Listen In: What Makes a Great Audiobook?
by Laura Simões for the New Hampshire Book Festival
June is Audiobook Appreciation Month, and with the 2025 New Hampshire Book Festival just a few months away, we’re celebrating the many ways people experience great stories—including through audiobooks. Whether you're a lifelong listener or just curious about trying a new format, audiobooks can bring stories to life in surprising and powerful ways.
Have you ever thought about why some audiobooks put you to sleep and others keep you enthralled? The truth is, not every great book becomes a great audiobook.
At the heart of every engaging audiobook is the narrator.
A narrator is like a conductor, setting the pace, tone, and emotion that carry you through a story. A good one doesn’t just read the words—they perform them. They live through the characters, give them unique accents without slipping into stereotypes, and keep the pace interesting. Listen for narrators who use tone, rhythm, and personality to give each character a unique voice.
One standout example is Dominic Hoffman, a prolific audiobook narrator, most recently heard on Percival Everett’s James (Audible’s Audiobook of the Year for 2024). While Hoffman’s southern drawl adds authenticity to James, a retelling of Huckleberry Finn, his narration of The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride uses no accent at all—but delivers the story with steady, compassionate energy.
Match the Voice to the Genre
The narrator and story type should match. For fantasy books, you might appreciate a different voice than one used for current realistic fiction. For relationship books, you need actors who are comfortable expressing feelings. Mystery stories may be best told by people who are good at building drama with tone and tempo. And pacing is especially important for keeping your attention while listening. If you find yourself changing the speed to make the story move faster, it might be worth it to try out different narrators who naturally fit the speed at which you like to listen.
The Special Experience of Author-Read Books
Author-read audiobooks are a treat, with a chance to hear the voice you may have imagined when reading the words on paper. Louise Erdrich reading Night Watchman, a novel based on her own grandfather’s life, adds a layer of intimacy only she could provide. And recognizable voices, like Jake Tapper reading his new book, Original Sin, or Michelle Obama reading her autobiography, Becoming, make the listening experience more familiar and comfortable, almost collegial.
Try a Sample, Then Press Play
The best way to know if you are likely to enjoy an audiobook is to scan an audiobook library (like Hoopla, Libby, or the Gibson’s Bookstore App), and tune in to sample clips. Most are three to five minutes in length—enough to get a sense of how the full book might sound, but not enough to give away any story spoilers.
Audiobook Picks from 2025 Festival Authors
If you’re looking for an audiobook to try, here are a few by 2025 New Hampshire Book Festival authors for your consideration:
Been Wrong So Long It Feels Right, by Walter Mosley, read by Dion Graham
Costumes for Time Travelers, by A.R.Capetta, read by Fabian Cook, Jr.
Great Black Hope, by Rob Franklin, read by Justice Smith
The Icon and the Idealist, by Stephanie Gorton, read by Janina Edwards
Promise Me Sunshine, by Cara Bastone, read by Alex Finke
The Wings of Fire series, by Tui T. Sutherland, read by Shannon McManus
Start listening now, and we’ll see you in October.