A letter to Mia Barron, audiobook narrator of Good Riddance by Elinor Lipman

Dear Mia Barron,

I just finished listening to you read Good Riddance, the latest novel from Elinor Lipman. I remember reading and enjoying some of her novels in the 1990's and early 2000's, but I haven't read one in years. The premise of this one (a yearbook thrown away, a nosy neighbor, a documentary film!) sounded so fun, and its length (8 hours 7 minutes) is my audiobook sweet spot. Immediately after I started listening, your voice sounded so familiar. I searched Audible to see if you'd narrated another audiobook I listened to. Nope. I read your IMDB page, and the most likely reason your voice felt so familiar is one episode of Grey's Anatomy in season six. Or maybe your voice is one of those that feels familiar for no reasons. Either way, I kept finding excuses to listen and finished in a week.

Then, about half-way through, after what passes for a twist in this book, I realized (can I be honest?) I didn't really like this book very much, but I wanted to keep listening. I even liked the twist, but it made me realize this was not a quirky comedy. It made me realize this book has an identity crisis and doesn't know what it wants to be. Perhaps, I thought, something will happen that will make the timeline make sense. Did I miss something? I don't understand how Daphne is 31, when her mother was born in 1945 (she was 23 when the class of 1968 graduated). The book is clearly set in the recent years, as the second season of Riverdale has aired, Hamilton tickets are expensive, and Marie Kondo is referenced. Yes, Daphne's mom could have given birth in her 40's, but that's not at all how it happens in the book, and Daphne even has a younger sister. How did an editor not fix the timeline? There are so many possible easy fixes. Also, didn't it seem odd to you that Daphne is a 31-year-old woman who talks a lot about the size of her cable package and expands her channels to get the CW to catch up on Riverdale? It's on Netflix. The CW has an app. How is the CW not included in a basic cable package? I kept reminding myself of Daphne's age, as at times she seemed impossibly immature and at times she seemed very old. Overall, this book had a lot of potential, but the only reason I kept listening was because you narrated it so well. You made me not hate Daphne (well, most of the time--which is still quite a feat), which I don't think would be the case if I read it.

While I didn't like this book, I do like that it brought you into my audiobook life, and I look forward to spending more time with you on my headphones (and on my tv!)

Fondly,
Carrie (nomadreader)

Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Length: 8 hours 7 minutes (303 pages)
Publication date: February 5, 2019
Source: library

Want to read for yourself? I wouldn't recommend it, except perhaps to listen, but you can buy Good Riddance from an independent bookstore or Amazon.

As an affiliate, I receive a small commission when you make a purchase through any of the above links. Thank you for helping to support my book habits that bring more content to this blog!