Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™

Click to purchase

Narrated by Rebecca Lowman & Sunil Malhotra

This was the first audiobook I’ve listened to in a while that completely captured my attention to the point where I kept the car idling so I could keep listening (on more than one occasion.)

I met Rainbow Rowell of the fabulous alliterative name at the audiobook dinner at the Public Library Association meeting in Indianapolis this past March. She claimed nervousness, yet was gregarious and charming. I just adored her.

After hearing her speak (she was a last minute replacement for an ailing Walter Mosely) I was completely entranced. She talked about how she never wanted to listen to her books on audio because she already had the voices in her head. But she was asked for input on the readers for this book, so she succumbed and listened. She said these readers brought another dimension to the book that she wasn’t expecting. I was intrigued and decided to give it a listen. I’m very glad I did.

Set in 1986, Eleanor (read by Lowman) is poor, so poor she doesn’t even own a toothbrush. Her mother is married to an abusive second husband who had thrown Eleanor out of the house for over a year. She lived with friends of her mother’s, and her father was just out of the picture. She has returned to live with her mother and younger siblings when the book opens. She meets Park (read by Malhotra) on the bus when he is the only one to let her sit down. Eventually they form an uneasy alliance, which turns to friendship, and eventually to love.

Eleanor’s family life is difficult at best, and Park’s more normal family seems almost like a fairy tale to Eleanor. Her troubles grow as she is picked on in school, and on the bus, and eventually all her troubles come to a head with her stepfather. Some of this was pretty disturbing, and it is a credit to the author and the readers that I felt so drawn to these characters and their story.

Although classified as Young Adult, the themes of love, dysfunctional families and more are universal and I never found myself thinking that this book was not written for adults. The story is completely engrossing, the characters full developed, and the setting and time period were interesting and believable. I loved it.

6/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

ELEANOR & PARK by Rainbow Rowell. Listening Library (Audio); Unabridged edition (February 26, 2013). ISBN 978-0385368261. Listening Length: 8 hours and 56 minutes.

Click to purchase

Read by Kate Rudd

Right up front I should mention that I have a hard time listening to audiobooks, at least adult ones. My mind tends to wander and suddenly I realize I have no idea what’s going on or where I am in the book.

That said, I read all the Harry Potter on audio (Jim Dale is simply mesmerizing) and I’ve listened to a few other children’s books and now this, a YA (Young Adult) by John Green.

I had lunch with Green, and about a thousand other librarians, at the Public Library Association conference in Indianapolis in March. And with the arrival of the film version of the book, I was, let’s call it, professionally curious. I almost always prefer the book to the movie, and frankly, I’m in no rush to see the film but I am glad I read the book.

I received the audio version as part of a swag bag at the PLA audio book dinner, so I thought I’d give it a try. Kate Rudd is an excellent reader. She held my attention throughout and sounded authentic to each character.

Speaking of characters, each is richly imagined and realized here. Hazel is a 16-year-old with a terminal cancer diagnosis. She takes her portable oxygen with her to a teen support group, where she meets Augustus Waters. Augustus has been in remission for over a year after losing his leg to cancer. They share a love of reading, and Hazel is obsessed with a book that has no ending, presumably because the narrator dies of cancer. Augustus becomes equally obsessed, and eventually they travel to Amsterdam to meet the author and learn the ending.

Things don’t go as planned but Hazel & Augustus fall in love, lose their virginity and have to deal with the deadly realities of cancer. There is humor, pathos and of course, tearjerking galore in this sweet love story that also happens to be about cancer.

As a parent, I think (I hope!) I bring a different perspective than the millions of teens who adore this book. I didn’t love it but I can definitely see it’s appeal. Green has written an engrossing tale of teen angst that adults may also enjoy.

6/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green. Audible Audio Edition. Brilliance Audio (January 10, 2012). ASIN B006VPAXQY. Listening Length: 7 hours and 14 minutes.