To celebrate our 10th anniversary, we’ve pulled together Libro.fm’s top 10 bestselling audiobooks of all time, based on sales through our 3,000+ independent bookshop partners.
This list features nonfiction and fiction, fantasy and memoir, and everything in between! And it also shows that sometimes the best read isn’t what you might find on The New York Times bestseller list. Whether you’re a longtime audiobook fan or new to the format, read on for bookseller reviews of the 10 audiobooks that have earned a place in the hearts of Libro.fm readers worldwide to find your next great listen—all while supporting your indie bookshop of choice.
Demon Copperhead
“Demon Copperhead is one of my favorite books of 2022. Demon is a boy growing up in Appalachia, struggling to survive poverty, neglect and the opioid crisis. I listened to the audiobook from Libro.fm, and Kingsolver’s beautiful writing is expertly brought to life by narrator Charlie Thurston”
— Mike, A Great Good Place for Books
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The House in the Cerulean Sea
“There aren’t many books that can leave you wishing you were a parentless magical child feared by the rest of the society. But with characters like the ones in The House in the Cerulean Sea, you can’t help but wish you belonged to such a wonderful, magical family. And the dialogue! You will not be able to drive while listening to it because you’ll be laughing way too hard!”
— Chris, Belmont Books
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Crying in H Mart
“In Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner goes into detail about her mother’s cancer, the nights she spent next to her bed, the secrets she learned about her later on, the small yet wonderful moments she remembers with clarity, and of course the raw emotion that goes with losing a mother[…] Michelle Zauner does a phenomenal job at reading her book, her voice rhythmic yet steady.”
— Makayla, Tattered Cover
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Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
“I was seized and thoroughly absorbed by this amazing book, beautifully narrated in audiobook form. Sam and Sadie are two brilliant video gamers and creative designers whose lives revolve around games. The book follows their friendship and professional collaboration from early teen to young adult — through love and grief and disappointment and success. Many issues come up throughout the novel, such as the role of women in on-line gaming, gender identification, difficulties for mixed-race children, the immigrant experience, the place of art in society. But underlying is a wonderful and tender tale of companionship and love”
— Bob, Zenith Bookstore
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Tom Lake
“This story takes place in Michigan, which is always a bonus for me as a reader. The setting is during the pandemic but revolves around Lara’s early life as an actress and her relationship with a man who later becomes a famous actor. Lara is retelling that experience in small doses to her three daughters. It is a story about relationships, disappointments, and the blessings of a good marriage. I listened to this story as an audiobook and what could be better than a story by Ann Patchett read by Meryl Streep?”
— Paula, Schuler Books
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I’m Glad My Mom Died
“There is something about listening to a memoir narrated by the person who wrote it that makes one’s experience feel complete. McCurdy’s writing ‘voice’ and actual one give dry humor and a low folksy charm while describing truly harrowing abuses from her mother. She doesn’t hold anything back whether it’s her time on set on iCarly to her first sexual experience to the description of her vomit after a binge and purge. If you wanted a fun celebrity tell-all…this ain’t it. This is a survivor’s story.”
— Lissa, Book Club Bar
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A Promised Land
“No one really needs my blurb to help sell this book, but I want to give it anyway, especially for the audiobook, narrated by Barack Obama himself. If you want to know his incredible knowledge and wisdom that guided him through major decisions, and also hear him drop a few F-bombs, you need to listen to this fantastically written book.”
— Amber, Quail Ridge Books
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Lessons in Chemistry
“Lessons in Chemistry is a story of Elizabeth Zott: a brilliant female chemist in a man’s lab during the early 1960s. She continuously faces challenges with grace and intellect. She rather begrudgingly hosts a cooking show which causes a ripple effect of women standing up for themselves, knowing their worth, and seeking higher education and pay. This quirky fictional book certainly challenges us not to just accept the ‘status quo’ and reach higher!”
— Becky, Cherry Street Books
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How to Be an Antiracist
“Among the multi-faceted array of antiracist literature… Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist stands alone as a definitive source of history and socio-political critique, while offering a new paradigm of thought aimed at paving the way for correcting centuries of social injustice. Hearing this visionary and transformative work in Kendi’s own voice will no doubt bring it all straight into your heart, humanizing his ideas, and firmly setting you on your own path to doing the work of becoming an antiracist.”
— Noelle, Oblong Books
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Braiding Sweetgrass
“Part memoir, part native and scientific knowledge, Braiding Sweetgrass is a wonderful work of nonfiction. There is so much to be learned about gratitude in this book, and Kimmerer’s poetic-prose will help you find wonder in the world again. Read by the author, it’s one book that can teach a bit of something to everyone.”
— Carina, Bosch&deJong boekverkopers
View the audiobookWant to see even more Libro.fm bestsellers? Check out our Bestseller list, updated hourly, to see all of our most popular audiobooks. Here, you can also search by genre, finding sci-fi, self-help, romance, historical fiction, nonfiction audiobooks, and much more! Pro tip: Add them to your Libro.fm wishlist to share with friends and family.
And don’t forget to celebrate our 10th anniversary with us this June! With your help, we can make sure independent bookshops thrive for another 10, 20, 100 years and more.