All the planning and preparation in the world can go out of the window if the traffic’s horrendous or the kids play up. Choosing an audiobook to accompany you on your journey could be your best move yet as you fasten your seatbelts and lose yourself in a great story. And if the kids fall asleep while listening, that’s the perfect moment to tune into that audiobook you’ve always wanted to hear.
Ideal for 1-2 Hour Journeys
Everything is going swimmingly when Sheila Birling and Gerald Cross announce their engagement, until an inspector knocks at the door and questions the family about a young girl’s suicide. This is 90 minutes of sublime storytelling as the book examines themes of class, social standing and the impact of the 4 characters behavior on others.
Chaotic Mildred is a trainee witch who can’t seem to get anything right, least of all her spells. Bullied by the seemingly perfect Ethel, she is saved by her best friend Maud who tries to get her out of trouble. Gemma Arterton draws us in with her funny portrayal of all the characters in this whimsical story.
Ideal for 2-3 Hour Journeys
Rediscover the book from the 1961 film that revived Audrey Hepburn’s career and turned Holly Golightly into a screen icon. Touchingly narrated here by Michael Hall of Six Foot Under fame, this bitter-sweet love story set in 1940’s New York is a romantic and charming story with tragic twists and turns throughout.
Applauded as a book for our times because it celebrates difference and embraces the main character for being who he is. It’s achingly funny, poignant and heart warming. All the characters are brought to life by Little Britain’s most loved comedy duos.
Ideal for 3-4 hour journeys
Oprah has been through her fair share of struggles yet she has triumphed and remained authentic, wise and full of soul. Here she separates each story into tales of joy, resilience, connection, gratitude, positivity and power and imparts her thought provoking tales of wisdom.
A trip down memory lane for adults a new experience for kids, this is a magical tale that captures children’s imagination and sense of adventure.
Kate Winslet’s voice draws you into another world as she introduces the story’s great host of characters.
Ideal for 4-5 hour journeys
This is the perfect story for travelling at night, as long as you don’t break down! Arthur Kipps is a junior solicitor working at a London law firm who is sent to sort out the estate of mysterious recluse Alice Drablow. At her funeral he sees a faceless young woman dressed in black. This is a creepy, ghost story chillingly told by the masterful Paul Ansdell.
This brilliant adaptation follows the story of the very smart Matilda Wormwood, a remarkable little girl cursed with brainless parents. She finds herself at a school terrorized by Miss Trunchball but lucky for Matilda she always finds herself one step ahead. A timeless tale brilliantly told.
Ideal for 5-6 hour journeys
David Walliams draws you into a very special relationship between Jack and his quirky, eccentric Grandpa. Children and adults alike lose themselves in these two characters funny antics and unbreakable bond. Laugh out loud funny.
Moving and terrifying tale about a lodger who steals the family car and subsequently commits suicide in it stirring up all sorts of supernatural powers that were best left alone. A dark horror story narrated to chilling perfection by the author himself.
Ideal for 6-7 hour journeys
A candid insight into the life of an NHS junior doctor left to his own devices with too little sleep and too much responsibility. Dr Adam Kay has lived to tell the tale with but this honest account is not for the squeamish.
A brilliant and poignant murder mystery in which Christopher, a 15 year old boy with Aspergers struggles to understand the people around him. The one thing he does have in spades is truth and honesty. A moving story which will stay with you for ages after.
Ideal for journeys of 7-8 hrs or more
Atmospheric and a joy from start to finish Stephen Fry, becomes a truly authentic Sherlock Holmes. Story after story of thickening plot lines, cliff hanging clues and solving many grizzly mysteries.
Eleanor Oliphant is a woman who finds comfort in routine and solitude. She goes to work in the same clothes, eats the same things and her weekends are quiet and uneventful. As the story unfolds, much is revealed about her dysfunctional childhood with shattering consequences.
Discover more audiobooks for your road trip.
