Audiobooks Narrated by Christopher Gebauer

Dogs Don't Tell Jokes: A Play by Louis Sachar

"A sidesplitting classic from Newbery Medalist and National Book Award winner Louis Sachar (Holes)   Gary W. Boone knows he was born to be a stand-up comedian. It’s the rest of the kids in his class who think he’s just a goon. Then the Floyd Hicks Junior High School Talent Show is announced, and he starts practicing his routine nonstop to get it just right. Gary’s sure this will be his big break—he’ll make everyone laugh and win the $100 prize. But when an outrageous surprise threatens to turn his debut into a disaster, it looks as if the biggest joke of all may be on Gary himself.   'With its strong, realistic characterization, Sachar’s gracefully told story will please his longtime fans and gain him new followers as well'—Publishers Weekly"

Louis Sachar (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Beinoni

"In a Beinoni time there should be no war, no terrible illness, no crime. Even if that also means there won’t be any great discoveries, any cures, anything extraordinary. Ezra believes that’s worth fighting for.   In fact, he’s been training most of his life to fight a battle to determine whether Beinoni time continues, or gives way to a more violent, less certain future. He is the Nivchar, the chosen one, with the sign of the scales on his skin. When he comes of age at his bar mitzvah, so too will the gurya, a fiery beast of uncertain form, emerging from a cave to conquer, destroy, and herald a time of conflict.   But Ezra begins to sense that something is very wrong. His friends, his neighbors, the whole world is losing the careful, even balance he’s come to expect in a Beinoni time. It was always uncertain whether he’d be able to best his terrifying, magical foe. But now, is it even possible?"

Mari Lowe (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Poetry of Car Mechanics

"“This beautifully crafted novel sings and soars.”—Nikki Grimes, author of Ordinary Hazards   Dylan seeks solace through birdwatching and poetry in the woods behind his grandfather’s auto shop—but when he rescues an injured hawk, he must learn to confront the broken parts in himself in this powerful middle-grade novel-in-verse.   15-year-old Dylan has always felt like an outsider in his small town. Isolated when he was younger as the result of his unpredictable, now absent mother and feeling like a disappointment to his grandfather who has stepped in to raise him, Dylan finds relief in the woods behind his grandfather's auto shop. Amidst the cool quiet of the trees, Dylan thrives on bird watching and writing poetry. But one afternoon after spotting an injured hawk, Dylan finds himself pushing out of his comfort zone to track down help for the bird—and ends up rescuing a part of himself in the process.   In this luminous middle-grade novel-in-verse on navigating the lonely tumult of self-discovery amid complicated family history, Dylan relays his story with bracing emotional clarity."

Heidi E.Y. Stemple (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Right Back at You

"Mason lives in 2023. His parents have just split up, and there's a guy at school who won't get off his case. As part of an assignment, he writes a letter to Albert Einstein and it ends up getting a little too personal. He throws the letter into his closet …   … and the next day he gets a letter back from a girl named Talia, who lives in 1987. She has problems of her own, including classmates who make jokes because she's Jewish. She thought her friends would have her back. But it ends up the only person she really has to talk to is … a random boy from the future?   In the tradition of such beloved novels as When You Reach Me and Save Me a Seat, Carolyn Mackler has written a funny, all-too-relatable story about finding the friend you need … even if that friend happens to live in another year."

Carolyn Mackler (Author), Christopher Gebauer, Merissa Czyz (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Tower

"When 12-year-old Kolby wakes up in an empty white room, he has no memory, no clothes, and no idea where he is. He soon discovers he’s one of a dozen kids living in an extravagant penthouse atop the tallest tower in the city. Adults are nowhere to be found, and, like Kolby, all the kids are missing their memories. The kids in the tower spend their time scaling the climbing wall, riding a waterslide into an Olympic-sized swimming pool, or playing video games on the 105-inch 8K video screen. A mysterious “manifesting room” magically provides both food and rewards. They have virtually everything a kid could want.   Except a way out.   None of the kids show much concern for each other, let alone new arrival Kolby. Haunted by fragments of memories he can’t quite understand, Kolby just wants to escape the penthouse and go home.   Unfortunately, the only way to get out is by participating in the tower’s enigmatic game—a kind of scavenger hunt that takes place in the surrounding city. Players are chosen for teams by the tower’s apparent leader, Gen. But beneath her glib detachment, Gen harbors a secret—she knows more about the tower than she lets on, including the dark, inevitable truth about all their fates. When game time arrives, it looks like Kolby has found his ticket out of the tower—but escape isn’t so simple."

David Anaxagoras (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Frank and the Big Mistake

"Frank and Sunny’s humans are bringing home their nibling for a visit. But what exactly is a “nibling”? Frank says it’s a small bite of something, and Sunny thinks that sounds delicious. But then there is a knock on their door, and this nibling is a far cry from what they expected! Nelly has strong ideas about how to play and what constitutes fun, including a nauseating basket ride around the house and a mandatory play wedding—with costumes!—between Frank and Captain Keith, the parrot. How will the friends survive the terror of a little girl?"

Martha Brockenbrough (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Donut Prince of New York

"Eugene Guterman’s junior year in high school is off to a rocky start. No love life, no new theater production, and if his mother has her way, no more of his favorite comfort food—donuts. Eugene would just as soon spend the year playing small, but that’s hard to do when you’re the biggest kid in your class. Things change when he accidentally tackles the school’s star quarterback and Coach sees the possibilities and recruits the plus-size playwright onto the varsity football team. Eugene is suddenly catapulted into the world of the “The Pops,” the exclusive clique of popular athletes known for their parties and dating scene. Best of all is the new and mysterious girl Daisy who seems to be noticing him. Then Eugene discovers that life at the top is more complicated than he imagined—there’s pressure to excel, to fit in, and to uphold a certain image—and Eugene misses his former life and his old friends. Can he find the courage to give it all up, write something real, and maybe, just maybe, be the big guy who actually gets the girl? 'There’s a scene in this book where a character has to stretch out a sweater while nervously preparing to attend his first high school party, and I have never felt more seen. Allen Zadoff has written a book just for me. A heartbreaking coming-of-age tale that finds triumph in failure. Football, first crushes, theater, and donuts. I love this book.'—Yehudi Mercado, author of Chunky and Sci-Fu"

Allen Zadoff (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Mascot

"In Rye, Virginia, just outside Washington, DC, people work hard, kids go to school, and football is big on Friday nights. An eighth-grade English teacher creates an assignment for her class to debate whether Rye’s mascot should stay or change. Now six middle schoolers get involved in the issue that already has the suburb turned upside down with everyone choosing sides and arguments getting ugly. At the center of this story about human rights and Native sovereignty, there are six young people. Callie, a Black Cherokee Nation citizen, is new to the town and school; Franklin loves football, wearing fresh kicks, and so far has resisted his parents’ desire for him to learn more about his Black heritage; Priya wants to be a journalist and has four grandparents all born in India; Sean is a sixth-generation Rye student in an Irish family that often needs help from the food pantry; Tessa, who is white, was previously homeschooled and has grandparents who marched with MLK Jr.; Luis immigrated from El Salvador at seven and aspires to be a math teacher and coach. Written from several points of view, this novel in verse asks, “What happens when a mascot is seen as racist, but not by everyone?” This audiobook is narrated by Karen Chilton, Merissa Czyz, Kyla Garcia, Christopher Gebauer, Robb Moreira, Soneela Nankani, and Ruffin Prentiss."

Charles Waters, Traci Sorell (Author), Christopher Gebauer, Karen Chilton, Kyla Garcia, Merissa Czyz, Robb Moreira, Ruffin Prentiss, Soneela Nankani (Narrator)

Audiobook

Jupiter Rising

"When Jack's P.E. coach pairs him up with Jay Perkins for the cross-country team, neither of them is happy about it. Jack is grieving the loss of Joseph, his foster brother, and adjusting to his role as big brother to Jupiter, Joseph’s orphaned daughter. Dealing with Jay Perkins—who'd once ganged up with his buddies to jump Joseph in the locker room—is the last thing he wants to do. But then Jack realizes that Jay is grieving too—the loss of his cousin Maddie, Jupiter’s mom. As Jack's relationships with both Jay and Jupiter grow and his running improves, he starts to feel more like himself than he has since Joseph died. He's finding his stride . . . until Maddie’s parents, who have never shown interest in their granddaughter before, decide to claim Jupiter as their own, blocking Jack’s family from adopting her. And suddenly Jack’s past and present smash together, threatening to dissolve both his newfound confidence and his friendships. This poignant, powerful companion to Orbiting Jupiter is Gary D. Schmidt at his best. He is the author of the Printz Honor and Newbery Honor Book Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy; Okay for Now, a National Book Award finalist; and The Wednesday Wars, a Newbery Honor Book, among many acclaimed novels for young readers."

Gary D. Schmidt (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Faker

"IN A FAMILY OF LIARS, WHO CAN YOU TRUST? Trey knows how the trick works: His dad gets him into a school full of kids with rich parents. Trey makes friends, and his dad makes connections. Soon, there’s the con, where Trey’s dad suckers the other parents into giving him money for one of his schemes. Once the money’s in the bank, Trey, his sister, and their dad go on the run … until they set up somewhere else and start again. Trey believes his father when he says no one’s getting hurt. After all, these parents have money to spare. Still, Trey’s starting to get tired of running … and lying … and never having a friend for longer than a few months. But how do you get your family to stop lying when your lives depend on it?"

Gordon Korman (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Blood Lie

"It’s September 22, 1928, Jack Pool’s sixteenth birthday. Unfortunately, he’s about to be accused of murder. A talented cellist with a promising future, Jack daydreams about two things: leaving his isolated village of Massena, New York, to become a professional musician and kissing Emaline Durham—a Gentile girl he knows he can never be with. But when Emaline’s little sister, Daisy, disappears in Paradise Woods, a seething lie turns Jack’s world into a living nightmare. Inspired by true events, The Blood Lie sheds light on a dark but little-known episode in American history: the day a town’s veiled prejudices erupted into a raging blood libel. “A powerful—and poignant—reminder that no person can live freely until all people can live freely.”—Lauren Myracle, New York Times bestselling author of Shine"

Shirley Reva Vernick (Author), Christopher Gebauer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Elvis and the World As It Stands

"Georgina watches me. She doesn’t try to poke me or pull my tail. She doesn’t push her face into mine, and she speaks very softly. “Welcome,” she says. Most shelter animals dream of going home with a forever family. But for Elvis, being chosen by Mrs. Pemberton is a nightmare. He’s been taken away from his sister, Etta, and is determined to get back to the shelter to find her. In spite of himself, Elvis becomes curious about ten-year-old Georgina Pemberton, who builds LEGO skyscrapers in her bedroom while navigating her parents’ divorce. The longer he’s in his new home, the more he starts recognizing new feelings: admiration for Georgina’s creations, affection for the other pets, and even empathy for the Pembertons—despite his longing for Etta. As Georgina sets out to build her most impressive skyscrapers yet, the Twin Towers, Elvis realizes that maybe both humans and animals have felt the pain of loss, but with some resilience and hope, we all possess the strength to rebuild. “Elvis’s journey is sweet and funny and profound.”—Eliot Schrefer, National Book Award finalist"

Lisa Frenkel Riddiough (Author), Christopher Gebauer, Laura Knight Keating (Narrator)

Audiobook