Audie Awards Honor Audiobook
Industry's Best of the Best in NYC
May 25, 2011
By John Florian
VoiceOverXtra
 (VOXtra) - Life, the Hachette audiobook, was named Audiobook of the Year Tuesday night at the Audie Awards Gala - an apt winning title for the lively, elegant evening at the TimesCenter in New York City - the annual "Oscars of the audiobook industry" event sponsored by the Audio Publishers Association (APA).
Drawing more than 1,100 entries this year, the Audies is the only awards program in the U.S. devoted exclusively to audiobooks and spoken word entertainment.
To applause, whoops and hollers, narrator/singer Joe Hurley and producer/director Michelle McGonigle (pictured above) accepted the award for the audiobook of the Keith Richards book, which was also read by Johnny Depp and featured Richards.
Moments earlier, Alfre Woodard was honored as best Solo Narration - Female, for her reading of Glorious, and Alan Cumming won the best Solo Narration - Male award for his reading of Zorgamazoo.
And the award for Distinguished Achievement in Production went to Here in Harlem: Poems in Many Voices, a Live Oak Media audiobook produced by Arnie Cardillo and directed by Robin Miles.
Hosting the presentations, Adriana Trigiani - the best-selling author of 13 books and writer for television and film - proved she could add stand-up comedy to her credits, stitching the audience with laughter.
ALL THE WINNERS
 Following are the winners in all 2011 Audie Award categories, who received well-earned applause. (Also see VoiceOverXtra's earlier article naming all Audie Award nominees.)
AUDIO DRAMA
- Saint Joan, by George Bernard Shaw, read by Amy Irving, Edward Herrmann, Kristoffer Tabori, and a distinguished cast, Blackstone Audio
AUDIOBOOK ADAPTATION
- No Country for Old Men, by Cormac McCarthy, read by Sean Barrett, Naxos AudioBooks
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
- Life, by Keith Richards, read by Johnny Depp with Joe Hurley and Keith Richards, Hachette Audio
 BUSINESS/EDUCATIONAL
- The Intelligent Entrepreneur, by Bill Murphy, Jr., read by LJ Ganser (pictured) and Fred Berman, Audible, Inc
CHILDREN’S TITLES FOR AGES 8-12
- The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate, by Jacqueline Kelly, read by Natalie Ross, Brilliance Audio
CHILDREN’S TITLES FOR AGES UP TO 8
- This Jazz Man, by Karen Ehrhardt, read by James “D Train” Williams, Live Oak Media
CLASSIC
- The Woman in White, by Wilkie Collins, read by Roger Rees, Rosalyn Landor, John Lee, and Judy Geeson, Blackstone Audio
FICTION
- Winter’s Bone, by Daniel Woodrell, read by Emma Galvin, Hachette Audio
 HISTORY
- Empire of Liberty: A History of the Early Republic, by Gordon S. Wood, read by Robert Fass (pictured), Audible, Inc
HUMOR
-
Old Jews Telling Jokes, by Sam Hoffman and Eric Spiegelman, read by Sam Hoffman with Eric Spiegelman and an ensemble cast, HighBridge Company
INSPIRATIONAL/FAITH-BASED FICTION
- Fireflies in December, by Jennifer Erin Valent, read by Kate Forbes, Recorded Books
INSPIRATIONAL/FAITH-BASED NON-FICTION
- In a Heartbeat: Sharing the Power of Cheerful Giving, by Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy with Sally Jenkins, read by Leigh Anne Tuohy, Sean Tuohy, Kathleen McInerney, and Rick Adamson, Macmillan Audio
JUDGES’ AWARD: PARANORMAL
- Beautiful Creatures, by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, read by Kevin T. Collins, Hachette Audio
LITERARY FICTION
- Snakewoman of Little Egypt, by Robert Hellenga, read by Coleen Marlo, Tantor Audio
MULTI-VOICED PERFORMANCE
- Jitters-A Quirky Little Audio Book, by Adele Park, read by a full cast, Straight to Audio Productions
MYSTERY
- The Reversal, by Michael Connelly, read by Peter Giles, Hachette Audio
NARRATION BY THE AUTHOR or AUTHORS
- Emma Thompson, Nanny McPhee Returns, Macmillan Audio
NON-FICTION
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot, read by Cassandra Campbell with Bahni Turpin, Random House Audio
ORIGINAL WORK
- New Adventures of Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer Vol. 2: The Little Death, by Max Allan Collins from a story by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins, read by Stacy Keach and a full cast, Blackstone Audio
PACKAGE DESIGN
- The Very Best of Bob and Ray: Legends of Comedy, by Bob Elliott and Ray Goulding, read by Bob Elliott and Ray Goulding, HighBridge Company
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
- Put on Your Crown: Life-Changing Moments on the Path to Queendom, by Queen Latifah, read by Queen Latifah, Hachette Audio
ROMANCE
- The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte, by Syrie James, read by Bianca Amato, Recorded Books
SCIENCE FICTION/FANTASY
- The Stainless Steel Rat, by Harry Harrison, read by Phil Gigante, Brilliance Audio
SHORT STORIES/COLLECTIONS
- Stories, by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantino, read by Anne Bobby, Jonathan Davis, Peter Francis James, Katherine Kellgren, and Euan Morton, HarperAudio
SOLO NARRATION—FEMALE
- Alfre Woodard, narrator of Glorious, by Bernice McFadden, Audible, Inc
SOLO NARRATION—MALE
- Alan Cumming, narrator of Zorgamazoo, by Robert Paul Weston, Penguin Audio
 TEENS
- The Rock and the River, by Kekla Magoon, read by Dion Graham (pictured), Brilliance Audio
THRILLER/SUSPENSE
- The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest, by Stieg Larsson, read by Simon Vance, Random House Audio
Congratulations to all!
 The Audio Publishers Association (APA) is a not-for-profit trade organization whose primary goals are to promote awareness of the audiobook industry, gather and disseminate industry statistics, encourage high production standards and represent the interests of audiobook publishers.
Since 1986, the APA has worked to bring audio publishers together to increase interest in audiobooks.
For more information - including about events and how to join the organization - visit www.audiopub.org.
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I'd love to hear "Jitters"! Please do send it. If you need my address or other info, my email is:
johnflorian@voiceoverxtra.com
As for Audie judging, I can only imagine that they picked the deserving winner!
Best wishes,
John
I enjoyed reading your article about the 2011 Audie Awards. I noticed you included my project, Jitters-A Quirky Little Audio Book, in your list of winners. Thank you for the mention – I really appreciate it.
Like many people, I was astonished when Jitters won in the multi-voiced category. After all, I am an unknown writer with an indie recording studio in Utah. Because of your expertise in the audiobook industry, I was wondering if you had any idea why Jitters won in this category and “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde and “The Shadow Effect” by Deepak Chopra did not. I'm not trying to be glib – it would be helpful to know what things I'm actually doing right.
Please know that I did not enter anything in the 2012 Audie Awards Competition, so I'm not trying to sway opinions. I was just hoping your insight might give me some ideas about how to move forward with my next project.
If you are interested, I would be happy to send you a complimentary copy of Jitters-A Quirky Little Audio Book. Thank you for taking time to read my note.
Adele Park