The VIPs of the audiobook world gathered tonight at Chelsea Piers’ Pier Sixty in New York City to honor the best audiobooks of 2022 at the 28th annual Audie Awards Gala. Hosted by the Audiobook Publishers Association, the gala featured writer, comedian, television host, and actress Michelle Buteau as the emcee of the evening.
The big winner of the evening was Viola Davis, who wrote and narrated Finding Me, which took home the prizes for the Audiobook of the Year and Narration by the Author.
On a personal note, I am now free to announce that I judged the second round of the classics/ literary fiction category, and I was very happy to see Leo Tolstoy’s classic War and Peace win the category. Prior to judging this category, I only knew about War and Peace as a book famous for being long, but I thoroughly enjoyed this historical fiction about Russia’s experience in the Napoleonic Wars. However, I was disappointed that my first choice, Winnie the Pooh, narrated by the marvelous Barbara Rosenblatt, did not make the final cut.
But on to the list of tonight’s winners!
2023 AUDIE AWARD WINNERS:
AUDIO DRAMA
PIPELINE
Written by Dominique Morisseau
Performed by Sophina Brown, Eugene Byrd, Demetrius Grosse, Sharon Lawrence, X Mayo, Uyoata Udi, and Karen Malina White
Published by L.A. Theatre Works
AUDIOBOOK OF THE YEAR
FINDING ME
Written and narrated by Viola Davis
Published by HarperCollins Publishers
AUTOBIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
UNPROTECTED: A MEMOIR
Written and narrated by Billy Porter
Published by Recorded Books, a division of RBmedia
BEST FEMALE NARRATOR
ROSAMUND PIKE, for The Eye of the World
Written by Robert Jordan
Published by Macmillan Audio
BEST MALE NARRATOR
SETH NUMRICH, for Fairy Tale
Written by Stephen King
Published by Simon & Schuster Audio
BUSINESS/PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
TOUGH
Written and narrated by Terry Crews
Published by Penguin Random House Audio
EROTICA
ON THE HUSTLE
Written by Adriana Herrera
Narrated by Lola James and Sean Crisden
Published by HarperAudio
ESPAÑOL – SPANISH LANGUAGE
¡PRIMERA CAÍDA! El ENMASCARADO DE TERCIOPELO
Written by Diego Mejía Eguiluz
Narrated by Noé Velázquez
Published by Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial México
FAITH-BASED FICTION & NON-FICTION
DARK ANGEL
Written by Brian Andrews and Jeffrey Wilson
Narrated by MacLeod Andrews
Published by Tyndale House Publishers
FANTASY
THE MONSTERS WE DEFY
Written by Leslye Penelope
Narrated by Shayna Small
Published by Hachette Audio
FICTION
MAD HONEY
Written by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
Narrated by Carrie Coon, Key Taw, Jodi Picoult, and Jennifer Finney Boylan
Published by Penguin Random House Audio
HISTORY/BIOGRAPHY
SUMMER OF ‘85
Written by Chris Morrow, Kevin Hart, Tara Thomas, Nicole Shelton, Charlamagne Tha God, Marc Gerald, Dave Becky, Mike Stein, Thai Randolph, Bryan Smiley, and Karen Kinney
Narrated by Kevin Hart
Published by Audible Originals
HUMOR
HAPPY-GO-LUCKY
Written and narrated by David Sedaris
Published by Hachette Audio
LITERARY FICTION & CLASSICS
WAR AND PEACE
Written by Leo Tolstoy
Translated by Louise Maude and Aylmer Maude
Narrated by Thandiwe Newton
Published by Audible Studios
MIDDLE GRADE
STUNTBOY, IN THE MEANTIME
Written by Jason Reynolds
Narrated by Guy Lockard, Nile Bullock, Angel Pean, James Fouhey, Soneela Nankani, Leon Nixon, Chanté McCormick, Lamarr Gulley, and DePre Owens
Published by Simon & Schuster Audio
MULTI-VOICED PERFORMANCE
SPARRING PARTNERS
Written by John Grisham
Narrated by Jeff Daniels, Ethan Hawke, January LaVoy, and John Grisham
Published by Penguin Random House Audio
MYSTERY
THE HERON
Written by Don Winslow
Narrated by Ed Harris
Published by Audible Originals
NARRATION BY AUTHOR OR AUTHORS
VIOLA DAVIS, for Finding Me
Published by HarperAudio
NON-FICTION
THE RANSOMWARE HUNTING TEAM
Written by Renee Dudley and Daniel Golden
Narrated by BD Wong
Published by Macmillan Audio
ORIGINAL WORK
MRS. WICKHAM
Written by Sarah Page
Narrated by Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn, and a full cast
Published by Audible Originals
ROMANCE
DELILAH GREEN DOESN’T CARE
Written by Ashley Herring Blake
Narrated by Kristen DiMercurio
Published by Penguin Random House Audio
SCIENCE FICTION
INTERGALACTIC EXTERMINATORS, INC
Written by Ash Bishop
Narrated by Scott Brick and Suzanne Elise Freeman
Published by CamCat Books
SHORT STORIES/COLLECTIONS
GETAWAY
Written by Sally Hepworth, Zakiya Dalila Harris, Catherine Steadman, Luanne Rice, Jess Lourey, and Rumaan Alam
Narrated by Candice Moll, Shayna Small, Samara Naeymi, Jennifer Jill Araya, Carly Robins, and Fajer Al-Kaisi
Published by Brilliance Publishing
THRILLER/SUSPENSE
GREENWICH PARK
Written by Katherine Faulkner
Narrated by Laura Kirman
Published by Simon & Schuster Audio
YOUNG ADULT
DEMON IN THE WOOD GRAPHIC NOVEL
Written by Leigh Bardugo
Narrated by Ben Barnes, Benjamin Valic, Cassandra Morris, Eason Rytter, James Fouhey, Mary McCartney, Matt Leisy, Salli Saffioti, Sean Gormley, and Tom Bromhead
Published by Macmillan Audio
YOUNG LISTENERS
A DOOR MADE FOR ME
Written and narrated by Tyler Merritt
Published by Hachette Audio
