Last Updated on by Nishil Prasad
There’s a reason we all love faithful movie adaptations of our favorite books: they appeal to multiple senses in our body, from visual to auditory. This is why audiobooks that are produced beautifully are a treat to Listen to. With soundtracks and different voice actors for different characters, they provide a vivid enactment of the original Story, making it more alive.
Let’s look at some of the best full cast audiobooks that are sure to enhance your experience of the story multi-folds. For a comprehensive list of audiobooks spanning across genres, try this article out.
10 Best Full Cast Audiobooks
1. The Fyodor Dostoevsky BBC Radio Drama Collection
With radio productions of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s major works, short stories, and programs diving into his life, this is the perfect audiobook for those both new to and familiar with the Russian master. From Crime and Punishment, probably his most famous book, a story of guilt, redemption, and the spectrum of human emotions, to The Brothers Karamazov, a book centered around inheritance games in a family, this audiobook contains most of his notable works.
Stretching to several more novels and stories, the collection is certain to keep you coming back for more. Each story is narrated by a different host of narrators, and BBC’s top-notch production never fails to keep you captivated.
2. Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
A masterpiece of historical fiction, this piece deservedly won the Man Booker Prize in 2017. The majority of the story takes place in the bardo (a space that exists between life and rebirth) through the span of an evening. Revolving around the grief of Abraham Lincoln on losing his son, the story plays with reality and fictional elements, and in doing so, subverts all expectations of what’s expected from a novel.
In the debut novel by Saunders, the book enchants its readers from the very first word and keeps at it till that last chapter. Winner of the 2018 Audie Award, the audiobook is narrated by a total of 166 voice actors, including Cassandra Campbell and George Saunders himself, that will make sure you’re in simultaneous awe of the storytelling and the narration throughout the book.
3. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
A fantasy classic in every fashion, The Golden Compass is the first installment in His Dark Materials trilogy. Humans have familiars in this world and parallel universes are not a theoretical concept, but a close reality. We follow Lyra as she travels towards the distant, chilling North where a chain of events might change everything.
In the North lives her uncle who wishes to create a bridge between this world and parallel worlds, and her friend Roger. But choices come at a cost, and dangers lie at every turn. Narrated by a host of voice actors who make an already masterful work even more compelling.
4. A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green
With different actors for different character perspectives, A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor is fleshed out even more distinctly in this audiobook rendition. A commentary on social media, and consequently, on society, the book raises important questions in an increasingly isolated and addicted world. The follow-up to An Absolutely Remarkable Thing takes you on a fast-paced ride while serving pinches and swaths of philosophy and sociology.
5. BBC Radio Shakespeare: A Collection of Eight Comedies
There’s no need for introductions when it comes to The Bard. Hardly anyone or anything has influenced English literature, and even global literature to a certain extent, as has Shakespeare’s works. Through this collection of his plays, you can get to experience some of the best of those works all in one place.
Much Ado About Nothing, As You Like It, The Merchant of Venice, The Tempest, and four more plays are a part of this collection, all having comedic themes as a commonality. These BBC productions further add flavor to these timeless tales and make for a great entry point into the world of Shakespeare.
6. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
How did The Six break up? This mystery has troubled more than a few music aficionados. This book unravels the mystery behind that iconic rock band and its unfortunate demise. When an ambitious Daisy Jones meets the leader of The Six, Billy Dunne, success would follow, and history will be created.
Taylor writes in a flourishing manner that serves to keep your attention throughout the span of the story. Best listened to as an audiobook, the different voice actors highlight the different subtleties and quirks of the characters with finesse. This makes the story much more compelling and realistic, transporting you to that era in no time.
7. Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 by Keisha N. Blain and Ibram X. Kendi
An epic compilation that seeks to chronicle the history of African Americans, from way back in 1619 to the present time. Back in 1619, when 20 or so Africans were brought on the Virginia waters, began a complex and important chain of historical events that would change the world and its perspectives like few things have. Are you a devourer of works of nonfiction? This article contains a list of some of the best audiobooks in that genre.
Each writer, in this book, tackles one 5 year period from those four hundred years. This is done by an array of formats: short stories, historical pieces, vignettes, and polemics. Looking at and from different perspectives and places and incidents, the book is a treasure trove for everyone, and the large cast of voice narrators make this book even more engaging and impactful to go through.
8. Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
A river running through town sees the death of a mother after observing another death early in the year. The waters hold secrets, and recent history slowly drags them to the surface. The mother has left behind a girl of 15, who’s in the care of her aunt, a woman who’d promised to never return to the place she now finds herself in.
Past merges with the present, and emotions intermingle with memories in this thrilling and nail-biting story. Narrated by a host of actors, the audiobook serves to further the suspense and tension of the story, providing an atmospheric and chilling experience.
9. Human Acts by Han Kang
A violent revolt by students in South Korea gets a young boy killed. This is his story. The story unravels through a series of stories of victims and their suppressions. Using the stories of friends and relatives of the young boy, as well as journalists and prisoners,
A compelling sketch of events that haunt the public subconscious even today, Human Acts is a struggle and demand for justice and memory. It unleashes the true power of literature by intermiring the brutal reality with poetic words.
10. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
With a star-studded cast including David Tennant and Michael Sheen, the production takes an already masterful story to new heights. According to the world’s most authentic book of prophecies, the world is going to end next Saturday. Yep, just before dinner. Want to experience more fantastical stories? Don’t miss out on these wonderful audiobooks.
But two unlikely friends, an angel, and a demon, both fond of this little planet, aren’t so much looking forward to this Armageddon. And so starts a hilarious story of misplaced items and identities that is certain to blow you away with its sheer imagination.
