The Coming of Age Audiobook Odyssey: Explore the Best of April 2024
WRITTEN BY Sounded Best Of
ARTICLE TYPE Book of the Week
PUBLISHED ON 2024-04-19
MAIN NARRATION BY Gill Mills TrueVoice
The Coming of Age Audiobook Odyssey: Explore the Best of April 2024
Leading the pack, Top Coming of Age audiobooks to listen to in April 2024.
Ourimbah Road by K T Macdonald
Sonny has lived his life perpetuated by a lie. His life on the streets of Melbourne, haunted by guilt from a life suppressed in a haze of addiction and mental illness. Provoked by an unexpected encounter with his wealthy sibling, Amelia, curiosity finds Sonny facing his frugal subsistence. Allured by the comfort of materialism and safety, he finds himself immersed in his past. The truth he has evaded, forces him to question every belief that has kept him on the peripheral of unity with his family. Charlie, buoyant in her work as a flight attendant, is never in any place long enough to commit to any relationships; transience has enabled her to avoid the darkness plaguing her memory. Disillusion, guilt and heartache are her companions. Will distance keep her safe from the truth that threatens to unravel the web woven to protect her? Unleashed in his truth, will rage placate Sonny’s psychosis? Can they ever be reconciled, or will Sonny’s actions implicate more suffering? Ourimbah Road explores the complex relationships of families; the devastation of secrets, lies, abandonment, the inability to help those we love the most, and the most basic human need—connection.
Secret Diary of a Teenage Nymphomaniac by Cristina Palmer Romero
Set in the late 80s, early 90s, a time when feminism meant women could behave like men, and the gay community in London were coming out of the closet. A time of exciting change as Gen Xers were leading the way towards 3rd wave feminism, the ‘Women can have it all’ approach. That was the plan anyway. London was feeding the world the first inklings of ‘Cool Britannia’ Isabel is caught between the old static world of female conformity and the new world of female masturbation & gay porn. Under the wing of her big sister’s strident feminism, Isabel attempts to be a modern teen. Except she isn’t in London.
Society has collapsed. She almost gave up. But now she's fighting for two. Jess Aaronson's world has descended into madness. She lost her family to the brutal chaos of America's collapse, and nearly lost her spirit from the brutal abuse that followed. But now that she's pregnant, she has a new reason to keep fighting… As she comes to terms with the life growing inside her, Jess flees Tent Five and descends into a land without law. In search of the only family she has left and the home she left behind, the darkness threatens to consume both her and her unborn child. Can Jess find her family, or will her escape come with the ultimate price?
When fifteen-year-old Jack Sligo runs away from his loving Boston-Irish family, he hopes to get a summer job on a cruise ship. His dream becomes a nightmare when two strangers give him mysterious drinks in a waterfront saloon. Jack wakes up, far at sea, shanghaied aboard an African freighter. The ship’s first call is a remote jungle port in Venezuela where there’s plenty of thieves, rum and women, but no opportunity for escape. Manor Nelson, the ship’s bo’sun, is his secret protector. A silent bond grows between them as they fight the inhumanity of the ship’s master and Jack learns the cruelty of segregation. But Jack needs more than friends to survive a vicious life at sea. He plans to escape with the help of seventeen-year-old Winston, a Jamaican, on the ship since he was twelve. He befriends men like stone silent Ebanks, whose black ancestors disgraced themselves as slave traders; Smitty, the dangerous mulatto seaman who is his boss; and “Chips,” the ship’s carpenter from Cayman Brac who knows all about God. Even a curious shipwreck in a jungle fails to sway Jack from his goal to find a way to get home. “Though this is the author’s first book, it is his first-hand experience, having been shanghaied aboard an African freighter, that makes the book come to life. Fans of other sea-set teen novels like Avi’s The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle will like this book, which captures well the story of an utterly inexperienced kid being thrust into a situation he isn’t quite ready for, as well as the adventure he has in exploring new countries and learning to survive on the open sea.” Molly Horan, ForeWord Reviews, Young Adult Fiction “David Collins' novel narrates his remarkable real-life story of running away from home at 15 and being "shanghaied" aboard an African freighter. The book is rich with adventure, longing, and twists that will keep the reader turning the page.” Margot Lee Shetterly, Author, Hidden Figures
Elora has been suspended from the council… …but it’s only the beginning of her journey. Elf Elora is something of a celebrity in her home city. After being tested as a child, it’s discovered that her magical ability is off the charts—it can’t even be measured. Since working as a paranormal investigator at the royal palace and working on a cure for “half curses” Elora has been putting her abilities to good use. Until now… Will her suspension ruin her reputation and put the kindgom at risk? Can she regain their trust? She now teams up with Vertha, a fellow elf she met several years prior. Life goes by as she awaits in the dark... A vicious warlord is planning to ransack the kingdom. Also, Elora's new friend needs help! With chaos everywhere and nothing as it once was, will Elora find it in herself to do what needs to be done? Or will everything go to pieces? Rise of a Sinking Warrior is a young adult fantasy for people who love a slice of the magical world, finding courage and fighting for what is right in the first of this action packed series.
