Coming of Age Audiobooks | Fiction

"Art teacher Daniel Benedetto has cystic fibrosis. At thirty-four, he's already outlived his doctor's 'expiration date,' but that doesn't stop him from giving all he can to his students and his work. When he takes on Caitlin, his landlady's daughter, as a private student, the budding teen painter watches in torment as other people, especially women, treat Daniel like a freak because of his condition. To Caitlin, Daniel is not a disease, not someone to pity or take care of but someone to care for, a friend, and her first real crush. Convinced one of those women is about to hurt him, Caitlin makes one very bad decision."

Laurie Boris (Author), Randi Larson (Narrator)

Audiobook

Gods of the Steppe

"It is the summer of 1945. Germany has been defeated, Hitler has disappeared, and tensions are mounting ever higher along the Russian-Chinese border…where the threat of Japanese invasion haunts. For Petka, no life could be more thrilling and glorious than marching into battle alongside the Red Army. But he is only twelve, the bastard child of a fractured family, trapped in a village too tiny for his bursting spirit. So he must make his own adventure wherever he can find it. And if that means passing off a wolf cub as a puppy under the nose of his ferocious grandma, stealing bootleg alcohol for the bivouacked troops he worships, smuggling himself in a barrel across the border and into the line of fire, fighting for his life when his own aimless peers turn inexplicably vicious, or befriending an enigmatic Japanese POW who transcends Petka’s provincial world, then so be it. By turns comical, harrowing, poignant, and exhilarating, Petka reveals the soul of a boy who knows only to take from life all that he can—not merely what his circumstances allow. Nominated for the 2014 Rossica Translation Prize."

Andrei Gelasimov (Author), Nick Podehl (Narrator)

Audiobook

Friends of Whitmore

"Alex works in a gallery in the small Connecticut town where he moved after inheriting his parents’ house. One day, at a local CPR class, he meets Tea, a young woman and aspiring artist who invents a mutual acquaintance named Whitmore as a means of breaking the ice and introducing herself. As their relationship deepens, Alex becomes preoccupied with imagining who Whitmore might be, considering Whitmore to be a paragon of masculine perfection. But when the Whitmore myth begins to unravel, so does Alex’s relationship with Tea. A charming story about how we relate to each other and the devices we sometimes invent in order to make sense of the world around us."

Michael Famighetti (Author), Alexander Cendese (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Car Thief

"Described as 'one of the best coming-of-age novels of the twentieth century,' Theodore Weesner's modern American classic is now on audio! It's 1959. Sixteen-year-old Alex Housman has just stolen his fourteenth car and frankly doesn't know why. His divorced, working-class father grinds out the night shift at the local Chevy plant in Detroit and looks forward to the flask in his glove compartment and the open bottles of booze in his Flint, Michigan, home. Broke and fighting to survive, Alex and his father face the realities of estrangement, incarceration, and even violence as their lives unfold toward the climactic episode that a New York Times reviewer called 'one of the most profoundly powerful in American fiction.' In this rich, beautifully crafted story, Weesner has written a transcendent piece of literature in deceptively simple language, painting a powerful portrait of a father and a son otherwise invisible among the mundane, everyday details of life in blue-collar America. It is a true and enduring American classic."

Theodore Weesner (Author), Richard Powers (Narrator)

Audiobook

Early Decision: Based on a True Frenzy

"A delightful and salacious debut novel about the frightful world of high school, SATs, the college essay, and the Common Application—and how getting in is getting in the way of growing up. Tiger mothers, eat your hearts out. Anne the ''application whisperer'' is the golden ticket to success. Working one-on-one with burned-out, helicopter-parented kids, she can make Harvard a reality. Her phone number is a national secret. Her students end up at the best of the best. But sometimes acceptance comes at an enormous cost. In a world of cheating scandals, huge alumni donations, and lots of inside pull, some parents know no bounds when it comes to ensuring that their children get in. It's Anne's job to guide students to their own destinies, beginning with their essays. Early Decision follows five students—four privileged, one without a penny to her name—as they make their applications and wrestle with fate. To write the perfect personal statement, they must tell the truth. And the stories they tell are of greed, excess, jealousy, deceit, money, ego, and pressure, as well as of endurance, tenacity, victory, and the hope of surviving their parents' wildest dreams so they can begin to live their own lives. Early Decision captures the most ferocious season in a modern family's life. Parents only want the best for their children, and students are fighting for college seats that will give them a head start into work and adulthood. Is it possible to face the fall semester of senior year without losing your mind? Told in part through the students' essays, unsparingly revealing the secrets of college advisors at the highest levels, Early Decision is an explosive insider's guide to college admissions in our day. It's also a sharp commentary on modern parenting. The truth is, the kids are all right. Their essays are fabulous. But the system is broken. With humor and hard-earned wisdom, Early Decision illuminates the madness of the college race."

Lacy Crawford (Author), Erin Moon (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

"Following the events of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn is under the watchful stewardship of the Widow Douglas. However, when he is forced back into his drunken father's custody, Huck fakes his own death and runs off down river. In the process, he meets up with Jim, a runaway slave, and the two become friends as well as travel companions. Their adventures lead them through many twists and turns through the American South, embarking on a legendary journey."

Mark Twain (Author), Eric G. Dove (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

"A pillar of American literature, Mark Twain's prototypical coming-of-age introduces the iconic Tom Sawyer and his best friend Huckleberry Finn. Tom's panache for mischief and unyielding desire for adventure commonly leads him into trouble, but quick wits and a smooth tongue always navigates him to safety. When Tom and Huck witness a murder and the culpable Injun Joe escapes justice, Tom, who testified against the bandit, is left to wonder how he will get out of yet another bind."

Mark Twain (Author), Eric G. Dove (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Gravity of Birds

"How do you find someone who wants to be lost? Sisters Alice and Natalie were once close, but adolescence has wrenched them apart. Alice is a dreamer who loves books and birds; Natalie is headstrong, manipulative – and beautiful. On their lakeside family holiday, Alice falls under the thrall of a struggling young painter, Thomas Bayber. Natalie, however, seems strangely unmoved, tolerating sittings for a family portrait with surprising indifference. But by the end of the summer, three lives are shattered. Decades later, Thomas, now a world-renowned artist, reveals the existence of a portrait of himself with Alice and Natalie from that fateful summer. The sisters themselves have disappeared without a trace. And Thomas is torn between taking the secrets of the girls to the grave, or using the painting to resurrect the past before it closes up on them all for good…"

Tracy Guzeman (Author), Eric Meyers (Narrator)

Audiobook

Tony Hogan Bought Me an Ice-cream Float Before He Stole My Ma

"Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award, the Saltire Scottish First Book of the Year and the Green Carnation Prize ‘More than just one of the best debuts of the year; one of the best books of the year. It should do for Aberdeen what Trainspotting did for Edinburgh’ Louise Welsh, Herald When Janie Ryan is born, she is destined to be the latest in a long line of Aberdeen fishwives. Ahead of her lies a life filled with feckless men, filthy council flats and bread & marge sandwiches. But Janie isn’t like the rest of them. She wants a different life. And Janie, born and bred for combat, is ready to fight for it."

Kerry Hudson (Author), Jane MacFarlane (Narrator)

Audiobook

Flat Water Tuesday: A Novel

"Rob Carrey, the son of a working-class cabinet maker, arrives at the Fenton School with a scholarship to row and a chip on his shoulder. Generations of austere Fenton men have led the rowing team, known as the God Four, to countless victories—but none are as important or renowned as the annual Tuesday-afternoon race against their rival, Warwick. But first Rob must complete months of preparation driven by their captain, Connor Payne's vicious competitive nature. As the race nears, the stakes rise, tempers and lusts are fueled, and no one can prevent the horrible tragedy that befalls one of them. Fifteen years later, Rob returns home from a film shoot in Africa to end a heartbreaking relationship with his girlfriend, Carolyn. But when a phone call from one of the God Four compels him to attend the reunion at Fenton, no part of Rob's past remains sequestered for long and nothing about his future is certain. As much about the sport of rowing as it is a novel of finding oneself, not once, but again in mid-life; Ron Irwin's Flat Water Tuesday is a testament to the pride and passion of youth, and an ode to the journey of forgiveness. A stunning novel of boarding school, family secrets, deep and passionate love, and the brutal pain of sports training"

Ron Irwin (Author), Holter Graham (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Sea of Tranquility: A Novel

"Gone Girl meets The Perks of Being a Wallflower in this critically-acclaimed novel about resilience, forgiveness, love, and second chances. I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk. Two and a half years after an unspeakable tragedy left her a shadow of the girl she once was, Nastya Kashnikov moves to a new town determined to keep her dark past hidden and hold everyone at a distance. But her plans only last so long before she finds herself inexplicably drawn to the one person as isolated as herself: Josh Bennett. Josh’s story is no secret. Every person he loves has been taken from his life until, at seventeen years old, there is no one left. When your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space. Everyone except Nastya who won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. But as the undeniable pull between them intensifies, he starts to wonder if he will ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding—or if he even wants to. The Sea of Tranquility is a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances."

Katja Millay (Author), Candace Thaxton, Kirby Heyborne (Narrator)

Audiobook

One Tiny Lie: A Novel

"In this follow-up novel to the bestselling Ten Tiny Breaths, Livie Cleary faces a new set of challenges as she navigates freshman year at Princeton, wild parties, and the gorgeous rowing team captain who is everything she doesn't want in a guy—or so she thinks… "Make me proud." These were the last words Livie's father ever spoke to her. In the seven years since her parents' tragic death, Livie has done her best to live up to this standard through her every choice, word, and action, while looking after her sister with strength and maturity. But with college right around the corner, unexpected challenges will test her resilience—and her heart. Livie walks into Princeton with a solid plan, and she's dead set on delivering on it: Rock her classes; set herself up for medical school; and meet a good, respectable guy to someday marry. Her plan definitely does not include Jell-O shots; a lovable, party animal roommate she can't say "no" to; or Ashton, the arrogant—and extremely attractive—captain of the men's rowing team who makes Livie's usually nonexistent temper flare. Worse, he's best friends and roommates with Connor, who happens to fit Livie's criteria perfectly. So why does she keep thinking about Ashton? As Livie finds herself facing mediocre grades, career aspirations she no longer thinks she can handle, and feelings for Ashton that she shouldn't have, she's forced to let go of her last promise to her father, and, with it, the only identity she's ever known."

K.A. Tucker (Author), Elizabeth Louise (Narrator)

Audiobook

Coming of Age Audiobooks in Fiction