Last week we reviewed Audible’s awesome audio adaptation of George Orwell’s 1984. If you haven’t heard our review, the short version is that we loved it for its great performances, tight writing, original music and outstanding production value. This week, we’re lucky enough to have the writer of this project with us. Joe White is an award-winning writer of screen, stage and audio. He’s the writer of the hit West End musical The Little Big Things and another popular Audible audio drama, The Knox,...
Apr 20, 2024•56 min•Ep. 136
Audible recently released their full-cast, radio-play adaptation of George Orwell’s classic 1984. Featuring a cast full of recognizable names, original music and incredible production value, it’s safe to say this is a unique project we were excited to get our hands on. Today, we’re finally sharing our review with you. The cast includes Andrew Garfield as Winston, Cynthia Erivo as Julia, Andrew Scott as O’Brian and Tom Hardy as Big Brother. You can learn more here: https://www.audible.ca/pd/Georg...
Apr 13, 2024•56 min•Ep. 135
Karen McKay and Theresa Power of CELA help us better understand the place literary awards hold within the publishing industry, and how they affect everything from sales to author’s careers and even consumer reading habits. And, Sara Hillis recommends the suspenseful pregnancy horror novel "Beware the Woman" by Meagan Abbot. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AM...
Apr 06, 2024•56 min•Ep. 134
On today's episode: One of the beautiful things about audiobooks is the flexibility they give us. If you’re reading a print book, you just sit there and look down at your book. With an audiobook, on the other hand, you have both your hands available and you’re free to walk around and do whatever you want while you listen. We want to discuss how we use that extra flexibility. Plus, Aamer Kahn, our very own audiobook curator, prepared an autobiography trivia game for us. Audiobook Café is broadcas...
Mar 30, 2024•56 min•Ep. 133
On today's episode: How much do we really know about the people who've shifted and coloured our histories? We review The Autobiography of Malcolm X, written by American Minister Malcolm X in collaboration with American journalist Alex Haley, narrated by the incredibly performative Laurence Fishburne. Plus, stepping up to the plate for this week's Rapid Fire Review is community member and friend Karoline Bourdeau, who hits us with five very different books with five very intriguing titles. Our co...
Mar 23, 2024•54 min•Ep. 132
On today's episode: Archer’s Voice by Mia Sheridan is a New York Times best-selling romance novel about the healing and transformative power of love. Seeing as romance is not one of Ramya and I’s typical go-to genres, this ended up being a very different listening experience for us. Alia Abdel-Majid, who initially brought our attention to this one, is with us today for an honest, in-depth review. If you recognize that family name, that’s because she’s none other than our technical producer, Nisr...
Mar 16, 2024•56 min•Ep. 131
On today's episode: Dissecting book sales trends doesn’t just concern the capitalists. It’s also relevant to those of us who love to inspect the deeper implications. Sometimes there’s a direct correlation between the newest sales trends and notable societal changes but often, it leaves us scratching our heads. Karen McKay and Theresa Power from CELA are here to help us analyze the sales data from 2022 to 2023. Plus, Sara Hillis joins us in the second half to share with us her findings on AI-narr...
Mar 09, 2024•54 min•Ep. 130
On today's episode: Listening to an audiobook, as opposed to reading it in print, is a different experience. Not better or worse, just different. But how exactly does it differ? And how does that change the way we appreciate the story? Yes, we’re not done talking about this. Plus, later, Ted Cooper is here for Rapid-Fire review. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagra...
Mar 02, 2024•56 min•Ep. 129
On today's episode: Did you read a book if you listened to the audiobook version? If you research this question online, you’ll find all sorts of opinion pieces, message boards, and social media posts that make it clear that people have strong feelings on both sides. Why is this such a contentious issue? Why is this seemingly innocuous question always striking such a nerve? There’s a lot at play here and we’re here to talk about it. Plus, later Ammer Khan, our very own audiobook curator is with u...
Feb 24, 2024•56 min•Ep. 128
On today's episode: First impressions matter, and the title of an audiobook is more than likely going to be the first thing you’ll react to when coming across a potential next read. Sometimes that title is intriguing. Sometimes it’s confusing. Sometimes it sounds dumb as hell. The point is, that titles matter, and we’re prepared to break it down for you. We also have a list of silly, ridiculous, and cringy book titles. Plus, in the second half of the episode, we ask ourselves: is listening to a ...
Feb 17, 2024•55 min•Ep. 127
On today's episode: The Romantasy genre has blown up in the past few years and Booktok is responsible. What is it about this genre that’s made it so irresistible to its ravenous fanbase? What’s the appeal? Why is it blowing up now? And how does Booktok wield so much influence? Karen McKay and Theresa Power of CELA are here to help us answer these questions. Plus, in the second half of the show, Sarah Hillis joins us to discuss the merits and pitfalls of celebrity narrators. Audiobook Café is bro...
Feb 10, 2024•54 min•Ep. 126
On today's episode: We’ve spoken in the past about the huge role audiobook producers have over the final product of a project. So many small decisions on their part come together to shape what we end up spending hours eagerly consuming. Our guest this week, Caleb Stoll, is the technical director of the audiobook program at Penguin Random House Canada. He’s involved in many of the stages of production for the audiobooks they produce out of their studios in Toronto. From the technical aspects of s...
Feb 03, 2024•56 min•Ep. 125
A huge part of living the audio bookworm lifestyle is constantly seeking out your next read. That means taking tons of recommendations, be it from websites, close friends or coworkers. That said, not all recommendations are made equal. What is it that makes us take recommendations seriously? And how can we do better the next time we recommend an audiobook to our friends? Today we’re talking about the art of the book recommendation, and what better person to have for this discussion than our very...
Jan 27, 2024•55 min•Ep. 124
Multi-Voice narration audiobooks offer a product that’s more like an engrossing old-school audio drama when done well. When done badly, though, they can be a disjointed mess of cringe, so say the haters. Sarah Hillis is here to help us break it down. Plus, Natasha Peters is our avid bookworm this week, and a rapid-fire review with Natasha is coming up in the 2nd half of the show. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Satur...
Jan 20, 2024•56 min•Ep. 123
We’re so excited to have one of our favorite audiobook narrators, Julia Whelan, on the show. Julia Whelan is an author, audiobook narrator of over 500 books, screenwriter and actress. Check out the two fantastic novels she's authored. Both are available on Audible and CELA with Julia's narration: My Oxford Year: https://celalibrary.ca/node/24026776 Thank You for Listening: https://celalibrary.ca/node/23968710 Here is an extensive list of her narration work available on Audible: https://www.audib...
Jan 13, 2024•56 min•Ep. 122
On today's episode: With 2023 behind us, Karen Mackay of CELA is here to help us break down the best and most notable audiobooks of the year. Plus, the voice of AMI-audio, Julia Bonett, is joining us as our avid audiobook listener this week. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AMIAudiobookCafe We want your feedback! Be that comments, suggestions, hot-takes, audi...
Jan 06, 2024•53 min•Ep. 121
The last book in the Harry Potter series was published back in 2007, over 15 years ago. That’s 15 years for the millions of fans around the world, including ourselves, to fully absorb the series and what it has to offer. We thought it would be a great time to have a deep dive discussion, giving our retrospective review of the series from a 2023 perspective. To help, we enlisted Grant Hardy, our colleague, producer on AMI's Kelly and Ramya and massive HP fan, to join us. We also get into the roll...
Dec 23, 2023•57 min•Ep. 120
On today's episode: Being an author is typically thought of as a lonesome affair, but it doesn’t need to be. Enter the strange world of co-authoring. Karen McKay and Theresa Power of CELA join us to help break it down. Emily Wu Zeller is our featured narrator this week on Know Your Narrator and Sarah Hillis is here for the second half of the show. And, somewhere in there, we’ll of course find time for this week’s question to the book club: what books give you wintery vibes? Audiobook Café is bro...
Dec 16, 2023•57 min•Ep. 119
It’s a rapid-fire review bonanza and Ramya, Nisreen and Jacob are finally participating; Julie Martin, Community Reporter on AMI's Kelly and Ramya, joins us to get it all started. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AMIAudiobookCafe We want your feedback! Be that comments, suggestions, hot-takes, audiobook recommendations or reviews of your own… hit us up! Our e...
Dec 09, 2023•55 min•Ep. 118
On this week's episode: Sometimes, we need to take a step back from our busy lives and just appreciate the simple things. And what better way to do that than by immersing yourself in the living world of greenery and beautiful landscapes? If you’re not an outdoors person, the next best thing is reading books about the wild. We wanted a guest to help us with this topic and it only felt natural that that had to be none other than Lawrence Gunther of Outdoors with Lawrence Gunther. Plus, our very ow...
Dec 02, 2023•53 min•Ep. 117
Red Széll, host of My Life in Books with Red Széll, is with us, all the way from some place called England. Drawing on his years of experience as host of My Life in Books on AMI-audio, interviewing countless authors, it’s safe to say he’s somewhat of an expert on what makes authors tick. Looking forward to getting into it with Red. Plus, we have more responses to our most recent question to the book club: What are books that left you with strong mixed feelings? (i.e., books that had you equally ...
Nov 25, 2023•56 min•Ep. 116
Is our obsession with rigidly classifying every book into a set list of genres a bad habit that desperately needs breaking? That’s a loaded question. There are no doubt a whole lot of issues that come with our feverish compulsion to sort everything, and that’s what we’ll be talking about today. Later, we’ll be getting into some responses to our book club question: What are some books that left you with strong mixed feelings? (i.e., a book that left you equally enthralled and frustrated.) Audiobo...
Nov 18, 2023•58 min•Ep. 115
We’re discussing the always-fascinating fantasy author, Brandon Sanderson, who’s fully embraced the audiobook revolution despite using his massive platform to condemn what he calls, “Audible's unconscionable business practices,” and casually breaking the record for the most successful Kickstarter campaign of all time in the process. And later, Sarah Hillis drops in for our Know Your Narrator segment; Edoardo Ballerini is our featured narrator this week. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio i...
Nov 11, 2023•57 min•Ep. 114
Karen and Theresa of CELA, the Center for Equitable Library Access, join us for another book review, this time for the highly-anticipated memoir, The Woman in Me, by Britney Spears. And later, Aamer Khan shares with us three authors that have piqued his interest in the past month. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AMIAudiobookCafe We want your feedback! Be tha...
Nov 04, 2023•56 min•Ep. 113
Dave Brown, of the world-famous NOW with Dave Brown, which airs live weekdays at 9 a.m. Eastern on AMI-tv, joins us for an in-depth review of Success by Martin Amos (where our quote of the week is from), one of his very own book recommendations . Later on, Jacob and I continue our recommendations with more of our personal favourites. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Ins...
Oct 28, 2023•56 min•Ep. 112
This week, we finally take a moment to present our own book recommendations, in the thriller/mystery and non-fiction categories. On the second half of the show, Greg David, Communications Specialist at AMI, is subjected to the Rapid-Fire-Review segment. He also gives us his in-depth review of Rogue Heroes by Ben Macintyre. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AMI...
Oct 21, 2023•55 min•Ep. 111
Karen and Theresa make their monthly appearance on the show. This time, we discuss the many reasons why so many people read horror. Why do we willingly want to feel fear and discomfort? There’s a lot to unpack. Plus, Sarah Hillis presents/raves about one of our personal favourite narrators, Julia Whelan, as part of our Know Your Narrator segment Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook...
Oct 14, 2023•56 min•Ep. 110
This week, Ramya and Jacob convene with the book club to have an in depth discussion on what specifically makes a book enjoyable. Everyone shares their ranking of the following 4 elements in order of personal importance to their enjoyment of a book; Plot, writing, characters and setting. Spoiler alert, opinions differ. We also wrap up banned books week, which ended on October 7th, with a few shocking statistics from the ALA, American Library Association as well as take a look back at the history...
Oct 07, 2023•56 min•Ep. 109
We’ll actually make an effort to live up to this show’s name and review a book for once. The invisible Life of Addy Leroux, by V.E. Schwab, is what we’re reviewing today with the help of fellow book nerds Debby Giroux and Amer Khan. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AMIAudiobookCafe We want your feedback! Be that comments, suggestions, hot-takes, audiobook rec...
Sep 30, 2023•56 min•Ep. 108
On today’s episode, two avid readers are coming on to discuss their recent reading adventures. Karen Magee, Content Development Specialist at AMI is first, followed by Jennie Bovard of the Low Vision Moments podcast after the break. Audiobook Café is broadcast on AMI-audio in Canada and publishes two new podcast episodes a week on Fridays and Saturdays at 1 p.m. ET. Follow Audiobook Café on Instagram @AMIAudiobookCafe We want your feedback! Be that comments, suggestions, hot-takes, audiobook rec...
Sep 23, 2023•58 min•Ep. 107
