Behind the Mic With Kirkus Reviews

This week, Michele Cobb joins host Jo Reed to dig into
audiobooks built on backstory, beginning with Expert Witness, where
Gabra Zackman delivers Anne Wolbert Burgess’ account of trauma, justice, and the evolution of expert testimony with clarity and restraint. Next, they turn to A Fine Line Between Stupid and Clever, a joyful, detail-packed oral
history of the 1984 film Spinal Tap—an ensemble cast production led by
Rob Reiner, where seemingly spontaneous commentary makes the audiobook the definitive way to experience the story. The episode closes with We Did OK, Kid, a reflective memoir in which Kenneth Branagh’s elegant narration frames Anthony Hopkins’s vulnerable reflections on craft, ambition, and a life shaped by performance. Together these audiobooks show how lived experience—whether in the courtroom, on a film set, or across a lifetime in acting—gains depth and resonance when shaped by a narrator who knows when to be restrained, playful, or quietly vulnerable.

Audiobooks Discussed:

Expert Witness: The Weight of Our Testimony When Justice Hangs in the Balance
by Ann Wolbert Burgess with Steven Matthew Constantine, read by Gabra Zackman

A Fine Line Between Stupid and Clever: The Story of Spinal Tap, written
and read by Rob Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry
Shearer 

We Did Ok, Kid: A Memoir by Sir Anthony Hopkins, read by Kenneth
Branagh with the author

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Stephen Cummings joins host Jo Reed to talk about Laurie
Gwen Shapiro’s immersive dual biography of Amelia Earhart and George Putnam, The Aviator and the Showman; Elliot Ackerman’s unlikely and darkly comic caper, Sheepdogs; and Mike Albo’s candid, audio-exclusive memoir, Hologram Boyfriends. Cummings reflects on what surprised him about each audiobook and why these very different works held his attention to the end. Altogether, the conversation highlights how form, tone, and performance shape the listening experience.

 

Audiobooks Discussed:

The Aviator and the Showman by Laurie Gwen Shapiro, read by Stefanie Powers (Penguin Audio)

Sheepdogs by Elliot Ackerman, read by Chris Andrew Ciulla

(Random House Audio)

Hologram Boyfriends, written and read by Mike Albo

(Macmillan Audio)

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Contributor Alex Richey joins Behind the Mic host Jo Reed to talk about three fantastical audiobooks and how their different forms shape the listening experience. The conversation moves from Brandon Sanderson’s
story collection Tailored Realities to two intergenerational stories
centered on daughters—Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite and As
Many Souls as Stars by Natasha Siegel—where voice and perspective carry particular emotional weight. As Alex observes, these audiobooks
demonstrate how narration can enhance both broad narrative structures and more focused, character-driven works.

Books Discussed:

Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson, read by
Dion Graham, January LaVoy, Michael Kramer, Ray Porter, Andre Santana, Avi Roque, Dylan Reilly Fitzpatrick, Imani Jade Powers, MacLeod Andrews, Shahjehan Khan, and Stephanie Nemeth Parker

Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite, read by
Weruche Opia, Nnei Opia Clark, and Diana Yekinni

As Many Souls as Stars, written by Natasha
Siegel, read by Kristin Atherton

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AudioFile Magazine is now part of Kirkus Reviews,
and Behind the Mic marks the moment with a conversation with the
magazine’s founder and longtime editor Robin Whitten. Robin reflects on a life spent listening, how audiobooks and audiobook reviewing has evolved, and her excitement that the work begun by AudioFile will continue and flourish at KirkusReviews.
It’s a thoughtful, forward-looking conversation about continuity, change, and the enduring joy of listening.

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Host Jo Reed is joined by narrator Karen Murray to talk about HOW SWEET THE SOUND by Kwame Alexander, one of our picks for the Best Children and Family Audiobooks of 2025. Karen shares how she dove into this musical exploration of Black music in America, which “felt like home to her.” The experience begins with a poem as the listener is guided through the talking drums of Africa, to the blues, jazz, funk, and soul, and eventually hip-hop. Jo and Karen share why this listen is perfect for families, even down to the final, fascinating glossary. 

Read AudioFile’s review of the audiobook

Published by Hachette Audio. 

AudioFile’s 2025 Best Children & Family Listening are:


AND SHE WAS LOVED by Andrea Davis Pinkney, read by Andrea Davis Pinkney


BAD BADGER by Maryrose Wood, read by Chris Devon


MILLIE FLEUR SAVES THE NIGHT by Christy Mandin, read by Elizabeth Knowelden


THE POISONED KING by Katherine Rundell, read by Sam West


HOW SWEET THE SOUND by Kwame Alexander, read by Karen Murray


WHALE EYES by James Robinson, read by James Robinson

Explore the full list of 2025 Best Audiobooks on our website

Support for our podcast comes from Dreamscape, an award-winning audiobook publisher with a catalog that includes authors L.J. Shen, Freida McFadden, and Katee Robert. Discover your next great listen at dreamscapepublishing.com.
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