Behind the Mic With Kirkus Reviews

Actor Geena Davis narrates her hilarious memoir about growing up a polite young lady who eventually challenged the entertainment industry. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Michele Cobb discuss how the story traces her awkward upbringing to model to movie star, illuminating more about her relationships and influences. An icon of feminist films, Davis retraces her steps in finding her voice. Fans of her...

Quinta Brunson is a comic and successful television writer who brings all of her talents to her hilarious memoir, stuffed full of anecdotes about her unconventional career path. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Michele Cobb discuss Brunson’s essays that recount her childhood, her previous jobs, and her success creating the hit TV series “Abbott Elementary.” Brunson is generous with personal insights a...

U2 frontman and activist Bono sings like an Irish tenor but performs his memoir with a resonant baritone that sounds clear and effortless. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Michele Cobb discuss how Bono does an excellent job presenting his own words, and the singing, music, and sound effects combine for a real listening experience. Fans will undoubtedly want to hear this audio version of Bono’s story t...

Stifled by protocol his entire life, Prince Harry has a lot to say as he addresses rumors and lies in his memoir. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Michele Cobb discuss how Harry and his wife Meghan have captured the interest of the world from their wedding to high-profile interviews, a Netflix documentary, and now this much anticipated autobiography by the prince himself. Prince Harry’s voice is clear...

Actor, comedian, and writer Rob Delaney narrates the ineffably sad events surrounding the brief life and death of his third son, Henry. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Michele Cobb discuss a memorable audiobook that makes you feel for the actor and his family. Delaney’s subdued voice and resolute cadence provide the perfect vehicle for the crushing sorrow and towering anger he experienced at having h...

Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Alan Minskoff discuss an audiobook centered around Treasury Secretary and former Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s essential empathy. Christine Padovan narrates this biography of a woman who has reached the highest levels of public service with a subtle, thoughtful voice and slight New York accent. Owen Ullmann writes of Yellen’s life of exceptional achievement, her economic ac...

John Hopkins’s rich, dramatic voice suits Max Hastings’s account of the 13 days of the Cuban Missile Crisis, when the world was on the verge of a nuclear catastrophe. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Alan Minskoff discuss how Hopkins narrates this dramatic and crucial moment in history, now more than 60 years ago. Here is an audiobook for those who relish detailed and dramatic history, those who want...

Christine Lakin’s enthusiasm and authenticity lure the listener into Leila Philip’s world of beavers. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Alan Minskoff discuss this homage to the ingenuity and group intelligence of these remarkable dam builders and water capturers. Philip casts a wide net as she delves into the cultural significance of beavers to some North American tribes, stresses how vitally important...

Anand Giridharadas narrates his work in a serious tone and journalistic style. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Alan Minskoff discuss an audiobook that tells stories of how committed activists use persuasion in organizing to attract supporters. He reads with a storyteller’s sense as he introduces the Internet Research Agency—a Russian troll farm that won both liberal and conservative Americans’ hearts...

A marvelous narration brings the comedian, activist, vegetarian, and civil rights leader Dick Gregory vividly to life. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Alan Minskoff discuss how Joe Morton’s narration is a marvel of emulation, impersonation, and soulful rejuvenation of Gregory. Along with having mastered Gregory’s unique style, he captures his humility, candor, and sense of fun. Famous at an early age...

Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Kendra Winchester discuss a detailed examination of disability rights in America since the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990. Ben Mattlin’s work details the history of the disability rights movement and how it has progressed, and Anthony Michael Lopez narrates with a vibrant performance. Each chapter captures the listener’s attention and clearly lays out t...

Vera Chok narrates An Yu’s eerie novel full of dreams of talking mushrooms and heartbroken musicians. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Kendra Winchester discuss the story of Song Yan, who lives with her husband and mother-in-law in a Beijing apartment. Everyone tells her she should be happy, but she exists in a fog of loneliness. The mystery of the novel begins when a package of unusual mushrooms arri...

Bushra Rehman performs her novel of a queer Pakistani American girl coming of age and deciding what she wants to do with her life. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Kendra Winchester discuss this novel, a working class story of growing up as a girl in Queens. Razia Mirza is the daughter of Pakistani immigrants, and while her parents are very traditional, Razia begins to want something different from th...

Host Jo Reed spoke with author Brad Meltzer and Golden Voice narrator Scott Brick about their longtime collaboration, and about Meltzer’s new nonfiction audiobook, THE NAZI CONSPIRACY, out today. Both truly appreciate the other’s work—listen to their conversation about their many years of working together on audiobooks, the research that goes into the writing and narration of Meltzer’s works, and...

Meg Howrey performs her latest novel, a captivating story set against the backdrop of 1980s and ’90s Manhattan. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile contributor Kendra Winchester discuss the intense atmosphere that Howrey creates. Carlisle grew up with her mother in the midwest, spending summers with her father, Robert, and his partner, James. As an adult, Carlisle is now estranged from her father and losin...

Adam Lazarre-White performs S.A. Cosby’s reissued debut novel. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile contributor Kendra Winchester discuss this story of Nathan Waymaker, a former law enforcement officer now working at his cousin’s funeral home. When a local pastor dies under mysterious circumstances, Waymaker is approached to look into the pastor’s death. Lazarre-White’s subtle performance is a master class...

Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Emily Connelly discuss an audiobook that can be a gentle, compassionate guide for the year ahead. HOW TO KEEP HOUSE WHILE DROWNING is KC Davis’s welcoming, affirming audiobook about taking care of your house and yourself when the world is overwhelming. Her voice is warm and understanding; whether listeners are struggling with depression or the ongoing pandemic, have yo...

Listeners will love adventuring with Callie, a nonbinary twelve-year-old determined to become a knight. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Emily Connelly discuss Esme Symes-Smith’s audiobook narrated by Dani Martineck with emotion and great energy. Callie lives in a realm with very strict boundaries between genders—only girls study magic, and boys stick to swordplay. Callie forges their own path ahead,...

Kristen DiMercurio’s warm, expressive voice invites listeners back to Bright Falls as interior designer Astrid Parker and carpenter Jordan Everwood prepare for a televised renovation of the Everwood Inn. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Emily Connelly discuss this excellent follow-up to Ashley Herring Blake’s DELILAH GREEN DOESN’T CARE, which earned a spot on AudioFile’s Best Romance list for 2022. Af...

Joniece Abbott-Pratt brings boundless energy to her narration of Tracy Deonn’s action-packed YA fantasy. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Emily Connelly discuss this compelling sequel to LEGENDBORN, a contemporary fantasy series that draws on the legends of King Arthur. Bree Matthews has unlocked new powers in herself and now must learn to control them to reunite and protect her court and her friends....

Robin Miles returns to narrate Book 2 in N.K. Jemisin’s Great Cities series, and she gives listeners a masterful performance. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Emily Connelly discuss this multidimensional battle between good and evil, continuing the story from THE CITY WE BECAME. The avatars of New York City and its boroughs are fighting for their right to exist—and for the fate of their multiverse. Mi...

We’re closing out this week of AudioFile Favorite interviews by featuring host Jo Reed’s conversation with the producer, director, and writer Dirk Maggs. If you love audio theater, then you know his work — his productions immerse listeners in the worlds that he creates. In a career spanning 30 years, he’s won many national and international awards. He first made a name for himself turning DC comic...

AudioFile’s revisiting favorite interviews from Behind the Mic, and today we’re featuring a conversation with Golden Voice narrator and actor Adjoa Andoh. Listen to host Jo Reed and Adjoa as they discuss her career in acting and audiobooks, the power of acting, and the incredible success of “Bridgerton,” the Netflix series in which she plays scene-stealer Lady Danbury. Adjoa Andoh is a well-loved...

AudioFile is revisiting favorite interviews all this week, and we had to highlight one from way back in the beginning of Behind the Mic: Jo Reed’s interview with LeVar Burton. We all know LeVar from “Roots,” as the beloved host of “Reading Rainbow,” and the host of his podcast “LeVar Burton Reads,” and more iconic roles. Here, LeVar and Jo discuss his friend and mentor, Fred Rogers, and how he jum...

We’re revisiting favorite interviews this week, and today’s is a moving conversation with the always inspiring author Jason Reynolds. Host Jo Reed and Jason Reynolds talk about STAMPED, his young readers’ remix of Ibram X. Kendi’s STAMPED FROM THE BEGINNING, and they also talk about the importance of writing for younger readers, the power of audiobook listening, and meeting kids where they are. Ja...