It takes a certain kind of genius to create a century full of characters — including an unforgettable Thomas Cromwell and an impetuous Henry VIII — and give each a distinctive voice and a fully formed personality.
Simon Slater
more than manages this feat in Hilary Mantel’s “Wolf Hall.” It’s hard to imagine any single reader’s imagination performing as well.
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Robin Sachs
reads “The Last Werewolf” by Glen Duncan. Surely this is what a werewolf sounds like: rumbling scotch, cigarette smoke and world- weariness.
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Hope Davis
balances the impossible with the intimate in a perfectly pitched telling of Ann Patchett’s “State of Wonder.”
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Arte Johnson
is so perfect as Misha Vainberg in “Absurdistan,” by Gary Shteyngart, he very nearly steals the show. Johnson captures the spirit of this funny novel with hilarious accuracy.
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Ron Silver
recorded two Philip Roth novels before he died in 2009. The quality of “I Married a Communist” doesn’t meet today’s standards, but it’s still worth listening to Silver. He is the perfect Nathan Zuckerman.
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