101 Best Audiobooks of All Time
October 3, 2024
Best Audiobooks of All Time – Something happens when you stop reading from the page and you begin listening to the story being read to you. If the voice speaking to you is one that , pulling you deeper into every word said, they鈥檝e done their job not to deter you away. The last thing a reader would want is to be excited to listen to an audiobook for the compelling story, only to have to turn it off because the voice of the reader didn鈥檛 resonate well. It鈥檚 a tricky art to have the right narrator deliver the story with just enough drama, tension and fervor as the author intended. But, thankfully, it happens more often than not.
Take a look at the list below of 101 of the best audiobooks of all time. You might be surprised at how many authors have chosen to read their own books. Perhaps there are even actors whose names you recognize. Either way, these audiobooks are the best for a particular reason. They leave you wanting and wondering for more, instead of pressing the stop button:
Best Audiobooks of All Time
1) The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
The inimitable Colson Whitehead鈥檚 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Underground Railroad, chronicles a young slave鈥檚 journey to freedom. In the novel, the Underground Railroad is an actual secret network that must be navigated. The audiobook runs for 10 hours and 43 minutes, and is narrated by Bahni Turpin. This story of a woman鈥檚 resilience to survive will leave you reflecting on American history and identity for a long time.
2) The Handmaid鈥檚 Tale by Margaret Atwood
Read by Clare Daines, The Handmaid鈥檚 Tale ranks as one of the best audiobooks of all time for its propulsive and astonishing storyline. However, the story鈥檚 messaging might sound eerily familiar to society today. Running for 12 hours and 6 minutes, this audiobook of the modern speculative classic will shock and stir your emotions.
3) Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Narrated by the author himself, Khaled Hosseini immediately pulls you into Kite Runner鈥檚 moving story about a boy named Amir in a changing Afghanistan. But it is also about a family and a friendship that are tested by the demands of survival and political strife. The audiobook heartbreakingly captures a man鈥檚 attempt at redemption set against his crumbling world. Kite Runner runs for 12 hours and 1 minute.
4) Circe by Madeline Miller
Madeline Miller鈥檚 Circe stands as one of the best audiobooks of all time for the bold retelling of the Odyssey鈥檚 perhaps most misunderstood heroine. Circe was a #1 New York Times Bestseller and was named as one of the best books of the year by numerous outlets. Narrated by Perdita Weeks, this audiobook runs for 12 hours and 8 minutes.
5) Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
Dive into one of the best audiobooks about leaders of the modern world. Walter Isaacson wrote best-selling biographies of Albert Einstein and Benjamin Franklin, and his biography of Steve Jobs reveals the complex humanity of the tech revolutionary. You鈥檒l feel like you鈥檙e in the same room as those who worked and lived with Jobs, and you鈥檒l see just how far he went to create what he did. The audiobook is narrated by Dylan Baker and runs on the longer side for 25 hours and 18 minutes.
Best Audiobooks of All Time (Continued)
6) I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
This biography and memoir by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb dives right into the story of a girl who spoke out against the Taliban. In 2012, when Malala Yousafzai was fifteen and living in Pakistan鈥檚 Swat Valley, she was shot in the head as she rode the bus home from school. She miraculously survived to tell her story and that of other girls who deserve to practice their human right to have an education. Narrated by Archie Punjabi and running for 9 hours and 55 minutes, this arresting memoir ranks as one of the best audiobooks to listen to.
7) Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Joe Morton becomes one with the Invisible Man in this audiobook of the American classic written by Ralph Ellison. First published in 1953, the story revolves around the protagonist, a nameless young man, as he navigates where he belongs, racially and politically, within the social constructs of American society. There is no simple answer, and bias bleeds over into every border. Morton lets the protagonist shine as the marvel that he is through a seamless portrayal of the character. The running time of the audiobook is 18 hours and 36 minutes.
8)听To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Many can recall when they first read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, but have you ever listened to the audiobook? As not only one of the best books but one of the best audiobooks of all time, this story will transport you to the painfully, racially prejudiced Deep South. Sissy Spacek narrates the heartbreaking masterpiece by Harper Lee by alternating accents for each of the characters. The audiobook (12 hours and 17 minutes long) reveals the many stifling dichotomies of the South 鈥� and of America.
9) Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Running for 19 hours and 57 minutes, the audiobook of Gillian Flynn鈥檚 dark masterpiece, narrated by Julia Whelan and Kirby Heyborne, will instantly pull you into the shattered world of a seemingly perfect marriage. Whether you鈥檝e seen the movie or not, Whelan鈥檚 and Heyborne鈥檚 voices as Nick and Amy Dunne will keep you alert and invested no matter where you鈥檙e listening. You鈥檒l be wondering who really is the unreliable narrator in one of the best audiobooks of all time.
10) The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Narrated by Bahni Turpin and 11 hours and 50 minutes long, the audiobook of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is a riveting story about standing up for the truth. It also dives into the dangers that can come from doing so. When sixteen-year-old Starr Carter witnesses her friend Khalil get shot and killed by a police officer, a series of events are spurred into motion as people try to do what they believe is right. This powerful and timely story makes it one of the best audiobooks of today.
More best audiobooks of all time鈥�
11) Just Kids by Patti Smith
The audiobook of Just Kids by Patti Smith is read by the legendary musician herself. Step into the journey of not just her musical career but her life鈥檚 philosophy. The audiobook lasts for 9 hours and 50 minutes.
12) The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
Polly Stone reads The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, set in 1940s France. Stone masterfully pulls you into the heart-wrenching tales of two sisters during the war, and once you listen, it鈥檚 no surprise as to why the story ranks as one of the best audiobooks. The Nightingale鈥檚 audiobook lasts for 17 hours and 19 minutes.
13) The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Alma Cuervo, Julia Whelan and Robin Miles all narrate the audiobook of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, which runs for 12 hours and 10 minutes. Taylor Jenkins Reid鈥檚 vibrant, complex characters pave the way for a fascinating journey about unlikely unions while searching for the truth.
14) Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
If you鈥檝e seen the Joe Wright-directed version of Pride and Prejudice, then you should know that Rosamund Pike narrates the English classic on Audible. Pike had played Jane Bennet back in 2005, and she performs all the novel鈥檚 characters in one of the best audiobooks (running for 11 hours and 35 minutes) offered today.
15) The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
The Vanishing Half became a #1 New York Times best seller and was listed as one of Barack Obama鈥檚 favorite books of the year. Narrated by Shayna Small, the audiobook of this modern classic unravels the lives of two sisters who live as completely different people in a Black and White world. The audiobook ranks as one of the best audiobooks of all time because of how the sisters鈥� voices and secrets are brought to life.
More of the best audiobooks of all time (continued)鈥�
16) Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo
17) Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
18) The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
19) Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe
20) The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
21) You by Caroline Kepnes
22) It by Stephen King
23) The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
24) The Gray Man by Mark Greaney
25) Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
List Continued
26) Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
27) A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
28) A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman
29) Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
30) Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
31) And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
32) Angela鈥檚 Ashes by Frank McCourt
33) I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
34) Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
35) Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain
Best Audiobooks of All Time (Continued)
36) Life of Pi by Yann Martel
37) Becoming by Michelle Obama
38) Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
39) From Scratch by Tembi Locke
40) The 1619 Project by Nikole Hannah-Jones, The New York Times Magazine, Caitlin Roper, Ilena Silverman, Jack Silverstein
41) The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
42) When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
43) The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
44) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer鈥檚 Stone by J.K. Rowling
45) Born A Crime by Trevor Noah
List Continued
46) The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
47) The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
48) The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
49) The Martian by Andy Weir
50) The Hitchhiker鈥檚 Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
51) The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
52) World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Patrick Rothfuss
53) The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
54) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
55) Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen
Best Audiobooks of All Time (Continued)
56) Room by Emma Donoghue
57) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bront毛
58) A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
59) The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
60) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer
61) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
62) Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
63) The Road by Cormac McCarthy
64) All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
65) Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
List Continued
66) The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
67) Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
68) Know My Name by Chanel Miller
69) A Portrait of the Artist As A Young Man by James Joyce
70) Angels in America by Tony Kushner
71) Love in the Time of Cholera by Gariel Garc铆a M谩rquez
72) Bird Box by Josh Malerman
73) Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
74) A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
75) The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
Best Audiobooks of All Time (Continued)
76) The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
77) Educated by Tara Westover
78) How to Write A Thesis by Umberto Eco
79) Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
Best Audiobooks of All Time (Continued)
80) Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx
81) The Giver by Lois Lowry
82) My Sister鈥檚 Keeper by Jodi Picoult
83) Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
84) Animal Farm by George Orwell
85) True Grit by Charles Portis
List Continued
86) One Flew Over the Cuckoo鈥檚 Nest by Ken Kesey
87) Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
88) Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster by Jon Krakauer
89) The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
90) David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
91) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bront毛
92) The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly
93) Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
94) The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
95) Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Best Audiobooks of All Time (Continued)
96) The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
97) Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
98) The Secret History by Donna Tartt
99) The Reader by Bernard Schlink
100) Middlemarch by George Eliot
101) Dune by Frank Herbert
Best Audiobooks of All Time – Final Thoughts
Audiobooks are a complex, intricately designed form of art and very much needed component of the literary package today. Luckily, the narrators of the best audiobooks have only increased the readership of these works of literature by their skillful storytelling abilities. The beauty of audiobooks is that you can listen to them anywhere, while you鈥檙e commuting or getting ready for bed. And yet the challenge, like any great book, is always to see if you鈥檙e drawn in enough to listen until the very end.
