Feel Free

An audiobook of Zadie Smith's essays can be daunting: Where does one topic end and another begin? But narrator Nikki Amuka-Bird's reassuring tone shepherds the listener with subtle modulations. Her voice changes with each imagined setting and situation: brunch with friends discussing rap, race, and class; an after-work lounge discussion of artists and camp; a dinner party conversation comparing various dancers throughout the twentieth century. In this way, Amuka-Bird's mellow British voice is a marvel. Smith's breadth of subject matter can seem overwhelming, so the listener can appreciate the evenness of the narration and better absorb the substance of each topic. Music, art, dance, technology, British and American politics, and love are all treated dispassionately, and Amuka-Bird's self-assured tone is a perfect match for Smith's musings. M.P.P. � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine