An unsolved mystery haunts this dark, meandering story of memory and past choices. Newly released from prison and adrift, Ben returns to St. Helen's, Wisconsin, his hometown, after the death of his uncle. Leaving behind a career in medicine, Lauren has also retreated to St. Helen's to regroup after a dangerous marriage. Unfolding from memories and told from multiple perspectives, the story is well served by the three narrators, Scott Holst, Aaron Bennett, and David Collins. Their performances lend credibility and clarity to the sometimes unreliable characters. In particular, Holst shines when bringing to life email exchanges and drunken epiphanies while Collins's forceful pacing captures a character's madness. Bennett's alternation between self-assuredness and vulnerability adds tension to the developing relationship between Ben and Lauren as the past slowly resolves.
Pub Date: June 26, 2012
Duration: 14 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781611134575
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This audiobook is initially daunting. Sixteen hours long and constructed of subtle—at times, even confusing—shifts in point of view, it may feel overwhelming in the first hour. But sticking with George Newbern’s narration and Gilbert’s prose yields great rewards. Newbern’s performance is funny, thoughtful, heartrending, and utterly engrossing. When the famous, now aging, author A.N. Dyer calls his distant sons to his side, Newbern is provided ample characters to animate, and he does so with perfect pacing and what seems like an innate understanding of the novel. He creates a rhythm that makes the changing perspectives easy to follow and Gilbert’s details accessible. & SONS is a perfect example of how a skilled narrator can make a good book even better.
Pub Date: July 23, 2013
Duration: 16 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9780385359566
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Following multiple lives over six decades, this is a story of cultural shifts, the effects of racial prejudice, and family secrets. Joy Osmanski's narration is engaged and easy to listen to. There are times when her narration is uneven and character accents are inconsistent, but she moves the story along at an excellent pace. Will Damron capably narrates a few descriptive paragraphs at the beginning to set the scene. During the '50s, as bombs are explode in Nevada's deserts to entertain Las Vegas tourists, four sets of characters experience the destruction caused by prejudice and social upheaval in their lives. The author skillfully integrates the lives of vivid and realistic characters, bringing them to a satisfying and surprising denouement in the final chapters.
Pub Date: May 2, 2017
Duration: 11 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781508234715
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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