One of the challenges of being a driver is that your time behind the wheel can sometimes feel long. You can only listen to the same songs or radio commentary for so long before you start to feel stuck in a time loop. And if you turn the radio off, the silence can be deafening. The solution? Audiobooks.
Audiobooks help pass the time by providing the opportunity to become engrossed in a great story, listen to the life events that shaped someone of interest or learn about a topic you’d love to know more about. But with so many to choose from, it can be hard to know which ones to pick.
To help with that, here are the winners of the 2022 Audie Awards—awards issued by the Audio Publishers Association—which were released Friday, March 4, 2022, giving you a good place to start.
- Audiobook of the Year: Project Hail Mary, written by Andy Weir
- Audio Drama: Sherlock Holmes – The Seamstress of Peckham Rye, written by Jonathan Barnes
- Autobiography or Memoir: Somebody’s Daughter, written by Ashley C. Ford
- Best Female Narrator: The Parted Earth, written by Anjali Enjeti
- Best Male Narrator: Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World, written by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
- Business or Personal Development: Machiavelli for Women, written by Stacey Vanek Smith (who also narrates it)
- Español – Spanish Language: La casa de Bernarda Alba, written by Federico García Lorca
- Faith-Based Fiction or Non-Fiction: The Gift of Black Folk, written by W.E.B. Du Bois
- Fantasy: Rhythm of War, written by Brandon Sanderson
- Fiction: The Revival of Opal & Nev, written by Dawnie Walton
- History or Biography: Clanlands: Whisky, Warfare, and a Scottish Adventure Like No Other, written by Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish (who also narrate it)
- Humor: How Y’all Doing?, written by Leslie Jordan (who also narrates it)
- Literary Fiction and Classics: All Creatures Great and Small, written by James Herriot
- Middle Grade: Playing the Cards You’re Dealt, written by Varian Johnson
- Multi-Voiced Performance: Heresy, written by Melissa Lenhardt
- Mystery: Later, written by Stephen King
- Narration by the Author: A Promised Land, written by Barack Obama (who, obviously, also narrates it)
- Non-Fiction: The Joy of Sweat, written by Sarah Everts
- Original Work: Heroine, written by Mary Jane Wells
- Romance: Reel: Hollywood Renaissance, Book 1, written by Kennedy Ryan
- Science Fiction: Project Hail Mary, written by Andy Weir
- Short Stories and Collections: Blackout, written by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon
- Thriller or Suspense: Local Woman Missing, written by Mary Kubica
- Young Adult: Be Dazzled, written by Ryan La Sala
- Young Listeners: I and I Bob Marley, written by Tony Medina
Pick a title or two that sound interesting to you or a genre that you would normally read and you may notice that your time on the road goes by quicker. You might even find yourself excited to start the workday because you’re at a good chapter in the book!
If you haven’t already downloaded an audiobook app, you may also be wondering which one to use. Your options include Audible (provided by Amazon), Audiobooks.com, Google Play Books, B&N Audiobooks (provided by Barnes & Noble), and Scribd. All of these apps charge a subscription fee, though Google Play Books does offer some selections for free.
Want more to listen to while driving? Check out our playlist library.
