Six talented narrators work together to deliver these immersive short stories, which explore the lasting effect of absence or disappearance upon people's lives. Each well-crafted story evokes a particular place and time, and highlights strongly imagined characters. In the arresting "What You Can't See in the Picture,'' Siiri Scott heightens the tension as she depicts the meticulous work of a police "super recognizer" who searches video images to identify the abductor of a 10-year-old girl. In "Fleeing Gravity," Shaun Taylor-Corbett portrays the fully realized world of Brandy, who works in a ghost town attraction after the loss of his parents. In the moving "Delight," Kyla Garcia transports listeners to Puerto Rico to witness an unexpected romance between a candy shop owner and a tenderhearted surfer.
Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2022
Duration: 5 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798200889310
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
These stories present extraordinary contemporary writing and create a rewarding listening experience.
Novelist Orange has selected a scintillating collection of stories that are thought provoking and well crafted. Among the many pleasures is how well the narrators have been paired with the short stories. Lee Osorio and Ines del Castillo capture the style and tone of the letter-writing father and daughter in Noel Quinones’ “This Time and the Next”; Peter Ganim inhabits the two very different narrators of Kevin Wilson’s insightful “All Stories” and William Pei Shih’s sendup of musical pretention in “The Masterclass”; Jen Zhao performs Guka Han’s haunting “Earshot” sensitively and eloquently.
These stories present extraordinary contemporary writing and create a rewarding listening experience.Pub Date: Sept. 29, 2026
Duration: 11 hrs, 38 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217406777
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Oct. 20, 2026
An intriguing listen, with a narrator who aptly elevates the text’s thoughtful, seductive prose.
Narrator Victoria Villarreal breathes life into Mexican author Rivera Garza’s sweeping essay collection. Blending fiction and journalism, the stories explore travel alongside topics including gender, love, capitalism, and climate change. In one story, two women travel together while feeling threatened by the dangers men can pose. Another follows college students traveling from a rural area to the complicated metropolis of Mexico City. In “The Meaning of Rain,” a woman visits Belfast, Ireland, where she believes her former lover is from, and ponders the rain that once arrived punctually in Mexico City before climate change disrupted its patterns. Villarreal’s clear voice maintains tension, and she switches effortlessly between Spanish and English and among various characters.
An intriguing listen, with a narrator who aptly elevates the text’s thoughtful, seductive prose.Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2026
Duration: 4 hrs, 33 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217405268
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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