Four Memoirs to Listen to as an Audiobook

By Jay Flood

Everyone who knows me knows that I rarely read anything other than fiction. I read because I want to escape from the real world and nonfiction books cannot give me that considering they are about the real world. While I still don’t think I will ever read the physical copy of a nonfiction book, I’ve found that listening to the audiobook of a memoir read by the author is something I can do every once in a while. Listening to the author read their memoir themselves is very impactful because you get to hear them tell their story the way they want to. Their voice reflects the emotions they were feeling and accurately conveys the tone in dialogues. Here are four memoirs I recommend to listen to as an audiobook.

1. I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy

If you’ve ever had an abusive parent and used humor to cope with it, listening to Jeanette McCurdy’s memoir, “I’m Glad My Mom Died,” is the perfect way to feel less alone. McCurdy was a child actor on the Nickelodeon shows “iCarly” and “Sam and Cat” from 2007-2014. McCurdy describes her mother’s abuse from her perspective as a child going through it, rather than an adult reflecting on it. At first, this was hard to digest because it seemed like McCurdy was defending her mom’s abuse and protecting her even now. But you quickly realize how impactful it is to experience the thoughts and feelings victims of abuse experience while the abuse is ongoing to better understand how and why it happened.

This memoir deals with very heavy topics including eating disorders, anxiety, depression, grief, abuse, addiction, unhealthy relationships, and other topics I may be missing. If you plan to read this memoir, please look up the trigger warnings beforehand.

2. In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

Reading Jeanette McCurdy’s memoir was impactful because I knew of her growing up while watching iCarly on Nickelodeon. While I didn’t know anything about Carmen Maria Machado before listening to her memoir, it was impactful for other reasons. Machado wrote her memoir in second-person, present tense, which is not common and strange at first. However, it grows on you and by the end, you understand why it was written that way. There are probably different interpretations of why this book was written in second-person, present tense. My interpretation is that she wanted us to know what it was like to happen to ‘you.’ Sometimes in order to process hard things we need to tell ourselves what happened. You were screamed at. You were hit. You were hurt. 

Machado writes about abuse in queer relationships and how difficult it is to tell people. Lesbians are always told we haven’t met the right guy yet or that one day we’ll change our minds. No one questions whether it is possible for a gay man to like women but so many people are convinced that lesbians can like men. Why be in a relationship with a woman when you can be in a relationship with a man? This kind of thinking makes lesbians not want to admit that their girlfriend is abusive. I remember Machado saying she wanted the abuse to end because her girlfriend was “making us (lesbians) look bad.” 

So many straight women have said, “I wish I was a lesbian, dating girls is so much easier.” While I am very glad I’m not attracted to men, it is not because dating girls is “easier,” because it’s not. Abuse in queer relationships is often overlooked and minimized. Machado accurately articulates what it’s like to be in an abusive queer relationship in a society that is already against queer relationships.

3. The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl

While driving to Massachusetts last Thanksgiving break, my mom put this memoir on in the car. For twelve hours, we listened to Dave Grohl recall stories from his entire life. This memoir had no impact on me, to be honest. But it was nice to listen to him tell stories from childhood, all the bands he’s been in, marriage, and having children. This memoir was so personal and it felt like I was sitting across from him as he told me so many stories of his life. Dave Grohl is emotionally intelligent, has a deep love for his wife and daughters, and an immense passion for creating and sharing music. This was the first time I listened to an audiobook of a memoir read by the author, and it was nice. There were some heavy topics, but they were balanced out with lighthearted topics.

4. Pageboy by Elliot Page

Elliot Page released his memoir “Pageboy” last month. I haven’t had a chance to read it yet, but I am very excited and know I will love it when I do. Page came out as trans at the end of 2020. I remember so clearly how happy I was for him and all of the trans kids who now had someone to look up to. Pageboy is described as a “coming-of-age” memoir that describes his experience with gender, mental health, love, and being a celebrity. I am very excited to listen to Elliot Page read his memoir. 

If you’re like me and don’t really like reading nonfiction books but want to read something out of your comfort zone, listening to a memoir as an audiobook read by the author is an easy, entertaining way to do that. If you do enjoy reading nonfiction books and memoirs but haven’t read the ones on my list, I highly recommend them.