llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2024 9:42 am Then, Underground by Haruki Murakami is something else entirely. The fucking GRAVITY. I’m not a Murakami guy so much but holy hell that book

The only Murakami worth the paper.

Great shout on a JCC book read by the man himself too.

Forgot to mention - Michael Shannon reading Denis Johnson’s “The Starlight on Idaho” is one of the best readings I’ve ever heard. It’s one of those rare instances where the reading feels so intertwined with the text that it’s hard for me to pull them apart. That one is collected in The Largesse of the Sea Maiden.

Similarly great -Craig Wasson (Body Double) reading any of James Ellroy’s books. Start with the Underworld trilogy if you haven’t (or if it’s been a while), though I don’t think he reads the first one. One year I listened to all of those recordings in one long go and I was hooked. I had already read most of the books, too.

Tree wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2024 8:31 am

Dave N. wrote: Tue Apr 23, 2024 2:32 pmMy main gripe with audiobooks is usually the reader.

I think the author should have to read it if they are still alive and able. That way they get to hear how clunky some of their sentences are just like the listener does.

Mostly agree. Samantha Irby and Lindy West reading their own audiobooks makes the material funnier than it would be in almost any other form.
Some people are just not good at it, though. Even if they can craft a sentence.

Into the Void by Geezer Butler is fantastic. Funny, self-deprecating, down-to-earth. He’s a charming fellow.

I finished Geezer’s memoir. It was great! Now listening to The Lives of Brian by AC/DC’s Brian Johnson. That man is a born storyteller.

It's not my cup of tea storywise, but I recently pulled in the 1981 BBC Radio production of Lord of the Rings, which is chock full of fantastic performances and, for my money, its best version. Fantastic bedtime ambience.

What Does This Button Do? by Bruce Dickinson is a lot of fun. These metal guy autobiographies are always good. Rob Halford’s book is up next.

A_Man_Who_Tries wrote: Wed Oct 09, 2024 7:34 am It's not my cup of tea storywise, but I recently pulled in the 1981 BBC Radio production of Lord of the Rings, which is chock full of fantastic performances and, for my money, its best version. Fantastic bedtime ambience.

Reminds me that there is a very good BBC radio play production of Vasily Grossman’s Stalingrad on Audible somewhere. Highly recommended.

llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Sat Apr 19, 2025 2:09 pm

A_Man_Who_Tries wrote: Wed Oct 09, 2024 7:34 am It's not my cup of tea storywise, but I recently pulled in the 1981 BBC Radio production of Lord of the Rings, which is chock full of fantastic performances and, for my money, its best version. Fantastic bedtime ambience.

Reminds me that there is a very good BBC radio play production of Vasily Grossman’s Stalingrad on Audible somewhere. Highly recommended.

My Shakespeare classes were won and lost based on the strength of those BBC productions. Roger Daltry in Merchant of Venice is a travesty, but I got a chuckle from my teacher in an essay claiming it was only bad because Keith Moon had recently died .

I tend to listen to non fiction but the Wolf Hall series is great.

For non fiction I just finished The Science of Weird Shit. Really worth it.