Want to know a little secret? I’m not a huge fan of audiobooks. Or pumpkin spiced anything but you already knew that. Back to audiobooks…there is one type of audiobook that I really enjoy. Author read audiobooks. There’s something about an author reading his or her own words that makes the story come to life.
I’ve listened to a lot of author read books the past couple of months and 3 of them stood out from the others. The books and the ladies who wrote and read them are all so unique and different and I couldn’t stop listening.
1. Troublemaker by Leah Remini
“In this frank, funny, poignant memoir, the former King of Queens star opens up about her experience in the Church of Scientology, revealing the in-depth details of her painful split with the church and its controversial practices.”
I went through the full range of emotions with this book. And the parts about Tom Cruise?!! I was shooketh (isn’t that what kids are saying these days?). I love how Leah held nothing back but she also wasn’t afraid to accept responsibility for her choices.
2. Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham
“In this collection of personal essays, the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood reveals stories about life, love, and working as a woman in Hollywood—along with behind-the-scenes dispatches from the set of the new Gilmore Girls, where she plays the fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore once again.”
This book is an easy, light-hearted listen. Lauren is charming and you feel like you’re just catching up with an old friend. Like the name suggests, Lauren does talk pretty fast so I couldn’t listen to the book much faster than a 1.25x speed. If you’re a Gilmore Girls fan you may even find yourself tearing up 🙂
3. The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish
“Growing up in one of the poorest neighborhoods of South Central Los Angeles, Tiffany learned to survive by making people laugh. If she could do that, then her classmates would let her copy their homework, the other foster kids she lived with wouldn’t beat her up, and she might even get a boyfriend. The Last Black Unicorn is a sidesplitting, hysterical, edgy, and unflinching collection of (extremely) personal essays, as fearless as the author herself.”
If my friend Jaclyn hadn’t told me about this book I don’t know if I would have “read it.” I wasn’t super familiar with Tiffany Haddish although I did think she was funny. When the description says she shares extremely personal stories, that doesn’t even do it justice. You’ll laugh out loud, feel totally uncomfortable, and get to hear the unique story of a poor black girl who’s living out her dream.
