Book of the Year - Audiobook Non-Fiction 2025
Book of the Year - Audiobook Non-Fiction Winner and Shortlist
Gillian Anderson’s collection of female desire starts off this eclectic shortlist, which includes a biography of a medieval monarch plus three very different memoirs penned by a reality-TV star, a former British PM and a sociopath.
Winner
Sociopath
Patric Gagne (written and narrated)
Bluebird
The “engaging”, “refreshing” and “intimate” memoir from Patric Gagne resonated with our panel of judges, who called the audio edition “arresting” and “impressive”. Voiced by the author herself, Gagne’s “no holds-barred” account of her life as a sociopath defies mainstream cultural depictions of sociopathy. “It felt like a friend telling me their extraordinary life story,” said one judge.
The team at Bluebird approached Sociopath as a “passion project” and considered the audiobook from the very start of the campaign. The social media campaign, which included arresting video content and Pan Macmillan’s first ever listen-along, was hailed by our judges as an “amazing” move. Our panel agreed that Bluebird’s award-winning, “bold publishing” broke out a debut author with no existing platform by savvily appealing to a true-crime market.
The Shortlist
Henry V: The Astonishing Rise of England’s Greatest Warrior King
Written and narrated by Dan Jones
Apollo
Dan Jones’ lively biography of King Henry V, narrated by the author, was selected as one of Audible’s top 20 audiobooks of 2024. Apollo used Jones’ dedicated podcast and social media following to drum up interest, creating a book trailer and releasing photos captured in the studio. Audio clips from Henry V proved successful, as did the Waterstones Plus competition to win two-night stay at a hotel in the place of the medieval monarch’s birth.
Never Enough: My Words Unfiltered
Written and narrated by Pete Wicks
Hodder Catalyst
News that Pete Wicks, reality TV star of TOWIE, would be appearing on Strictly Come Dancing meant Catalyst had to shift their entire strategy. The team pulled publication forward a week and pivoted from an appearance-led campaign to high-impact digital advertising, including an impressive swathe of Spotify ads. Wicks’ honest memoir, voiced by himself, resonated. Never Enough became Hachette UK’s bestselling non-fiction audiobook published in 2024 and made up over 65% of the book’s total sales.
Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI
Yuval Noah Harari, narrated by Vidish Athavale
Penguin Random House Audio
Penguin Random House delivered a global event with Yuval Harari’s Nexus, a history of information narrated by the talented Vidish Athavale. The campaign targeted every angle with a successful pre-order campaign on Meta, tailored podcast advertising and retail support from Spotify and Audible. In a coup, the team also organised an interview with Harari for Audible. The audiobook outperformed the hardback and in the first month outsold Harari’s 21 Lessons.
Sociopath
Written and narrated by Patric Gagne
Bluebird
Patric Gagne narrates Sociopath, her memoir about her behaviour and life as a sociopath. Bluebird delivered an award-winning campaign that put an author with no platform on the map. The team set up Pan Macmillan’s first ever listen-along with 30 influencers and curated their strategy to appeal to the true crime market. Sociopath closed the year as Pan Macmillan’s second bestselling non-fiction audiobook of 2024 and the publisher’s second most streamed title on Spotify.
Unleashed
Written and narrated by Boris Johnson
William Collins
Boris Johnson created an intimate listening experience by lending his voice to his memoir, Unleashed. To navigate security concerns and maximise Johnson’s limited time, William Collins set up a recording studio in the former PM’s home and burned the midnight oil to get the recording ready for release. The campaign targeted four key audiences through politics channels, Johnson’s social media, radio and podcasts, including an interview with Steven Bartlett on the Diary of a CEO podcast.
Want
Written and narrated by Gillian Anderson & anonymous
Bloomsbury Publishing
The audiobook production of Want, a collection of sexual desires submitted anonymously by women across the globe, was entirely a female endeavour. Bloomsbury actioned a thoughtful, inclusive casting process to bring the voices of nine women to the audiobook alongside Gillian Anderson’s narration. Want was an instant number one in the Apple charts and Bloomsbury built creative social media posts, organised tannoy announcements voiced by Anderson for Asda and Sainsburys stores and organised an exclusive first listen via the Guardian.
