Brathwaite, Rage is a darkly comedic exploration of Blackness, queerness, and the American Dream, at a time when creative anger feels like the best response to inequality. One romantic hopeful had greeted Lester Fabian Brathwaite on a dating app with this gem: "You into race play?" Being young, queer, gifted, and Black, Lester has found that his best tool for navigating American life is gallows humor. If you don't laugh, you cry-or, you summon your inner rage. With biting wit, Lester's book Rage interrogates all the ways that systemic racism and homophobia have shaped our society. All to pose that proverbial question: Can a gurl live? Rage is one part memoir, one part cultural critique, one part live grenade. He contrasts his tragic-comedic love life with the ideals he had formed from bingeing (straight, white) Hollywood depictions. And he is quick to side-eye the misogyny and internalized homophobia that some people reveal in statements like "masc for masc" on dating profiles. Lester also dives deep into representations of queer life from RuPaul's Drag Race to The Birdcage (Robin Williams was a snack in Versace), and explores our cultural understanding of Black genius through stories of James Baldwin, Whitney Houston, and Nina Simone. Lester's razor-sharp voice, coupled with his searing social commentary on topics such as dating, rejection, racism, sexuality, identity, and more, offer an increasingly divided world an engaging and original read.

Lester Fabian Brathwaite (Author), Lester Fabian Brathwaite, TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Lives of the Caesars

Brought to you by Penguin. A masterful new translation of Suetonius' renowned biography of the twelve Caesars, bringing to life a portrait of the first Roman emperors in stunning detail The ancient Roman empire was the supreme arena, where emperors had no choice but to fight, to thrill, to dazzle. To rule as a Caesar was to stand as an actor upon the great stage of the world. No biography invites us into the lives of the Caesars more vividly or intimately than that by Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, written from the centre of Rome and power, in AD 121. Placing each Caesar in the context of the generations that had gone before, and connecting personality with policy, Suetonius injected flesh and blood into their stories, which continue to inform how we understand the drama of power today. Their shortfalls, foreign policy crises and sex scandals are laid bare; we are shown their tastes, their foibles, their eccentricities; and we sit at their tables and enter their bedrooms, resulting in a series of biographies mediated through the lives of the Caesars themselves. That Rome lives more vividly in people's imagination than any other ancient empire owes an inordinate amount to Suetonius, and now award-winning author and translator Tom Holland brings us even closer in a new, spellbinding translation. Giving a deeper understanding of the personal lives of the Caesars and of how they inevitably informed what happened across the vast expanse of empire, The Lives of the Caesars is an astonishing, immersive experience of a time and culture at once familiar and utterly alien to our own. ©2024 Suetonius (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Suetonius (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Bad Girls of Ancient Greece

THE guide to the baddies that started it all… Bad Girls of Ancient Greece contains profiles of wayward wives, mad mothers, scandalous sisters and damsels, that quite frankly, caused others A LOT of stress in the ancient world. With the ever-growing popularity of mythological retellings, Lauren McInnes has written THE guide to all of the baddies of ancient Greece. This book stands as a reminder that us women really have been badasses since the start. Written with humour and sass, Lauren profiles the women in Greek myth and legend covering: mortals, goddesses, titans, nymphs (you name it, she’s done it). Here you’ll find the weird and wonderful escapades of the women we’re often lead to believe were minor characters. Bad Girls of Ancient Greece is an accessible, intelligent, hilarious (sometimes spicy) guide to the women we love and know – Athena, Medusa, Aphrodite – and also those we may not, like Polyphonte, who was cursed with burning hot lust for a wild bear… imagine! So dive into the stories you thought you knew with Bad Girls of Ancient Greece as your illuminating guide…

Lizzy Tiffin (Author), Madeleine Leslay, TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Bite by Bite: Nourishments and Jamborees

From the New York Times bestselling author of World of Wonders, a lyrical book of short essays about food, offering a banquet of tastes, smells, memories, associations, and marvelous curiosities from nature In Bite by Bite, poet and essayist Aimee Nezhukumatathil explores the way food and drink evoke our associations and remembrances—a subtext or layering, a flavor tinged with joy, shame, exuberance, grief, desire, or nostalgia. Nezhukmatathil restores our astonishment and wonder about food through her encounters with a range of foods and food traditions. From shave ice to lumpia, mangoes to pecans, rambutan to vanilla, she investigates how food marks our experiences and identities, the boundaries between heritage and memory, and the ethics and environmental pressures around gathering and consuming food. Bite by Bite offers a rich and textured kaleidoscope of vignettes and visions into the world of food and nature, drawn together by intimate and funny personal reflections, with Fumi Nakamura’s gorgeous imagery and illustration.

Aimee Nezhukumatathil (Author), Aimee Nezhukumatathil, TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Like Love: Essays and Conversations

Brought to you by Penguin. Like Love is a momentous, raucous collection of essays drawn from twenty years of Maggie Nelson's brilliant work. These profiles, reviews, remembrances, tributes and critical essays, as well as several conversations with friends and idols, bring to life Nelson's passion for dialogue and dissent. The range of subjects is wide - from Prince to Carolee Schneemann to Matthew Barney to Lhasa de Sela to Kara Walker - but certain themes recur: intergenerational exchange; love and friendship; feminist and queer issues, especially as they shift over time; subversion, transgression and perversity; the roles of the critic and language in relation to visual and performance arts; forces that feed or impede certain bodies and creators; and the fruits and follies of a life spent devoted to making. Arranged chronologically, Like Love shows the writing, thinking, feeling, reading, looking and conversing that occupied Nelson while writing iconic books such as Bluets and The Argonauts. As such, it is a portrait of a time, an anarchic party rich with wild guests, a window into Nelson's own development and a testament to the profound sustenance offered by art and artists. ©2024 Maggie Nelson (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Maggie Nelson (Author), Senn Annis, TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Self-Portrait: Collected Unpublished Writings

A collection of previously unpublished writing culled from the Kerouac archive Jack Kerouac's archive is vast. Throughout his life he was constantly writing, and he meticulously saved and catalogued his material. The result is that beyond the work published in his lifetime there has been a rich stream of posthumous writing that is far from tapped, adding depth to his lifework--the Duluoz Legend--and our understanding of Kerouac the man. Far from being the adrenalized thrill-seeker that he depicted in On the Road's Dean Moriarty, Jack himself was deeply spiritual, shy, and reclusive. He sought adventures for the sake of experience, needing them to fuel his writing, which according to him was his sole reason for living. Few people sacrificed more for their art. This collection of previously unpublished writing culled from the Kerouac archive, and as a companion to Paul Maher Jr.'s Becoming Kerouac, spans Jack's adult life, from a journal written at age seventeen to autobiographical reflections a few years before his death. Self-Portrait is a blend of fictional and nonfictional pieces, a few abandoned starts but most complete in themselves and all of them chosen for the revelations they contain. In The Moon and Sixpence, Somerset Maugham wrote, 'A man's work reveals him... No one can produce the most casual work without disclosing the innermost secrets of his soul.' There are more than two dozen Kerouac biographies, but Self-Portrait reveals the artist in his own words, from his early ambition to the deep self-examination of his 'Self-Ultimacy' period, his three-year struggle to write On the Road, musings about himself and America in the half-dozen years before the novel was published and then in the aftermath amid his public withdrawal, suffering from alcoholism and hounded by fame. Through it all there are tortuous feelings about his family--love, guilt, duty, and betrayal. As fans of Kerouac have come to learn, reading his work is a visceral probe.

Jack Kerouac (Author), T. Ryder Smith (Narrator)

Audiobook

On the Art of the Craft: A Guidebook to Collaborative Storytelling

A writing companion, inspirational guide to the craft, and anthology featuring outstanding essays from the acclaimed nonprofit mentoring organization on its twenty-fifth anniversary helping underserved youth find their voice. We all have stories to tell, but not everyone gets the training or encouragement necessary to be great storytellers. Founded a quarter century ago, the Girls Write Now mentoring program has helped young women and gender expansive youth unleash their creative talent to gain confidence and skills that last a lifetime. When these underserved communities get to tell their stories in their most powerful voices, we all benefit from their insight, empathy, ideas, ingenuity, and ultimately hope. In celebration of the organization’s more than two decades working with youth, this hands-on guide gives aspiring young writers the tools they need to develop their own skills—including tips, insights on the writing and publishing process, critical thinking about the future of storytelling, and advice on how to become a writer—drawn from their creative workshops and one-on-one mentoring. With this handbook, readers everywhere can develop their own talents, thoughts, and ideas to become the writers—and leaders—they are capable of becoming, no matter their pathway in life. On the Art of the Craft is structured around three main themes: Creation, Combination, and Transformation. From the organization’s remarkable archive, current mentees have selected topical and resonant pieces and addressed them, crafting their own essay in conversation with the past. At the end of each piece, readers will find prompts they can use to craft their own responses. Both uplifting and practical, this book, written by young people, is meant to help the upcoming generations empower each other. Showcasing rising talents, offering fresh and welcome new perspectives, and providing hands-on tools, community, and encouragement, On the Art of the Craft will inspire change for all.

Girls Write Now (Author), Alice Wen, Dana Wing Lau, Elena Rey, Grace Capeless, Karen Chilton, Nicky Endres, Nikki Massoud, Rachel Perry, Reader Tbd 1, Tyla Collier (Narrator)

Audiobook

Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness

World-renowned soprano and arts/health advocate Renée Fleming curates a collection of essays from leading scientists, creative arts therapists, educators, healthcare providers and artists about the powerful impacts of music and the arts on health and the human experience A compelling and growing body of research has shown music and arts therapies to be effective tools for addressing a widening array of conditions, from providing pain relief, to enhancing speech recovery after stroke or traumatic brain injury through singing, to improving mobility of individuals with Parkinson's disease using rhythm. In Music and Mind Renée Fleming draws upon her own experience as an advocate to showcase the breadth of this booming field, inviting leading experts to share their discoveries. In addition to describing therapeutic benefits, the book explores evolution, brain function, childhood development, and technology as applied to arts and health. Much of this area of study is relatively new, made possible by recent advances in brain imaging, and supported by the National Institutes of Health, major hospitals, and universities. This work is sparking an explosion of public interest in the arts and health sector. Fleming has presented on this material in over fifty cities across North America, Europe, and Asia, collaborating with leading researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners. With essays from known musicians, writers, and artists, as well as leading neuroscientists, Music and Mind is a groundbreaking book and the perfect introduction and overview of this exciting new field.

Tbd (Author), Carin Gilfry, Cary Hite, Gina Daniels, Patty Nieman, Renée Fleming, TBD, Vikas Adam (Narrator)

Audiobook

Familiarity Breeds Content: New and Selected Essays

A collection of personal essays from America's most revered essay writer, Joseph Epstein. America's greatest living essayist writes about life and aging and being all too nicely out of it. In these personal pieces, he takes on topics as varied as grieving for a dead son, learning Latin late in life, and the pleasures of living with cats. Epstein gives us a "bonfire of his own vanities," his thoughts about why watching sports is so impossibly seductive, what it is like to be short, and why he misses smoking even decades as a health-obsessed non-smoker. Above all, he writes about the literary life and the endless joys that reading and writing have brought to a self-confessed "lucky man."

Joseph Epstein (Author), Fred Sanders (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Secret Lives of Booksellers & Librarians

Brought to you by Penguin. To be a bookseller or librarian . . . You have to play detective. Be a treasure hunter. A matchmaker. A brilliant listener. A person who creates a kind of magic by pulling a book from a shelf, handing it to someone and saying, 'You've got to read this. You're going to love it'. In this love letter to the heroes of literacy, James Patterson uncovers true stories from booksellers and librarians. Prepare to enter a world where you can feed your curiosities, discover new voices, and find whatever you need. Meet the smart and talented people who live between the shelves - and who can't wait to help you find your next great read. PRAISE FOR JAMES PATTERSON 'No one gets this big without amazing natural storytelling talent - which is what Jim has, in spades.' LEE CHILD 'James Patterson is The Boss. End of.' IAN RANKIN 'The master storyteller of our times' HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON ©2024 James Patterson (P)2024 Penguin Audio

James Patterson (Author), Amy Jensen, Daniel Henning, Deanna Anthony, Jane Oppenheimer, Jenn Lee, Jennifer Pickens, Marni Penning, Nancy Peterson, Rob Reider, Susan Hanfield, TBD, Tom Force (Narrator)

Audiobook

Your Eyes Will Be My Window: Essays

Your Eyes Will Be My Window reclaims the two erasures of Esta Plat. Murdered in Ukraine by Nazi troops in 1942, evidence of the life of Esta Plat was preserved in a bundle of her letters until the letters were tossed into a dumpster and destroyed. Haunted by the inheritance of survivor's guilt and shame in a family that kept no Old World keepsakes except her grandmother's one-sentence memory of Esta Plat, Jodi Varonis compelled to sift through records of Europe's genocidal past. Pitting grandiose Holocaust memorials against the act of bearing witness, Varon confronts the limitations of history, folklore, archival data, and survivor testimonies. Seeking solace in ritual, she challenges her upbringing as an outlier Jew in the Rocky Mountain West to provide a window to the meaning of cultural displacement in immigrant communities. When an ethnic German woman's corpse was discarded across from Varon's rented flat in Baden-Württemberg, the homemade memorial for Nadine E. prompts a meditation on violence against women and girls as a weapon of suppression and war. The record of unfiltered emotions among Kindertransport survivors in Europe, journalists in Ludwigsburg, and archivists and guides in Jerusalem, Your Eyes Will Be My Window is a defiant exercise in honoring the lost.

Jodi Varon (Author), Sharon Freedman (Narrator)

Audiobook

Essays & Anthologies Audiobooks in Fiction & Literature