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SYNC Audio -- Weekly Offers -- FAQs -- exp 14 Jul @ 11:59 pm ET

NOTE -- you MUST use the Sora app in order to download these books for free

FREE -- The Henna Wars -- Adiba Jaigirdar/ Priya Ayyar -- 8.3 hrs -- romance

Priya Ayyar’s narration brims over with all the conflicting emotions of first love in this heartwarming YA romance. Nishat is an Irish-Bangladeshi teenager who has just come out to her parents. When a school competition pits her henna business against her new crush’s, she suddenly finds herself dealing with the aftermath of coming out, her school’s homophobia and racism, and all the messy realities of falling in love for the first time. While Ayyar’s adult voices are distinct, she uses the same tone for the many teenage girls, making their dialogue confusing at times. Even so, the genuine feelings she brings to Nishat’s first-person narration make this novel about self-discovery, love, and sisterhood an engaging listen.

FREE -- Saints and Misfits -- SK Ali/ Ariana Delawari -- 8.1 hrs -- sexual abuse

Saints and Misfits Series (book 1)

Narrator Ariana Delawari gives voice to the youthfully uncertain Janna, a Hijabi teen and self-described misfit. An excellent student, she's active in the youth group at her mosque but uncomfortable with both of her divorced parents and resentful of her mother's affection for her older brother and his “saintly” girlfriend. As she tries to overcome having been sexually assaulted by a respected boy at her mosque, Janna develops a crush on a non-Muslim boy, further complicating her life. Delawari captures all of these issues with a perfect teen pitch and pacing that underscores Janna’s changing emotions. Delawari's facility with Muslim terminology makes the Arabic words fit seamlessly into the story. An excellent glimpse into a culture that may be unfamiliar to listeners.

Week 11 -- The relationships in Week 11’s pair of free audiobooks, both courtesy of Listening Library, are contemporary and realistic. Priya Ayyar brings genuine feeling to her narration of THE HENNA WARS by Adiba Jaigirdar.

Paired with this romcom is S.K. Ali’s SAINTS AND MISFITS, narrated by Ariana Delawari.