Sound Recommendations: 3 Late Winter Novels

I'm sure Julia Claiborne Johnson's Be Frank with Me would be great in print, but it is absolutely fabulous in audio. Basic plot & thoughts: A reclusive single-book author is forced to churn out another best-seller before her money runs out. Her New York editor sends Alice, a recent college graduate, to California to be her personal assistant and help out with her son, Frank, who has a form of Asperger syndrome. Alice rarely sees her boss, but becomes 9-year-old Frank's constant companion and gets to know the handyman/piano teacher as well. Much charm and mayhem ensues. Audio: In narrator Tavia Gilbert's expert hands, Frank is the runaway star of the audiobook (Harper Audio; 8 hr, 37 min). Her performance is completely brilliant, and you'll soon forget that there's only one narrator. Recommendation: Do not miss this audiobook; I see many awards in its future.

Even an admirable performance couldn't save Alexander Chee's The Queen of the Night for me. Basic plot & thoughts: World-famous opera singer Lilliet Berne has a secret past that is getting more and more difficult to hide and a controlling ex-lover who is getting harder and harder to escape. The plot was almost painfully slow, and I didn't care enough about any of the characters to either hate or love them. The late-19th-century period details were lovely but not enough to keep me interested. On the other hand, opera buffs will probably like the parts that focus on composers, the life of a professional singer, and the operas themselves. Audio: Narrator Lisa Flanagan handled the many needed European accents with good skill, and her performance was expressive and engaging (Blackstone Audio; 19 hr, 6 min). Recommendation: Unless you are a true opera fan, I'd pass on this one.

I could barely bring myself to stop listening to Sonya Hartnett's brilliant Golden Boys. Basic plot & thoughts: This is a coming-of-age story set in a small Australian town in the early 1980s about two 12-year-olds--Freya Kiley from a large, struggling Catholic family, and Colt Jenson, the well-off new kid on the block--and their families and friends. There is so much to love about this disturbingly authentic look at what happens when adolescents begin to see their parents for who they really are, flaws and all. In particular, Harnett nails children's neighborhood friendships, the one's formed more by proximity than by true commonalities. The novel sheds light on a couple of tough issues and their effects on families. My only complaint is the ambiguous ending. Audio: I was impressed with narrator David Vatousios's ability to tap in to the characters' personalities and to keep the tension humming right to the end (Bolinda; 7 hr, 2 min). Recommendation: Highly recommended in either print or audio.

Note: My full audiobook reviews of these titles are available through AudioFile magazine.