Book picks similar to
Phreaks by Matthew Derby


audible
fiction
historical-fiction
audiobooks

Foreverywhere


Steve Burns - 2019
    But first, they’ll have to contend with the increasingly strange weather that seems to follow Princess Rainbow everywhere, and a rival band determined to bring them down. Will this group of misfits be able to rise above? Created by Steve Burns (Blue’s Clues, The Moth) and Steven Drozd (Grammy Award-winning multi-instrumentalist for The Flaming Lips), this musical odyssey explores themes of friendship, building self-confidence, and overcoming obstacles to follow your dreams and rock out! ©2019 Audible Originals, LLC (SFO) (P)2019 Audible Originals, LLC

Olio Live


Tyehimba Jess - 2019
    In Olio Live - a very special one-night performance recorded live at the Minetta Lane Theater in February 2019 - poet Tyehimba Jess introduces listeners to his 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning collection Olio. He is joined on stage by writer, editor, and Literaryswag founder Yahdon Israel, as well as a stellar cast of actors interpreting a selection of the poems from the collection. You’ll meet William "Blind" Boone, Sissieretta Jones, and a host of other characters, all based on real historical figures from the ragtime scene at the turn of the 20th century. As you listen, Jess’s poetry asks you to consider the nature of identity, performance, and ever-present history. Tyehimba Jess is the author of two books of poetry, Leadbelly and Olio. In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, Olio won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, The Midland Society Author’s Award in Poetry, and received an Outstanding Contribution to Publishing Citation from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. Yahdon Israel is a writer, editor, and creator of Literaryswag. He has written for Avidly, The New Inquiry, Brooklyn Magazine, LitHub, and Poets and Writers. He is the host of the Literaryswag Book Club, and the host of LIT, a weekly web series about books and culture.

The Science of Sci-Fi: From Warp Speed to Interstellar Travel


Erin Macdonald - 2019
    While not every story is concerned with the hard science behind space travel and other futuristic ventures, fiction can give listeners an amazing insight into what people could be capable of and what people dream of doing.In the 10 lectures of The Science of Sci-Fi: From Warp Speed to Interstellar Travel, Professor Erin Macdonald interweaves real science and the achievements of the imagination to reveal the truth that underlies favorite stories and sheds light on what the future may hold. From faster-than-light travel to journeys through time itself, science fiction makes humanity seem limitless. So, what scientific boundaries are people pushing against while seeking to fly among the stars?Listening Length: 3 hours and 59 minutes

Certain Woman of an Age


Margaret Trudeau - 2020
    Through vividly told public and private anecdotes, the Audible Original weaves a raw and revealing journey of motherhood, loss, mental illness, and feminism. Co-written with Alix Sobler and directed by Kimberly Senior, Certain Woman of an Age is "fearless and vulnerable" (Chicago Tribune).International mental health advocate Margaret Trudeau brought her intimate solo performance, Certain Woman of an Age, to the Minetta Lane Theatre, where it was recorded live for Audible Theater.

A Love Like This


Abubakar Adam Ibrahim - 2021
    The cause? Love. To make sense of these vivid memories he cannot shake, he travels from Abuja to Kano with his new friend and love interest Aziza to meet an old woman who he might have known in a past life. She is skeptical at first—and hesitant to revisit painful memories of her own—but together, they dig deeper and deeper into the past, piecing together a shared history with ripple effects that could shape Lalo’s future.

Peter Pan [Audible Drama]


J.M. Barrie - 2019
    Barrie’s magical masterpiece.This enchanting adaptation of the enduring story of the boy who never grows up, produced in association with Great Ormond Street Hospital, stars Rupert Everett as the villainous Captain Hook and Adeel Akhtar as his right-hand man Smee. Beloved by both children and adults alike, the entire family will be transported to a world made of faith, trust, and pixie dust.This Audible Original Drama of Peter Pan takes listeners on a magical adventure with Peter, Wendy, Michael and John as they arrive in Neverland and take on Captain Hook with the help of Tiger Lilly and Tinker Bell. The story begins at home in London during The Blitz and Mary Darling is planning to evacuate her children to the countryside. However, her plans take an unexpected turn when a familiar face from her childhood returns...the one and only Peter Pan, the mysterious boy from Kensington Gardens. Intrigued by their mother’s friend, Wendy, Michael and John seek Peter Pan out, resulting in them being whisked off to Neverland and setting up home with Peter, Tinker Bell and The Lost Boys. As Peter and his gang come up against the wickedly evil Captain Hook their friendships and relationships are put to the test - can Wendy be honest with Peter about how she really feels, and will Michael and John return home without their sister? Rupert Everett (The Happy Probe, My Best Friend’s Wedding) stars as Captain Hook alongside Adeel Atkhar (Four Lions, Killing Eve) as Smee, Gerran Howell (Catch-22, Emerald City) as Peter Pan and Eleanor Worthington Cox (Maleficant, Britannia) as Wendy alongside a full cast. To mark the release of this drama, Audible has donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital (https://www.gosh.org), to whom J. M. Barrie unexpectedly and generously gifted his copyright of Peter Pan.Performed by: Adeel Akhtar, Mariska Ariya, Catherine Bailey, Rupert Everett, Neil Frost, William Harper, Gerran Howell, Simon Kane, Mack Keith Roach, Rocco Padden, Richard Reed, Maya Shepelev, Louis Suc, Harry Tuffin and Eleanor Worthington-Cox.Public Domain (P)2019 Audible, Ltd

The Cycle of Arawn: The Complete Trilogy


Edward W. Robertson - 2014
    Penniless. Alone. But devoted to learning the dark magic of his world.His quest will take him from the city gutters to a foreign land of sorcerers. To a war for independence. And finally, to another war--this time, for his people's very survival.THE CYCLE OF ARAWN is a complete trilogy of 1600 pages--over half a million words of strife, civil war, friendships made and broken, and one man's obsession to become the greatest sorcerer since the days of the gods.

True West


Sam Shepard - 1981
    Sons of a desert dwelling alcoholic and a suburban wanderer clash over a film script. Austin, the achiever, is working on a script he has sold to producer Sal Kimmer when Lee, a demented petty thief, drops in. He pitches his own idea for a movie to Kimmer, who then wants Austin to junk his bleak, modern love story and write Lee's trashy Western tale.

You Can Thank Me Later


Kelly Harms - 2019
    Oldest brother Pete and his wife are expecting their first child. Youngest sibling Sophie is too busy running her restaurant, The Little Plum, to bother with any kind of social life. And middle child Charlie's happy, uncomplicated life as a Midwestern science professor is upended when his wife Annette is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Knowing this will be her last Thanksgiving, Annette asks Sophie to look after Charlie after she's gone. Which would be a lot easier if Charlie didn't show up with an insufferable new girlfriend at the next holiday meal.From the best-selling author of The Overdue Life of Amy Byler, this heartwarming novella embraces the spirit and gratitude of the holiday, and shows how a family's love can endure anything.Listening Length: 3 hours and 5 minutes

Dodge & Twist: A Sequel To Oliver Twist


Tony Lee - 2011
    When a meeting with the now grown-up Artful Dodger leads Oliver into a scheme to regain his money, he begins to wonder just how accidental the meeting was, as friends and foes from his past begin to mount up in a plan to steal the fabled Koh-I-Noor diamond from the 1851 Great Exhibition.As the heist progresses, Oliver is pulled back into a world he hoped to escape from a decade earlier, a world of deception and betrayal, where every ally is a potential enemy and where his so called 'friend' Dodger is speaking to the ghost of the long dead Fagin - and planning his revenge on Oliver.Oliver finds himself in a maze of lies and half truths while escaping the police, the East End underworld and Dodger's own violent plans - visiting his once home town and workhouse, Fagin's Saffron Hill den, Sowerberry's Undertakers, the British Museum and Newgate Prison in the process, as he faces his own demons, including the now destitute Mister Bumble, his one time bully Noah Claypole, and his guilt over the death of Nancy, a decade earlier...In a situation that can only end with a noose around his neck, Oliver must find a way out of this nightmare - or forever stay a pawn in a game far bigger than that of the people around him, a game he must win at all costs...DODGE & TWIST is a rollercoaster ride through Victorian London, involving characters from OLIVER TWIST in a brand new, thrilling adventure.TONY LEE is an award winning writer of audio dramas and comics, the ongoing writer of IDW's DOCTOR WHO series for both Tenth and Eleventh Doctors and the writer of OUTLAW: THE LEGEND OF ROBIN HOOD and EXCALIBUR: THE LEGEND OF KING ARTHUR, both American Library Association 'Books for Teens' finalists. His graphic novel adaptation of PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES topped the New York Times Bestselling Graphic Novel list in 2010."Tony Lee is one of the best story-tellers working in comics today" - Michael Moorcock"Tony Lee is a supremely talented writer" - MTV Network"One of the fastest rising stars among the new generation of British comic writers" - Comics International

The Magdalen Girls


V.S. Alexander - 2016
    Within the gated grounds of the convent of The Sisters of the Holy Redemption lies one of the city’s Magdalen Laundries. Once places of refuge, the laundries have evolved into grim workhouses. Some inmates are “fallen” women—unwed mothers, prostitutes, or petty criminals. Most are ordinary girls whose only sin lies in being too pretty, too independent, or tempting the wrong man. Among them is sixteen-year-old Teagan Tiernan, sent by her family when her beauty provokes a lustful revelation from a young priest. Teagan soon befriends Nora Craven, a new arrival who thought nothing could be worse than living in a squalid tenement flat. Stripped of their freedom and dignity, the girls are given new names and denied contact with the outside world. The Mother Superior, Sister Anne, who has secrets of her own, inflicts cruel, dehumanizing punishments—but always in the name of love. Finally, Nora and Teagan find an ally in the reclusive Lea, who helps them endure—and plot an escape. But as they will discover, the outside world has dangers too, especially for young women with soiled reputations. Told with candor, compassion, and vivid historical detail, The Magdalen Girls is a masterfully written novel of life within the era’s notorious institutions—and an inspiring story of friendship, hope, and unyielding courage.

Body Of Proof


Darrell Brown - 2019
    A man was convicted. Case closed?Body of Proof, a true crime podcast, examines the many unanswered questions surrounding the disappearance and death of Suzanne Pilley in Edinburgh in 2010 and the subsequent conviction of David Gilroy. Journalists and TV producers Darrell Brown and Sophie Ellis spent two years investigating the case and spoke exclusively to David Gilroy, who was convicted of murdering Suzanne Pilley and disposing of her body. Sentenced to life in a Scottish prison, Gilroy maintains his innocence. Although police believe they have the right man, key components of the prosecution’s case are missing: there is no body of the victim, no witnesses to the crime, and no physical evidence (no DNA, CCTV video, or murder weapon).In this gripping, step-by-step investigation, Darrell Brown and Sophie Ellis uncover startling information not heard in court that might have changed the minds of the jurors. And they shine a light on aspects of the Scottish criminal justice system that might be keeping an innocent man behind bars.A What’s the Story Films production for Audible.

Sleeping Dogs Lie


Samantha Downing - 2021
    When she brings him back to his house, she finds his owner—Todd Burke, a well-known local businessman and founder of an organic supplements company—dead on the bathroom floor. As a detective interviews Shelby, a medical examiner inspects the body, and more cops search Todd’s home, it becomes clear that the victim’s life was less picture-perfect than his clean-cut persona might lead you to believe.

The Invisible Women's Society


Nikki GemmellHolly Robinson - 2019
    It involves three of her old school mates, forgetting the husband she's just separated from, and an odyssey into the Australian outback. These warm, wise, feisty, fabulous 50-something women are all approaching the 'Age of Invisibility' - but they won't go quietly into that gentle night. . .The comedic audio drama by esteemed writer Nikki Gemmell (author of 'The Bride Stripped Bare') is a pertinent multicast story about female friendship and embracing the next phase of life. 'The Invisible Women's Society' explores the experience of middle-age female invisibility through the eyes of the newly separated Lou and her friends as they return to the dustbowl hometown they'd long left behind. Tensions mount as a school reunion goes awry, betrayals resurface, old flames are revisited and visits to estranged parents get awkward.These women all become someone else as the trip into this desert heartland progresses. Perhaps they are becoming the people they'd always wanted to be. Looser, braver, wilder,. Because the Age of Invisibility has been bearing down upon them all. Ungrateful kids, husbands (or not quite), being ignored at bars, sexual discrimination and job restlessness be damned, these women won't go out with a whimper. The time has come to ROAR.This series contains mature themes, and listener discretion is advised.©2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd. (P)2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd

Carnival Row: Tangle in the Dark


Stephanie K. Smith - 2019
    An aspiring poet, her future promises nothing less than brilliance. Then, Vignette Stonemoss walks through the door, and Tourmaline’s world is upended. As she struggles to understand the effect this stranger has on her, Tourmaline and her fellow fae face a looming threat from the human world. War is on the horizon, and their very existence is at stake. And Tourmaline will discover whether love will save her—or destroy her.Carnival Row: Tangle in the Dark is set in the world of the Amazon Original series Carnival Row, created by Travis Beacham and René Echevarria. Carnival Row is available only on Amazon Prime Video.