Viola Davis, Paul Simon, Billy Porter & More Nominated for 2023 Audie Awards

Less than three weeks after she won a Grammy for her audiobook Finding Me (and by doing so, clinching EGOT status), Viola Davis is nominated for two 2023 Audie Awards – audiobook of the year and narration by the author(s).

The Audie Awards, which are presented by The Audio Publishers Association, recognize distinction in audiobooks and spoken-word entertainment. This year’s finalists also include Paul Simon, Billy Porter, Kevin Hart, Lucy Liu, Thandiwe Newton, Malcolm Gladwell, Molly Shannon and BD Wong.

Finding Me was one of six projects to receive two nominations. Others are Coraline by Neil Gaiman; Good Omens by Gaiman & Terry Pratchett; Hello, Molly! by Shannon; The 1619 Project, created by Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times Magazine; and War and Peace, narrated by Newton.

There are 26 competitive categories, including two that are gendered – best female narrator and best male narrator. Winners will be revealed at the Audie Awards Gala on March 28. The ceremony will be streamed from Chelsea Piers’ Pier Sixty in New York City.

“The Audio Publishers Association congratulates all of this year’s finalists,” Ana Maria Allessi, president of the APA, said in a statement. “This year’s finalists are representative of the immense talent in the audiobook community and beyond. From the recently crowned EGOT recipient Viola Davis to Grammy winner Paul Simon to audiobook luminaries like Soneela Nankani and Edoardo Ballerini, we’re proud of these multi-hyphenates who are helping shape the medium. We look forward to celebrating all of them at the March 28 gala.”

The Audio Publishers Association is a not-for-profit trade organization. Since 1986, the APA has worked to bring audio publishers together to increase interest in audiobooks. For more information about the APA, visit audiopub.org.

Here are nominees in four key categories:

Audiobook of the Year

The 1619 Project, created by Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times Magazine; edited by Caitlin Roper, Ilena Silverman, and Jake Silverstein; various narrators; published by Penguin Random House Audio

Finding Me, written and narrated by Viola Davis; published by HarperAudio

Miracle and Wonder: Conversations with Paul Simon, by Malcolm Gladwell and Bruce Headlam; narrated by Paul Simon, Malcolm Gladwell, and Bruce Headlam; published by Pushkin Industries

Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt; narrated by Marin Ireland and Michael Urie, published by HarperAudio

Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts, adapted by Tyler English-Beckwith, based on the graphic novel by Rebecca Hall and Hugo Martínez, various narrators; published by Podium Audio

Autobiography/Memoir

The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man, by Paul Newman; edited by David Rosenthal; foreword by Melissa Newman; afterword by Clea Newman Soderlund; narrated by Jeff Daniels, Melissa Newman, Clea Newman Soderlund, Ari Fliakos, January LaVoy, John Rubinstein, and Emily Wachtel; published by Penguin Random House Audio

Hello, Molly!, written and narrated by Molly Shannon; published by HarperAudio

Left on Tenth, written and narrated by Delia Ephron; published by Hachette Audio

Safe, Wanted, and Loved: A Family Memoir of Mental Illness, Heartbreak, and Hope, by Patrick Dylan; narrated by Raúl E. Esparza; published by Snow Anselmo Press with Girl Friday Productions

Unprotected: A Memoir, written and narrated by Billy Porter, published by Recorded Books, a division of RBmedia

Humor

Happy-Go-Lucky, written and narrated by David Sedaris; published by Hachette Audio

Let’s Catch Up Soon, by Sarah Cooper; narrated by Sarah Cooper and Felip Jeremic, published by Audible Originals

The Office BFFs, written and narrated by Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey; published by HarperAudio

Who Do I Think I Am?, written and narrated by Anjelah Johnson-Reyes; published by Hachette Audio

The Wilder Widows, by Katherine Hastings; narrated by Pamela Dillman; published by Flyte Publishing

Narration by the Author(s)

Apparently There Were Complaints, written and narrated by Sharon Gless; published by Simon & Schuster Audio

Finding Me, written and narrated by Viola Davis; published by HarperAudio

Hello, Molly!, written and narrated by Molly Shannon; published by HarperAudio

Ten Steps to Nanette, written and narrated by Hannah Gadsby; published by Penguin Random House Audio

Waypoints, written and narrated by Sam Heughan; published by Hachette Audio

To learn more about the 2023 finalists visit https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/audies.