-
Without Warning and Only Sometimes
- Scenes from an Unpredictable Childhood
- Narrated by: Kit de Waal
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Without Warning and Only Sometimes
Buy for $15.98
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Years
- By: Annie Ernaux
- Narrated by: Anna Bentinck
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 196
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 174
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 175
The Years is a personal narrative of the period of 1941 to 2006 told through the lens of memory, impressions past and present - even projections into the future - photos, books, songs, radio, television, and decades of advertising and headlines, contrasted with intimate conflicts and written notes from six decades of diaries. Local dialect, words of the time, slogans, brands, and names for ever-proliferating objects are given a voice here. The voice we recognize as the author's continually dissolves and re-emerges.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Mixed Feelings
- By Elin VanD on 05-10-20
By: Annie Ernaux
-
My Name Is Leon
- By: Kit de Waal
- Narrated by: Lenny Henry
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Leon loves chocolate bars, Saturday morning cartoons, and his beautiful, golden-haired baby brother. When Jake is born, Leon pokes his head in the crib and says, "I'm your brother. Big brother. My. Name. Is. Leon. I am eight and three quarters. I am a boy." Jake will play with no one but Leon, and Leon is determined to save him from any pain and earn that sparkling baby laugh every chance he can. But Leon isn't in control of this world where adults say one thing and mean another, and try as he might he can't protect his little family from everything.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
My Name Is Leon
- By Carol on 09-01-16
By: Kit de Waal
-
Matrix
- A Novel
- By: Lauren Groff
- Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,292
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,089
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,084
Cast out of the royal court by Eleanor of Aquitaine, deemed too coarse and rough-hewn for marriage or courtly life, seventeen-year-old Marie de France is sent to England to be the new prioress of an impoverished abbey, its nuns on the brink of starvation and beset by disease. At first taken aback by the severity of her new life, Marie finds focus and love in collective life with her singular and mercurial sisters. In this crucible, Marie steadily supplants her desire for family, for her homeland, for the passions of her youth with something new to her.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful story well written and narratives
- By ReallyNelie on 09-25-21
By: Lauren Groff
-
The Time Traveler's Wife
- By: Audrey Niffenegger
- Narrated by: Fred Berman, Phoebe Strole
- Length: 17 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13,544
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10,016
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10,037
Clare and Henry have known each other since Clare was six and Henry was 36. They were married when Clare was 23 and Henry was 31. Impossible but true, because Henry is one of the first people diagnosed with Chrono-Displacement Disorder: periodically his genetic clock resets and he finds himself misplaced in time, pulled to moments of emotional gravity from his life, past and future. His disappearances are spontaneous, his experiences unpredictable, alternately harrowing and amusing.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
One of my favorite books
- By Joey on 01-13-08
-
Mrs. Everything
- A Novel
- By: Jennifer Weiner
- Narrated by: Ari Graynor, Beth Malone
- Length: 16 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,757
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,153
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,130
Growing up in 1950s Detroit, they live in a perfect “Dick and Jane” house, where their roles in the family are clearly defined. Jo is the tomboy, the bookish rebel with a passion to make the world more fair; Bethie is the pretty, feminine good girl, a would-be star who enjoys the power her beauty confers and dreams of a traditional life. But the truth ends up looking different from what the girls imagined. Jo and Bethie survive traumas and tragedies.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Absolutely beautiful
- By Courtney Engle on 06-13-19
By: Jennifer Weiner
-
The Family Upstairs
- A Novel
- By: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Tamaryn Payne, Bea Holland, Dom Thornburn
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13,196
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 11,787
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 11,729
Gifted musician Clemency Thompson is playing for tourists on the streets of Southern France when she receives an urgent text message. Her childhood friend, Lucy, is demanding her immediate return to London. It’s happening, says the message. The baby is back. Libby Jones was only six months old when she became an orphan. Now 25, she’s astounded to learn of an inheritance that will change her life. A gorgeous, dilapidated townhouse in one of London’s poshest neighborhoods has been held in a trust for her all these years. Now, it’s hers.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Did Not Disappoint... I LOVE LISA JEWELL
- By Tawny on 11-06-19
By: Lisa Jewell
-
The Years
- By: Annie Ernaux
- Narrated by: Anna Bentinck
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 196
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 174
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 175
The Years is a personal narrative of the period of 1941 to 2006 told through the lens of memory, impressions past and present - even projections into the future - photos, books, songs, radio, television, and decades of advertising and headlines, contrasted with intimate conflicts and written notes from six decades of diaries. Local dialect, words of the time, slogans, brands, and names for ever-proliferating objects are given a voice here. The voice we recognize as the author's continually dissolves and re-emerges.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Mixed Feelings
- By Elin VanD on 05-10-20
By: Annie Ernaux
-
My Name Is Leon
- By: Kit de Waal
- Narrated by: Lenny Henry
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Leon loves chocolate bars, Saturday morning cartoons, and his beautiful, golden-haired baby brother. When Jake is born, Leon pokes his head in the crib and says, "I'm your brother. Big brother. My. Name. Is. Leon. I am eight and three quarters. I am a boy." Jake will play with no one but Leon, and Leon is determined to save him from any pain and earn that sparkling baby laugh every chance he can. But Leon isn't in control of this world where adults say one thing and mean another, and try as he might he can't protect his little family from everything.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
My Name Is Leon
- By Carol on 09-01-16
By: Kit de Waal
-
Matrix
- A Novel
- By: Lauren Groff
- Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,292
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,089
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,084
Cast out of the royal court by Eleanor of Aquitaine, deemed too coarse and rough-hewn for marriage or courtly life, seventeen-year-old Marie de France is sent to England to be the new prioress of an impoverished abbey, its nuns on the brink of starvation and beset by disease. At first taken aback by the severity of her new life, Marie finds focus and love in collective life with her singular and mercurial sisters. In this crucible, Marie steadily supplants her desire for family, for her homeland, for the passions of her youth with something new to her.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful story well written and narratives
- By ReallyNelie on 09-25-21
By: Lauren Groff
-
The Time Traveler's Wife
- By: Audrey Niffenegger
- Narrated by: Fred Berman, Phoebe Strole
- Length: 17 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13,544
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10,016
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10,037
Clare and Henry have known each other since Clare was six and Henry was 36. They were married when Clare was 23 and Henry was 31. Impossible but true, because Henry is one of the first people diagnosed with Chrono-Displacement Disorder: periodically his genetic clock resets and he finds himself misplaced in time, pulled to moments of emotional gravity from his life, past and future. His disappearances are spontaneous, his experiences unpredictable, alternately harrowing and amusing.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
One of my favorite books
- By Joey on 01-13-08
-
Mrs. Everything
- A Novel
- By: Jennifer Weiner
- Narrated by: Ari Graynor, Beth Malone
- Length: 16 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,757
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,153
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,130
Growing up in 1950s Detroit, they live in a perfect “Dick and Jane” house, where their roles in the family are clearly defined. Jo is the tomboy, the bookish rebel with a passion to make the world more fair; Bethie is the pretty, feminine good girl, a would-be star who enjoys the power her beauty confers and dreams of a traditional life. But the truth ends up looking different from what the girls imagined. Jo and Bethie survive traumas and tragedies.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Absolutely beautiful
- By Courtney Engle on 06-13-19
By: Jennifer Weiner
-
The Family Upstairs
- A Novel
- By: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Tamaryn Payne, Bea Holland, Dom Thornburn
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13,196
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 11,787
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 11,729
Gifted musician Clemency Thompson is playing for tourists on the streets of Southern France when she receives an urgent text message. Her childhood friend, Lucy, is demanding her immediate return to London. It’s happening, says the message. The baby is back. Libby Jones was only six months old when she became an orphan. Now 25, she’s astounded to learn of an inheritance that will change her life. A gorgeous, dilapidated townhouse in one of London’s poshest neighborhoods has been held in a trust for her all these years. Now, it’s hers.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Did Not Disappoint... I LOVE LISA JEWELL
- By Tawny on 11-06-19
By: Lisa Jewell
-
The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot
- A Novel
- By: Marianne Cronin
- Narrated by: Sheila Reid, Rebecca Benson
- Length: 10 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,558
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,146
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,126
Seventeen-year-old Lenni Pettersson lives on the Terminal Ward at the Glasgow Princess Royal Hospital. Though the teenager has been told she’s dying, she still has plenty of living to do. Joining the hospital’s arts and crafts class, she meets the magnificent Margot, an 83-year-old, purple-pajama-wearing, fruitcake-eating rebel, who transforms Lenni in ways she never imagined. As their friendship blooms, a world of stories opens for these unlikely companions who, between them, have been alive for one hundred years.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A Must Read (Listen)
- By Patricia on 06-03-21
By: Marianne Cronin
-
The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper
- By: Phaedra Patrick
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,301
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,845
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,830
Sixty-nine-year-old Arthur Pepper lives a simple life. He gets out of bed at precisely 7:30 a.m., just as he did when his wife, Miriam, was alive. He dresses in the same gray slacks and mustard sweater-vest; waters his fern, Frederica; and heads out to his garden. But on the one-year anniversary of Miriam's death, something changes. Sorting through Miriam's possessions, Arthur finds an exquisite gold charm bracelet he's never seen before.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Disappointing.
- By BikeVON on 05-17-16
By: Phaedra Patrick
-
Writers & Lovers
- A Novel
- By: Lily King
- Narrated by: Stacey Glemboski
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,963
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,682
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,674
Blindsided by her mother’s sudden death and wrecked by a recent love affair, Casey Peabody has arrived in Massachusetts in the summer of 1997 without a plan. Her mail consists of wedding invitations and final notices from debt collectors. A former child golf prodigy, she now waits tables in Harvard Square and rents a tiny, moldy room at the side of a garage where she works on the novel she has been writing for six years. At 31, Casey is still clutching onto something nearly all her old friends have let go of: the determination to live a creative life.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An absorbing listen
- By Barbara S on 03-08-20
By: Lily King
-
The Truth About Melody Browne
- By: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Antonia Beamish
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,806
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,461
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,447
When she was 9 years old, Melody Browne's house burned down, and it took all of her childhood memories with it. Now she's a single mother of a teenage boy living in Central London. She hasn't seen her parents since she left home at 15, but she doesn't mind. She's better off on her own. She works as a dinner lady at her son's school and has no idea where her humdrum life is heading. But one summer's night, a hypnotist inadvertently unlocks memories of her childhood, and her whole life is turned upside down.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
So much potential.....what a letdown!!!
- By Cheryl Coen on 11-15-20
By: Lisa Jewell
-
Shuggie Bain
- By: Douglas Stuart
- Narrated by: Angus King
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,962
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,715
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,701
Shuggie’s mother Agnes walks a wayward path: She is Shuggie’s guiding light but a burden for him and his siblings. She dreams of a house with its own front door while she flicks through the pages of the Freemans catalogue, ordering a little happiness on credit, anything to brighten up her grey life. Married to a philandering taxi-driver husband, Agnes keeps her pride by looking good - her beehive, make-up, and pearly-white false teeth offer a glamourous image of a Glaswegian Elizabeth Taylor.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
There’s far too much real pain and sadness in the world to spend any time listening to this tale of woe
- By SuperShopper on 02-18-21
By: Douglas Stuart
-
I Couldn't Love You More
- A Novel
- By: Esther Freud
- Narrated by: Niamh Cusack
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 29
A sweeping story of three generations of women, crossing from London to Ireland and back again, and the enduring effort to retrieve the secrets of the past.
By: Esther Freud
-
The Lonely Life of Biddy Weir
- By: Lesley Allen
- Narrated by: Bríd Brennan
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 21
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 21
Biddy Weir is a quirky girl. Abandoned by her mother as a baby, and with a father who's not quite equipped for the challenges of modern parenting, Biddy lives in her own little world, happy to pass her time painting by the sea and watching the birds go by. That is, until she meets Alison Flemming. Because there are a few things about Biddy that aren't normal, you see. And Alison isn't afraid to point them out to the world. All of a sudden, Biddy's quiet life is thrown into turmoil. If only there was someone to convince her that, actually, everyone's a little bit weird....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Lonely Life Of Biddy Weir
- By George Criticos on 08-10-20
By: Lesley Allen
-
Thrown Away Child
- By: Louise Allen
- Narrated by: Sarah Moule
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 556
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 487
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 487
Thrown Away Child is a memoir covering Louise Allen’s abusive childhood in a foster home, how she survived - using her love of art as a sanctuary - and how she hopes to right old wrongs now by fostering children herself and campaigning for the improvement of foster care services. It is a compelling and inspirational story. This book gives a voice to the many children who grew up unhappily in care.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wow!
- By Stacy on 06-09-22
By: Louise Allen
-
Small Things Like These
- By: Claire Keegan
- Narrated by: Aidan Kelly
- Length: 1 hr and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,093
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 965
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 963
It is 1985 in a small Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man, faces into his busiest season. Early one morning, while delivering an order to the local convent, Bill makes a discovery that forces him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Charming and Inspiring
- By David P on 09-05-22
By: Claire Keegan
-
The Children's Train
- A Novel
- By: Viola Ardone
- Narrated by: Tim Campbell
- Length: 5 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 30
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 24
Based on true events, a heartbreaking story of love, family, hope, and survival set in post-World War II Italy - crafted with the heart of Orphan Train and Before We Were Yours - about poor children from the south sent to live with families in the north to survive deprivation and the harsh winters.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great read
- By kc on 01-19-23
By: Viola Ardone
-
The First Day of Spring
- A Novel
- By: Nancy Tucker
- Narrated by: Kristin Atherton
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,183
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,061
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,057
Chrissie is eight and she has a secret: she has just killed a boy. The feeling made her belly fizz like soda pop. Her playmates are tearful and their mothers are terrified, keeping them locked indoors. But Chrissie rules the roost - she's the best at wall-walking, she knows how to get free candy, and now she has a feeling of power that she never gets at home, where food is scarce and attention scarcer.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Heart Wrenching
- By Jennifer on 05-30-21
By: Nancy Tucker
-
Meredith, Alone
- By: Claire Alexander
- Narrated by: Freya Mavor
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 71
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 63
She has a full-time remote job and her rescue cat Fred. Her best friend Sadie visits with her two children. There's her online support group, her jigsaw puzzles and favorite recipes, her beloved Emily Dickinson poems. Also keeping her company are treacherous memories of an unstable childhood and a traumatic event that had sent her reeling. But something's about to change. First, two new friends burst into her life. Then her long-estranged sister gets in touch. Suddenly her carefully curated home is no longer a space to hide.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sad - sure. Bad overall a story of love and redemption
- By bluesky7 on 04-08-23
By: Claire Alexander
Publisher's summary
From the award-winning author of My Name Is Leon, The Trick to Time and Supporting Cast comes a childhood memoir set to become a classic: stinging, warm-hearted and true.
Kit de Waal grew up in a household of opposites and extremes. Her haphazard mother rarely cooked, forbade Christmas and birthdays, worked as a cleaner, nurse and childminder sometimes all at once and believed the world would end in 1975. Meanwhile, her father stuffed barrels full of goodies for his relatives in the Caribbean, cooked elaborate meals on a whim and splurged money they didn't have on cars, suits and shoes fit for a prince. Both of her parents were waiting for paradise. It never came.
Caught between three worlds—Irish, Caribbean and British in 1960s Birmingham—Kit and her brothers and sisters knew all the words to the best songs, caught sticklebacks in jam jars and braved hunger and hellfire until they could all escape.
Without Warning and Only Sometimes is a story of an extraordinary childhood and how a girl who grew up in house where the Bible was the only book on offer went on to discover a love of reading that inspires her to this day.
More from the same
Narrator
Related to this topic
-
I Couldn't Love You More
- A Novel
- By: Esther Freud
- Narrated by: Niamh Cusack
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 29
A sweeping story of three generations of women, crossing from London to Ireland and back again, and the enduring effort to retrieve the secrets of the past.
By: Esther Freud
-
Pearl in a Cage
- By: Joy Dettman
- Narrated by: Deidre Rubenstein
- Length: 20 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 30
On a balmy midsummer's evening in 1923, a young woman - foreign, dishevelled and heavily pregnant - is found unconscious just off the railway tracks in the tiny logging community of Woody Creek. The town midwife, Gertrude Foote, is roused from her bed when the woman is brought to her door. Try as she might, Gertrude is unable to save her, but the baby lives.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Pearl in a Cage
- By Verita on 06-16-17
By: Joy Dettman
-
Trumpet
- By: Jackie Kay
- Narrated by: Cathleen McCarron
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 71
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 65
The death of legendary jazz trumpeter Joss Moody exposes an extraordinary secret. Unbeknown to all but his wife Millie, Joss was a woman living as a man. The discovery is most devastating for their adopted son, Colman, whose bewildered fury brings the press to the doorstep and sends his grieving mother to the sanctuary of a remote Scottish village. Winner of the Guardian Fiction Prize, Trumpet by Jackie Kay is a starkly beautiful modern classic about the lengths to which people will go for love.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Beautiful and True
- By Colin on 05-24-17
By: Jackie Kay
-
Foster
- By: Claire Keegan
- Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
- Length: 1 hr and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 564
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 481
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 478
It is a hot summer in rural Ireland. A child is taken by her father to live with relatives on a farm, not knowing when or if she will be brought home again. In the Kinsellas' house, she finds an affection and warmth she has not known and slowly, in their care, begins to blossom. But there is something unspoken in this new household—where everything is so well tended to—and this summer must soon come to an end.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A story that will stay with me a long time
- By CTKG on 11-01-22
By: Claire Keegan
-
The Lonely Life of Biddy Weir
- By: Lesley Allen
- Narrated by: Bríd Brennan
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 21
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 21
Biddy Weir is a quirky girl. Abandoned by her mother as a baby, and with a father who's not quite equipped for the challenges of modern parenting, Biddy lives in her own little world, happy to pass her time painting by the sea and watching the birds go by. That is, until she meets Alison Flemming. Because there are a few things about Biddy that aren't normal, you see. And Alison isn't afraid to point them out to the world. All of a sudden, Biddy's quiet life is thrown into turmoil. If only there was someone to convince her that, actually, everyone's a little bit weird....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Lonely Life Of Biddy Weir
- By George Criticos on 08-10-20
By: Lesley Allen
-
The Teller of Secrets
- A Novel
- By: Bisi Adjapon
- Narrated by: Anniwaa Buachie
- Length: 11 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 39
Young Esi Agyekum is the unofficial "secret keeper" of her family, as tight-lipped about her father's adultery as she is about her half-sisters' sex lives. But after she is humiliated and punished for her own sexual exploration, Esi begins to question why women's secrets and men's secrets bear different consequences. It is the beginning of a journey of discovery that will lead her to unexpected places. Against a fraught political climate, Esi fights to carve out her own identity, and learns to manifest her power in surprising and inspiring ways.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A beautifully honest story of an imperfect girl
- By Anonymous User on 05-21-24
By: Bisi Adjapon
-
I Couldn't Love You More
- A Novel
- By: Esther Freud
- Narrated by: Niamh Cusack
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 29
A sweeping story of three generations of women, crossing from London to Ireland and back again, and the enduring effort to retrieve the secrets of the past.
By: Esther Freud
-
Pearl in a Cage
- By: Joy Dettman
- Narrated by: Deidre Rubenstein
- Length: 20 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 30
On a balmy midsummer's evening in 1923, a young woman - foreign, dishevelled and heavily pregnant - is found unconscious just off the railway tracks in the tiny logging community of Woody Creek. The town midwife, Gertrude Foote, is roused from her bed when the woman is brought to her door. Try as she might, Gertrude is unable to save her, but the baby lives.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Pearl in a Cage
- By Verita on 06-16-17
By: Joy Dettman
-
Trumpet
- By: Jackie Kay
- Narrated by: Cathleen McCarron
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 71
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 65
The death of legendary jazz trumpeter Joss Moody exposes an extraordinary secret. Unbeknown to all but his wife Millie, Joss was a woman living as a man. The discovery is most devastating for their adopted son, Colman, whose bewildered fury brings the press to the doorstep and sends his grieving mother to the sanctuary of a remote Scottish village. Winner of the Guardian Fiction Prize, Trumpet by Jackie Kay is a starkly beautiful modern classic about the lengths to which people will go for love.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Beautiful and True
- By Colin on 05-24-17
By: Jackie Kay
-
Foster
- By: Claire Keegan
- Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
- Length: 1 hr and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 564
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 481
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 478
It is a hot summer in rural Ireland. A child is taken by her father to live with relatives on a farm, not knowing when or if she will be brought home again. In the Kinsellas' house, she finds an affection and warmth she has not known and slowly, in their care, begins to blossom. But there is something unspoken in this new household—where everything is so well tended to—and this summer must soon come to an end.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A story that will stay with me a long time
- By CTKG on 11-01-22
By: Claire Keegan
-
The Lonely Life of Biddy Weir
- By: Lesley Allen
- Narrated by: Bríd Brennan
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 21
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 21
Biddy Weir is a quirky girl. Abandoned by her mother as a baby, and with a father who's not quite equipped for the challenges of modern parenting, Biddy lives in her own little world, happy to pass her time painting by the sea and watching the birds go by. That is, until she meets Alison Flemming. Because there are a few things about Biddy that aren't normal, you see. And Alison isn't afraid to point them out to the world. All of a sudden, Biddy's quiet life is thrown into turmoil. If only there was someone to convince her that, actually, everyone's a little bit weird....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Lonely Life Of Biddy Weir
- By George Criticos on 08-10-20
By: Lesley Allen
-
The Teller of Secrets
- A Novel
- By: Bisi Adjapon
- Narrated by: Anniwaa Buachie
- Length: 11 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 39
Young Esi Agyekum is the unofficial "secret keeper" of her family, as tight-lipped about her father's adultery as she is about her half-sisters' sex lives. But after she is humiliated and punished for her own sexual exploration, Esi begins to question why women's secrets and men's secrets bear different consequences. It is the beginning of a journey of discovery that will lead her to unexpected places. Against a fraught political climate, Esi fights to carve out her own identity, and learns to manifest her power in surprising and inspiring ways.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A beautifully honest story of an imperfect girl
- By Anonymous User on 05-21-24
By: Bisi Adjapon
-
The Road Home
- By: Rose Tremain
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 90
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 67
Winner of the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction 2008, The Road Home is the best-selling story of Lev, a middle-aged migrant from Eastern Europe, who moves to London in search of work after losing his wife and job. Lev's London is awash with money, celebrity and complacency. The world Tremain creates is both convincing and poignant.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
OK - nice narration - good characters
- By bea on 02-21-11
By: Rose Tremain
-
Thirteen Doorways, Wolves Behind Them All
- By: Laura Ruby
- Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan
- Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 83
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 68
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 68
When Frankie’s mother died and her father left her and her siblings at an orphanage in Chicago, it was supposed to be only temporary - just long enough for him to get back on his feet and be able to provide for them once again. That’s why Frankie's not prepared for the day that he arrives for his weekend visit with a new woman on his arm and out-of-state train tickets in his pocket. Now, Frankie and her sister, Toni, are abandoned alongside so many other orphans - two young, unwanted women doing everything they can to survive.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Boring, boring, boring
- By Marie J. on 08-20-21
By: Laura Ruby
-
Small Things Like These
- By: Claire Keegan
- Narrated by: Aidan Kelly
- Length: 1 hr and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,093
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 965
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 963
It is 1985 in a small Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man, faces into his busiest season. Early one morning, while delivering an order to the local convent, Bill makes a discovery that forces him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Charming and Inspiring
- By David P on 09-05-22
By: Claire Keegan
-
The Story of Arthur Truluv
- A Novel
- By: Elizabeth Berg
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Berg
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,332
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 1,162
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,156
Three people find their way back from loss and loneliness to a different kind of belonging in this deeply moving novel. Arthur, an old widower struggling to overcome his grief, meets Maddy, a troubled teenage girl who avoids school by hiding out where Arthur goes every day for lunch. The two strike up a friendship that draws them out of isolation.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Sickly Sweet
- By Amazon Customer on 01-19-18
By: Elizabeth Berg
-
The Time Traveler's Wife
- By: Audrey Niffenegger
- Narrated by: Fred Berman, Phoebe Strole
- Length: 17 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13,544
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10,016
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10,037
Clare and Henry have known each other since Clare was six and Henry was 36. They were married when Clare was 23 and Henry was 31. Impossible but true, because Henry is one of the first people diagnosed with Chrono-Displacement Disorder: periodically his genetic clock resets and he finds himself misplaced in time, pulled to moments of emotional gravity from his life, past and future. His disappearances are spontaneous, his experiences unpredictable, alternately harrowing and amusing.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
One of my favorite books
- By Joey on 01-13-08
-
Owls Do Cry
- By: Janet Frame
- Narrated by: Heather Bolton
- Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 25
Owls Do Cry is Janet Frame's first novel. She describes her idea behind it in the second volume of her autobiography: 'Pictures of great treasure in the midst of sadness and waste haunted me and I began to think, in fiction, of a childhood, home life, hospital life, using people known to me as a base for main characters, and inventing minor characters.'
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
well told but a wee bit depressing.
- By Muzza on 11-03-19
By: Janet Frame
-
The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes
- A Novel
- By: Ruth Hogan
- Narrated by: Elaine Claxton
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 105
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 89
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 89
Once a spirited, independent woman with a rebellious streak, Masha's life was forever changed by a tragic event 12 years ago. Unable to let go of her grief, she finds comfort in her faithful canine companion Haizum and peace in the quiet lanes of her town's swimming pool. Almost without her realizing it, her life has shuddered to a halt.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Sweet Story
- By Nancy Briggs on 12-14-19
By: Ruth Hogan
-
The Girl with the Louding Voice
- A Read with Jenna Pick (A Novel)
- By: Abi Daré
- Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh
- Length: 12 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 5,873
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 5,281
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 5,242
The unforgettable, inspiring story of a teenage girl growing up in a rural Nigerian village who longs to get an education so that she can find her “louding voice” and speak up for herself, The Girl with the Louding Voice is a simultaneously heartbreaking and triumphant tale about the power of fighting for your dreams.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A must HEAR!
- By Michelle on 03-09-20
By: Abi Daré
-
Brick Lane
- By: Monica Ali
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Sastre
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 237
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 91
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 94
Nanzeen's inauspicious birth in a Bangladeshi village imbues in her a sense of fatalism that she carries across continents. Married off to a man old enough to be her father, Nanzeen moves to London and cares for her family. But gradually she begins to question whether fate controls her or whether she has a hand in her own destiny. She discovers both the complexity that comes with free choice and the depth of her attachment to her husband, her daughters and her new world.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A truly wonderful book!
- By A M on 11-24-03
By: Monica Ali
-
Don't Let Him Know
- By: Sandip Roy
- Narrated by: Tania Rodrigues
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 28
In a boxy apartment building in an Illinois university town, Romola Mitra, a newly arrived young bride, anxiously awaits her first letter from home in India. When she accidentally opens the wrong letter, it changes her life. Decades later, her son Amit finds that letter and thinks he has discovered his mother's secret. But secrets have their own secrets sometimes.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
another great book by Roy
- By Amazon Customer on 04-27-15
By: Sandip Roy
-
Black Sunday
- A Novel
- By: Tola Rotimi Abraham
- Narrated by: Liz Femi, Dele Ogundiran, Miebaka Yohannes, and others
- Length: 7 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 39
Twin sisters Bibike and Ariyike are enjoying a relatively comfortable life in Lagos in 1996. Then their mother loses her job due to political strife, and the family, facing poverty, is drawn into the New Church, an institution led by a charismatic pastor who is not shy about worshipping earthly wealth. Soon Bibike and Ariyike's father wagers the family home on a sure bet that evaporates like smoke.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Good Story - Awful accents
- By Tamara C-J on 02-15-21
-
The Girls in the Garden
- A Novel
- By: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Colleen Prendergast
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 2,793
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,480
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 2,480
Imagine that you live on a picturesque communal garden square, an oasis in urban London where your children run free, in and out of other people's houses. You've known your neighbors for years and you trust them. Implicitly. You think your children are safe. But are they really? On a midsummer night, as a festive neighborhood party is taking place, preteen Pip discovers her 13-year-old sister Grace lying unconscious and bloody in a hidden corner of a lush rose garden. What really happened to her?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Delightful
- By Julie on 11-03-17
By: Lisa Jewell
Love Books? You'll Love Audible.
Transform your day
Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.
Listen everywhere
Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.
Carry your entire Library
Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.
Listen and learn
Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.
Reach your reading goals
You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.
Find your niche
WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.
What listeners say about Without Warning and Only Sometimes
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Patricia
- 06-22-23
Emotional telling of a girl’s life
I was able to thoroughly identify with this story as a first generation Irish American married to a man from the Caribbean. De Waal’s narration was impeccable. The stories of her childhood were enthralling.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!