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Radio On
Radio On: A Listener's Diary | Sarah Vowell
5 posts | 9 read | 3 to read
There are approximately 502 million radios in America. For this savvy, far-reaching diary, celebrated journalist and author Sarah Vowell turned hers on and listened--closely, critically, creatively--for an entire year. As a series of impressions and reflections regarding contemporary American culture, and as an extended meditation on both our media and our society, Radio On is a keenly focused book that is as insightful as it is refreshing.
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monalyisha
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My husband‘s cousin, Teresa, passed away unexpectedly. We‘re headed to upstate NY to attend her funeral services this weekend. She died in a house fire, becoming disoriented in an effort to save her pets & foster animals. It‘s horrible, & sad, & sudden. I think an audiobook might help to occupy our minds during the drive. She loved animals, so that might be a consideration when recommending. She was also a sucker for anything spooky/Halloween-y.

ljuliel That is so sad. Thinking of her whole family 💕. Sorry, I‘m drawing a blank on an audiobook with animals that‘s spooky. 5y
Jas16 I am so sorry 5y
julesG I'm so sorry. 5y
See All 39 Comments
Mollyanna I am so sorry. Safe travels and know my thoughts are with you and your family. To me a good spooky read is (edited) 5y
Eggs So sorry for your family‘s sudden tragic loss (((Hugs))) 5y
Birdsong28 So sorry for your loss 😘 Sending lots of love ❤️📚 5y
Crazeedi What a tragedy 💔 my deepest sympathies to you and you husband and family 💖 5y
Judybskt I‘m sorry for your loss. 😥💕 5y
audraelizabeth Im so sorry. She sounds like a wonderful human being. 5y
Dan_SpiderCrafts Sorry for your loss. 😢💕 5y
Susanita I‘m sorry for your loss. 😢💔 5y
JessClark78 I‘m so sorry for your loss. 💔❤️ 5y
Caterina Praying for y'all and the rest of her family. ❤️ I enjoyed this memoir from an animal lover on audio: 5y
maich I'm sorry for your loss. 5y
TheAromaofBooks Oh my goodness, how tragic! So sorry for your loss. ❤ 5y
valeriegeary 💔💔 so sorry for your loss. I listened to American Wolf last year and found it utterly engrossing. It was a little on the sad side though just as a heads up. 5y
Moray_Reads I'm so sorry xx 5y
mrozzz So sorry for your loss. ♥️ 5y
BarbaraBB What a sad story. Wishing you lots of strength. This one is short but supposed to be very good 5y
readordierachel How awful. I'm so sorry for your loss 5y
Come-read-with-me That‘s awful. Deepest condolences. ❤️ 5y
DaveGreen7777 Oh, no! I‘m so sorry for your loss. Sending healing energy to you and your family! 5y
reluctantangeleno Oh my goodness, losing my pets/fosters in a fire is my absolute worst nightmare. It's clear that she was a selfless advocate and hero for those creatures who can't speak for themselves. What a horrible tragedy. I am so sorry. 5y
zezeki I'm so sorry for your loss. 💔 5y
youneverarrived Oh that‘s awful. So sorry for your loss 💔 5y
Megabooks Sending love to you and your family! 💞💞 5y
sprainedbrain That‘s so sad. I‘m very sorry for your loss. 😔 5y
LeahBergen Oh my goodness. How tragic. 💔💔 5y
Texreader So sad for you all. She sounds like quite the hero. How tragic. My thoughts are with you 5y
Butterfinger My thoughts are with you. I can only think of the one I'm listening to now. Tom Hanks is delightful as he narrates The Dutch House. 5y
Hooked_on_books How terrible. I‘m so sorry. 5y
marleed I am so sorry. 5y
Redwritinghood So sorry to hear that. 💔💔 5y
Clare-Dragonfly Oh, how sad. I‘m sorry for your loss. 5y
Bookzombie I‘m so sorry. Sending you both love. 5y
quietjenn I'm so sorry. 5y
CoffeeK8 So sorry for your loss 5y
rabbitprincess How awful! I am so sorry for your loss ♥️♥️ 5y
monalyisha Thank you for all of your kindness and suggestions, everyone! My husband ended up wanting to listen to fiction rather than non, but I‘ve got a bunch of books to add to my TBR (TBL) now! Interestingly enough, the book we chose had an incredibly sweet character who shared a name with his cousin, & whose mission in life was to guide others to safety. Like fate. 💕 (edited) 5y
56 likes39 comments
review
rabbitprincess
Pickpick

A low Pick. Sarah's writing is good as always, and the collection ended up being timelier than I might have expected, but I missed out on some content due to a printing error. This probably isn't my favourite Vowell and would probably be best for the completist or for radio enthusiasts.

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monalyisha
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Now accepting audiobook recs!

My husband & I are driving 3-4 hours (one way) to go camping in the wild woods of Vermont this weekend. Something brand-y NEW would be best!

We like fantasy, sci-fi, memoirs, & narrative non-fic.

TIA!

See All 16 Comments
Crazeedi @Trashcanman I love Mary roach!! 6y
Bookwormjillk Sleeping Beauties isn‘t brand new, but newish. Not new at all but favorites for that type of trip are The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon and A Walk In The Woods. 6y
audraelizabeth I love neil gaiman as a narrator.. 6y
Kimberlone My bf and I had a fun time listening to this on a road trip last year 6y
Laughterhp I really enjoyed on audio 6y
Laughterhp This book was really interesting on audio too and I don‘t read nonfiction/true crime. 6y
Tungstensmum Just finished listening to this one - it‘s a short listen, about 4 hours. Very different from what I normally read and I felt transported to a country/area I don‘t know much about. It‘s more about complicated relationships that murder, but yeah, there‘s also some murder. A bit like a fictional memoir. (edited) 6y
shanaqui I love almost all BBC radioplay adaptations. They're usually abridged, but beautifully done. Their LOTR adaptation is my gold standard for audiobooks; most of the voices are how I hear the books when I read them, now, in a good way. There's something delicious about the narrator's pronunciation of words. Also the BBC's Dorothy L Sayers adaptations are great. 6y
monalyisha @Trashcanman I like M.R. but haven‘t yet done “Gulp”! I‘ll add it to the list of possibilities. Thanks! 6y
mhillis I rarely finish an audiobook 😂 but I liked 6y
Hooked_on_books Gulp is free this week from audiobook sync. It‘s great. I have a link to the website on my post from today. I think I just finished the perfect audiobook for a road trip in the north: 6y
60 likes16 comments
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monalyisha
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Any great audiobooks**(read below before answering) that I should be aware of?

I commute an hour to work & an hour home every day so I‘ve listened to quite a few. Something NEW would probably be good. I‘m hoping for a light(ish) memoir or something pop-science-y (I find it easiest to have multiple books going that way).

Educated is already on my list, but I‘m not really in the mood for that right now.

Thanks! 🙏🏻

IamIamIam I loved the Lunar Chronicles series. I'm just finishing up the prequels. To Kill a Mockingbird read by Sissy Spacek is wonderful! Carl Reiner's book had me cracking up, too! And lastly, In a Dark, Dark Wood was really cool. I was late to the party on that one, so you may have read it already. 6y
Regi_C Have you listened to Bossypants yet? That's possibly my most favorite audiobook! 6y
Schnoebs I got through this one really quickly when I was listening to it at work 6y
See All 25 Comments
monalyisha @LiterarySiren I listened to & loved 😍 “Born a Crime.” One of my favorites. Is “Scrappy Little Nobody” still enjoyable if I know very little about the actress? 6y
monalyisha @Schnoebs I love Lauren Graham but thought that one was only okay. 🤷‍♀️ I did love her novel, though (which I read in print)! 6y
monalyisha @Regi_C I have a weird block against “Bossypants.” I don‘t know what it is! I‘ve checked it out from the library several times and it never quite makes it into my CD player. 🤦‍♀️ 6y
Regi_C @monalyisha Interesting! It's pretty light and memoir-y, so maybe now is a good time to try again? 6y
monalyisha @2BR02B I liked Felicia Day‘s (she‘s complex! And I love mostly everything she‘s been in). I may just give “Carsick” a try. 🤢😉 6y
CoffeeK8 This was great on audiobook 6y
alisiakae I really liked Amy Poehler‘s Yes, Please! As an audiobook. (edited) 6y
Kimberlone Any book by Malcom Gladwell...my fave would be 6y
monalyisha Oh, @meghan2714 I totally forgot I wanted to listen to that one! Thank you!! 6y
monalyisha @ReadOrDieRachel I‘ve only ever done one Mary Roach... but I thought of her when I posted this, actually & Packing for Mars just happens to be the one I put on hold. Thanks! 😉 6y
DimeryRene Lord! Anything by Jenny Lawson. 💕 6y
slightlyfoxed And this one was deeper than I expected, but good. 6y
monalyisha @slightlyfoxed Ohhh, great suggestions! 🙌🏻 I‘m interested in both of them! 6y
49 likes25 comments
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emtobiasz
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Enjoying a fireplace and a book as the boyfriend practices the wedding ceremony he's officiating later this weekend.

I ❤️ Sarah Vowell, but her essays are usually so politically of-the-moment that they age a little unevenly. Just starting this one, about radio from the mid-1990s, so we'll see!

valeriegeary This looks so wonderfully cozy! 7y
ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled I want to teleport into this photo 7y
61 likes3 stack adds2 comments