In the last moments of his life, George Floyd called out for his mother. Dion Graham narrates this passage with such knowing naturalism and compassion that it will just about break listeners’ hearts. With his ease with American regional accents and idioms, Graham follows Floyd’s life from North Carolina to coming of age in the tough Third Ward of Houston, Texas. Sensitive and bighearted, Floyd had early run-ins with police, served time in prison, and was addicted to painkillers. He moved to Minnesota, hoping for a new start. On May 25, 2020, Floyd was murdered by a white Minneapolis policeman. In their introduction the authors ably frame the political and historical significance of Floyd’s death, but it’s Graham’s narration that brings Floyd’s shortened life alive.
Pub Date: May 17, 2022
Duration: 13 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593590423
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Julian Brave NoiseCat delivers a tribute, a social history, and an insightful series of reports from Indian Country. His knowledge of Northwest Salish languages and folkways informs this finely written and thoughtfully delivered audiobook. NoiseCat's witty and erudite pieces on the mythology of Coyote, his unflinching accounts of the horrors of Canadian boarding schools, and his descriptions of the features of contemporary tribes in North America do the listener a real service. He also tells his own family's story: His father, a noted wood-carver, was found in an incinerator; his grandfather was the progenitor of dozens of offspring, and his own remarkable career as co-director of a Sundance Award-winning film and an accomplished powwow dancer adds to the wide-angle story.
Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2025
Duration: 15 hrs
DD ISBN: 9798217165506
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Delivering these essays with a sense of urgency and passion, narrator Karen Chilton is excellent in this powerful audiobook. It opens with the essay "That Day in January," about the January 6th insurrection, and what follows is a perfect mix of history lessons, personal stories, and social commentary. No topic is off-limits as author Jeffers shares vulnerable stories and insightful details of lives lived at the intersection of race, gender, and class. Chilton's delivery perfectly matches the tone of each essay--some reflective, some angry, some educational. Particularly compelling essays include: "History Is a Trigger Warning," "Misbehaving Women," and "On Being Fannie Lou Hamer Tired." Listeners will find that these essays are an invitation to engage in both self-reflection and action.
Pub Date: June 24, 2025
Duration: 11 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063246669
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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