Another great audiobook

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card, read by Stefan Rudnicki and a full cast

Not surprisingly, when I look up the reviews for the next great audiobook I listened to, it's also an AudioFile Earphones award winner. Check out the review here, and listen to a short clip.

Ender's game is the story of Andrew ("Ender") Wiggins, a child genius who is recruited by the military at age five to fight in the ultimate war again the aliens. We follow his experiences at an off-planet school for child soldiers, where he is ostracized early by his combination of skill, young age, and the manipulation of the military handlers who hope to create a new breed of commander. Ender excels in the zero-gravity "battle room" training exercises, but must struggle to understand his place in this strange and often brutal military world populated almost entirely by other children. Before Ender reaches adolescence, he will have the opportunity to the course of history forever.

This is one of the absolutely classic science fiction titles. When I've talk about science fiction with friends, this is the number one title that jumps out of my their mouths. Perhaps because I wasn't a big SF fan when I was younger, I seem to be the only person I know who didn't read this book as a teenager, or even a kid. For some reason it's in the adult section at our library, which I think is unfortunate since it's one of those great, smart stories which presents challenging ideas from a child's point of view. Sure this story is substantial enough to appeal to adults, but so are many kids' novels. The story is read by a full cast of actors, and the narration is both compelling and easy to listen to. I got lost in this story for days, and was sad (in that particular nerdy book-loving 12 year old way) when it finished. A great story to go back and find if you missed it! And a great SF book for all of you who think you're not really the SF type.

hooray for audiobooks!

Okay, so I've recently been recovering from a concussion. I don't suggest it, really. Especially if you're also daylighting as a librarian. But while I've been unable to read any books over about 15 pages recently, I've been listening to audiobooks. Thank you universe for audiobooks. Without which I might seriously have lost it.

I'll try to share a few of my favourites. To begin:

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, written and read by Sherman Alexie

Not only is Sherman Alexie a talented writer, and funny as fuck, he's also a fantastic speaker and storyteller. You've probably heard of this book already - it's (fairly) received a lot of great press. But this is also one of those rare treats where we get to hear the original author read their own work, with the knowledge that no one else could possibly have done a better job. The book follows the adventures of fourteen year-old Arnold Spirit (AKA "Junior") as he decides to head out beyond the world of the rez and attend high school in the nearby (and overwhelming white) small town farming community, while still living at home on the reservation. Alexie doesn't shy away from the difficult, and this story has more than its fair share of death and heart-wrench, but it also has its own brand of smart, cutting, dorky, honest and deeply perceptive humour. And by humour I mean don't risk drinking milk while you listen to this story. I know the original has comics included, but somehow this version didn't leave me feeling like I'd missed anything. A truly consummate audiobook.

Check out Sherman Alexie's website under "Audio" for an mp3 clip from the audiobook, and for a list of the stupid number of awards and prizes this book/audiobook has received. Of particular note for the audio version is the Earphones award from AudioFile. AudioFile is a fantastic review source just for audiobooks - check out the AudioFile review here (and click on "listen" for an excerpt.)