Audio Addendum: Shatter Me

~Shatter Me~
Book 1
By Tahereh Mafi
Amazon ~ Powell's

Juliette hasn't touched anyone
in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war— and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

Original Review

Approximate Reading Time: 4.5 Hours

Read by Kate Simses
Length: 9.2 Hours
Listened at 2x Speed
(3x Audible Speed Setting)

After listening to a few middling audiobooks, I must say Ms. Simses gave a great performance. I was especially impressed with the variety and distinction she gave each of the characters, the men in particular. Just because the main character & narrator is female, doesn't mean the male voices aren't just as important to the overall work. The little boy, James, was quite possibly my favorite. Even though it's been proven time and again that women can do impeccable little-boy voices, it still took me aback by how genuine the 10-year-old character sounded, not just in voice but in personality and phrasing!

If it was unclear while reading the book what all those little scratched out passages were supposed to mean (I know I wasn't sure), this audiobook does its best to help clarify. I'll admit I wasn't sure how the struck through lines were going to work, since the book is so visual in that aspect. Turns out they simply recorded a sound of someone crossing out the line(s) with a pen, which plays following the words that are to be struck through. Granted, without the book in front of you, it's a little unclear how much preceding the strike is supposed to go, but the technique employed is still effective enough to get the point across.

Overall another audiobook I'd be remiss if I didn't recommend it. The emotion, the voices, and the attention to detail, even with the visual aspects of the book, all combine to make it an experience you shouldn't pass up if you have the chance.