Audiobooks Narrated by Lauren Groff

Brawler: The newshort story collection from the bestselling author of Matrix and Fates and Furies

"Brought to you by Penguin. One of our best writers, Lauren Groff returns with a fierce new story collection, her first since the award-winning and bestselling Florida. Ranging from the 1950s to the present day and moving across age, class, and region - from New England to Florida to California - these nine stories reflect and expand upon a single shared theme: the ceaseless battle between the dark and light in all of us. Among those caught in this match are a young woman suddenly responsible for her disabled sibling; a hot-tempered high school swimmer in need of an adult; a mother blinded by the loss of her family; and a banking scion endowed with a different kind of inheritance. Motivated by love, impeded by human fallibility, they try to do the right thing for as long as they can. Precise, surprising and provocative, anchored by profound insight into human nature, Brawler reveals the repeated fracture points between love and fear, compassion and violence, reason and instinct, altruism and survival. It is a timeless, stunning achievement from one of the very best short story writers working today. Praise for Lauren Groff 'Her writing has a timeless quality' The Times on The Vaster Wilds 'Groff's writing is muscular and precise, her themes wildly resonant' Sunday Times on Matrix 'An audacious piece of storytelling, full of passion, wisdom and magic' Sarah Waters on Matrix 'It's as brightly lit as an illuminated manuscript' Naomi Alderman on Matrix 'One of its stories is a bracing read; together they form a masterpiece' Stylist on Florida 'She's a writer whose turn of phrase can stop you in your tracks' Financial Times on Florida 'Easily the year's best story collection' Vogue on Florida © Lauren Groff 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026"

Lauren Groff (Author), Lauren Groff (Narrator)

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The Best Short Stories 2023: The O. Henry Prize Winners

"The prestigious annual story anthology includes prize-winning stories by Jamil Jan Kochai, David Ryan, Kirstin Valdez Quade, Lisa Taddeo, Ling Ma, Catherine Lacey, and Cristina Rivera Garza. "[A] standout collection . . . . Dazzling performances from some of today's most exciting writers. . . . This is one of the best fiction anthologies in years." -Publishers Weekly starred review Continuing a century-long tradition of cutting-edge literary excellence, this year's edition contains twenty prizewinning stories chosen from the thousands published in magazines over the previous year. Guest editor Lauren Groff has brought her own refreshing perspective to the prize, selecting stories by an engaging mix of celebrated names and emerging voices and including several stories in translation. The winning stories are accompanied by an introduction by Groff, observations from the winning writers on what inspired them, and an extensive resource list of magazines that publish short fiction. AN ANCHOR BOOKS ORIGINAL. THE WINNING STORIES: "Office Hours," by Ling Ma "Man Mountain," by Catherine Lacey "Me, Rory and Aurora," by Jonas Eika, translated from the Danish by Sherilyn Nicolette Hellberg "The Complete," by Gabriel Smith "The Haunting of Hajji Hotak,' by Jamil Jan Kochai "Wisconsin," by Lisa Taddeo "Ira & the Whale," by Rachel B. Glaser "The Commander's Teeth," by Naomi Shuyama-Gómez "The Mad People of Paris," Rodrigo Blanco Calderón, translated from the Spanish by Thomas Bunstead "Snake & Submarine," by Shelby Kinney-Lang "The Mother," by Jacob M'hango "The Hollow," by 'Pemi Aguda "Dream Man," by Cristina Rivera Garza, translated from the Spanish by Francisca González-Arias "The Locksmith," by Grey Wolfe LaJoie "After Hours at the Acacia Park Pool," by Kirstin Valdez Quade "Happy Is a Doing Word," by Arinze Ifeakandu "Elision," by David Ryan "Xífù," by K-Ming Chang "Temporary Housing," by Kathleen Alcott "The Blackhills," by Eamon McGuinness"

Jenny Minton Quigley, Lauren Groff (Author), Lauren Groff (Narrator)

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