If I had to choose my preferred mode of reading it would be physical books, rather than ebooks or audiobooks. To me, there’s something deeply satisfying about flipping pages, about the way books smell, and—if I’m being totally honest—about the way they look all lined up on a shelf. But I do always have an audiobook on the go for those moments when I don’t have my hands (or eyes) free to skim through the pages.
I’ve found that there are some books that are actually better when experienced via audio, whether that’s because of the structure of the story itself or because of a particularly fantastic narrator. Here are five such examples.
Project Hail Mary (2021) by Andy Weir
My first experience reading Project Hail Mary was with the hardback version—which I got my dad for his birthday and then promptly stole once he’d read it!—and I absolutely loved it. Last month I was in the mood for a reread, but I didn’t want to deal with holding the chunky book, so I decided to try the audiobook…it was definitely the right way to go.
The story starts with an astronaut waking up from a coma; he’s on a spaceship, with no memory of who he is or why he’s there. As his memory gradually returns, he realizes that it’s up to him to crack a scientific mystery that’s threatening humanity. I’m being purposely vague in this description because I think the story works best with as little prior knowledge as possible. The audiobook, narrated by Ray Porter, brilliantly expands upon Weir’s written text by offering up some musical accompaniment, although again, I can’t say any more than that due to spoilers.
While we’re on the subject, I also need to mention the original audiobook for Andy Weir’s The Martian (2011), purely because it’s read by one of my favorite narrators, R. C. Bray. Sadly, Audible now only has the Wil Wheaton rerecord (which I can’t vouch for because I haven’t listened to it!), but some libraries still have the original version.
Emergency Skin (2019) by N.K. Jemisin
Many centuries after a group of people fled the dying Earth to create a colony elsewhere in the universe, the unnamed protagonist of Emergency Skin is sent back to the planet’s destroyed remains to collect critical information. However, Earth isn’t quite as expected when he gets there. Along for the ride is an AI that’s been implanted in his brain and which narrates the story, speaking directly and responding to “you,” meaning the protagonist, who isn’t given their own voice.
Given the one-sided conversational nature of this N.K. Jemisin short story, I went straight to the audiobook. It’s narrated by Jason Isaacs (who you may know as Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter films and or Captain Gabriel Lorca in Star Trek: Discovery, among many, many other roles) and it feels incredibly immersive. The story’s format completely lends itself to the listening experience—just press play and pretend that you’re an off-world person exploring a radically changed future Earth, which is a fun story in and of itself.
Sleeping Giants (2016) by Sylvain Neuvel
Sleeping Giants begins with a short prologue describing a young girl, Rose, falling into a hole in the woods and landing in the center of a huge metal palm. The mystery of where this metal hand came from and what it actually is baffles scientists for years, and Rose grows up to be the physicist leading the team that’s currently attempting to discover its origins and purpose.
The story is told almost entirely through interviews with an unnamed investigator, who is assumed to be a high-ranking government agent putting together a report on the strange object. There are also a few journal entries and newspaper articles interspersed throughout, but because most of the story is told through dialogue, it makes for a perfect audiobook. It’s also performed by a full cast, so each character feels completely distinct.
The book is the first in a trilogy, with Waking Gods (2017) and Only Human (2018) completing the narrative.
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War (2006) by Max Brooks
Why read an oral history when you could listen to it instead? Unlike the interview style of Sleeping Giants, which is a constant back-and-forth conversation, the interviewer of World War Z (voiced by author Max Brooks himself) only offers small prompts to the interviewees. We get to hear the story of the worldwide zombie uprising from many different perspectives and places. As well as the expected stories from soldiers, doctors, and politicians, there are also tales from more surprising observers of the outbreak, including a film director and an astronaut.
There are different versions of the audiobook out there, but I recommend 2013’s World War Z: The Complete Edition (Movie Tie-in Edition). Thankfully, it doesn’t actually have anything to do with the poor excuse of a movie adaptation, other than being released in tandem with the film. As well as being the most complete audio version (although still not totally unabridged), it’s also narrated by an impressive all-star cast. Along with Mark Hamill from the original recording, the 2013 version adds the voices of Nathan Fillion, Simon Pegg, and Martin Scorsese to name just a few; the cast is heavy on sci-fi favorites (including both Denise Crosby and Jeri Ryan, for any Star Trek fans who might need an extra push!). These big names weren’t just stunt cast to pull listeners in, they all do a genuinely amazing job of voicing acting.
But UK Audible listeners beware—for some reason, on the UK site there’s a different version of the audiobook without the star-studded cast. Instead it can be found here (and probably through some libraries).
All Systems Red (2017) by Martha Wells
All Systems Red, the first novella in The Murderbot Diaries series, follows an AI cyborg tasked with providing security for a group of scientists on an alien planet. The Security Unit has hacked its behavior-restricting governor module, meaning that it now has free will. But instead of going on a human-killing rampage, as some robots might do, Murderbot (its chosen name that’s never spoken aloud) gets on with its job and spends its free time indulging in movies, TV shows, books, and music (same here, Murderbot).
Misanthropic and awkward, Murderbot likes to keep to itself, but when things start to go awry, it’s forced to interact a little more directly with the human team. Kevin R. Free’s narration is perfectly suited to the fast-paced and dryly funny story. He absolutely nails the humor, injecting just the right amount of snark into Murderbot’s thoughts and dialogue. There is also a dramatized version—with a full cast and sound effects—but, to me, Free is the definitive voice of Murderbot.
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Let me know which books you think are better in audio format in the comments below! I hear good things about the 2012 version of Bram Stoker’s Dracula with Alan Cumming as Dr Seward and Tim Curry as Van Helsing—should I check it out? And I’ve only ever read Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series in book form—is the Stephen Fry/Martin Freeman reading or the original radio version the way to go? Let’s discuss.
Lorna Wallace has a PhD in English Literature and is a lover of all things science fiction and horror. She lives in Scotland with her rescue greyhound, Misty.
