Alaska Jackson tenderly narrates the author's initial message-- "Please read this story with care"--after she recites a number of content warnings. She powers up her narration as she describes high school graduate Blake's strong feelings for her love, Ella. Jackson's volume and pitch go up when Blake, aided by alcohol, becomes "Big Bad Bee." Her portraits of Blake continue to change throughout. She shows Blake's heedlessness and boastfulness when she drinks to get beyond racial microaggressions, as well as her anxiety about getting into a select sorority for women of color. Jackson projects Blake's regret and worry in post-alcoholic blurs. Jackson also gets minor characters just right--mean girls, wealthy white men, distant parents, her anxious bff--and she carefully renders Blake's reactions to them.
(Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 14, 2024
Duration: 8 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781250343444
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Winslow’s deep voice and emotional resonance suit an overwhelmed teenager with too much on her plate.
Andia Winslow narrates this witchy YA fantasy. The witches in 17-year-old Mikaela’s coven are having their magic stolen, and as the next Witch Queen, she’s expected to solve this mystery. She also helps out at her family’s occult shop, and when a beautiful new girl in town visits Mikaela for a tarot reading, she is struck by a vision of her own murder at the stranger’s hand. Winslow easily differentiates characters of different genders and ages and seamlessly shifts between African American Vernacular English and Standard American English. She elegantly adjusts her pacing for action scenes and political debates.
Winslow’s deep voice and emotional resonance suit an overwhelmed teenager with too much on her plate. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 11, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 38 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217342082
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Aug. 18, 2026
Graves’ credible performance brings a fresh and different take to this coming-of-age story.
This is the audio diary of one year in the life of Zakiyyah, a Black Muslim teen in Boston who is pursuing a year of spiritual, lifestyle, and romantic goals. Precocious Zakiyyah sees herself as different from her peers, despite the familiar vocal fry and subtle adolescent whine that narrator Yusra Graves gives her. Graves’ performance shifts from giddy highs and righteous anger to boredom and frustration. Occasionally, a Zakiyyah from the near future interjects, addressing her husband in a stronger and sweeter tone than the one used by her younger self. That strength also surfaces in the Arabic and English words of young Zakiyyah’s prayers, reflecting how she finds fulfillment and calm in her faith before she achieves it in the rest of her life.
Graves’ credible performance brings a fresh and different take to this coming-of-age story. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217342174
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Aug. 24, 2026
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