Listen free for 30 days
-
This Is How It Always Is
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 11 hrs
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Literature & Fiction, Genre Fiction
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £19.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
One Two Three
- A Novel
- By: Laurie Frankel
- Narrated by: Emma Galvin, Jesse Vilinsky, Rebecca Soler
- Length: 14 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone knows everyone in the tiny town of Bourne, but the Mitchell triplets are especially beloved. Mirabel is the smartest person anyone knows, and no one doubts it just because she can’t speak. Monday is the town’s purveyor of books now that the library’s closed - tell her the book you think you want, and she’ll pull the one you actually do from the microwave or her sock drawer. Mab’s job is hardest of all: get good grades, get into college, get out of Bourne.
-
-
Another superb book
- By J W on 10-06-21
-
The Paper Palace
- The No.1 New York Times Bestseller and Reese Witherspoon Bookclub Pick
- By: Miranda Cowley Heller
- Narrated by: Laurel Lefkow
- Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a perfect August morning, Elle Bishop heads out for a swim in the pond below 'The Paper Palace'—her family's holiday home in Cape Cod. As she dives beneath the water she relives the passionate encounter she had the night before, against the side of the house that knows all her darkest secrets, while her husband and mother chatted to their guests inside.... So begins a story that unfolds over 24 hours and 50 years, as Elle's shocking betrayal leads her to a life-changing decision—and an ending you won't be able to stop thinking about.
-
-
Don’t waste your life
- By S. Maguire on 10-08-21
-
The Scent Keeper
- A Novel
- By: Erica Bauermeister
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Emmeline lives on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won’t explain are the mysterious scents stored in glass bottles that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them. As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world - a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity.
-
-
A wonderful fairytale
- By chris_emery77 on 27-06-20
-
Goodbye for Now
- By: Laurie Frankel
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 11 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Imagine a world in which you never have to say goodbye.... When Sam Elling invents a computer programme that enables his girlfriend, Meredith, to do just this, nothing can prepare them for the success and the complications that follow. For every person who wants to say goodbye, there is someone else who can't let go. And when tragedy strikes, they have to find out whether goodbye has to be forever - or whether love can take on a life of its own.
-
-
Wow… this lady knows how to write!
- By Amazon Customer on 11-08-22
-
The Light We Lost
- By: Jill Santopolo
- Narrated by: Jill Santopolo
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's 11th September 2001. Lucy and Gabe meet in New York on a day that will change their lives - and the world - forever. As the city burns behind them, they kiss for the very first time.
Over the next 13 years, they are torn apart, then brought back together, time and time again. It's a journey of dreams, of desires, of jealousy, of forgiveness - and, above all, of love. As Lucy is faced with a devastating choice, she wonders whether their love is a matter of destiny or chance.
-
-
hated every word
- By HarrietJ on 24-11-17
-
The Cactus
- By: Sarah Haywood
- Narrated by: Katherine Manners
- Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
People aren't sure what to make of Susan Green - family and colleagues find her prickly and hard to understand, but Susan makes perfect sense to herself, and that's all she needs. At 45, she thinks her life is perfect, as long as she avoids her feckless brother, Edward - a safe distance away in Birmingham. Yet suddenly faced with the loss of her mother and, implausibly, with the possibility of becoming a mother herself, Susan's greatest fear is being realised: she is losing control.
-
-
Fantastic read
- By Mrs. Elizabeth Middleton on 04-02-18
-
One Two Three
- A Novel
- By: Laurie Frankel
- Narrated by: Emma Galvin, Jesse Vilinsky, Rebecca Soler
- Length: 14 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone knows everyone in the tiny town of Bourne, but the Mitchell triplets are especially beloved. Mirabel is the smartest person anyone knows, and no one doubts it just because she can’t speak. Monday is the town’s purveyor of books now that the library’s closed - tell her the book you think you want, and she’ll pull the one you actually do from the microwave or her sock drawer. Mab’s job is hardest of all: get good grades, get into college, get out of Bourne.
-
-
Another superb book
- By J W on 10-06-21
-
The Paper Palace
- The No.1 New York Times Bestseller and Reese Witherspoon Bookclub Pick
- By: Miranda Cowley Heller
- Narrated by: Laurel Lefkow
- Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a perfect August morning, Elle Bishop heads out for a swim in the pond below 'The Paper Palace'—her family's holiday home in Cape Cod. As she dives beneath the water she relives the passionate encounter she had the night before, against the side of the house that knows all her darkest secrets, while her husband and mother chatted to their guests inside.... So begins a story that unfolds over 24 hours and 50 years, as Elle's shocking betrayal leads her to a life-changing decision—and an ending you won't be able to stop thinking about.
-
-
Don’t waste your life
- By S. Maguire on 10-08-21
-
The Scent Keeper
- A Novel
- By: Erica Bauermeister
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Emmeline lives on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won’t explain are the mysterious scents stored in glass bottles that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them. As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world - a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity.
-
-
A wonderful fairytale
- By chris_emery77 on 27-06-20
-
Goodbye for Now
- By: Laurie Frankel
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 11 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Imagine a world in which you never have to say goodbye.... When Sam Elling invents a computer programme that enables his girlfriend, Meredith, to do just this, nothing can prepare them for the success and the complications that follow. For every person who wants to say goodbye, there is someone else who can't let go. And when tragedy strikes, they have to find out whether goodbye has to be forever - or whether love can take on a life of its own.
-
-
Wow… this lady knows how to write!
- By Amazon Customer on 11-08-22
-
The Light We Lost
- By: Jill Santopolo
- Narrated by: Jill Santopolo
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's 11th September 2001. Lucy and Gabe meet in New York on a day that will change their lives - and the world - forever. As the city burns behind them, they kiss for the very first time.
Over the next 13 years, they are torn apart, then brought back together, time and time again. It's a journey of dreams, of desires, of jealousy, of forgiveness - and, above all, of love. As Lucy is faced with a devastating choice, she wonders whether their love is a matter of destiny or chance.
-
-
hated every word
- By HarrietJ on 24-11-17
-
The Cactus
- By: Sarah Haywood
- Narrated by: Katherine Manners
- Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
People aren't sure what to make of Susan Green - family and colleagues find her prickly and hard to understand, but Susan makes perfect sense to herself, and that's all she needs. At 45, she thinks her life is perfect, as long as she avoids her feckless brother, Edward - a safe distance away in Birmingham. Yet suddenly faced with the loss of her mother and, implausibly, with the possibility of becoming a mother herself, Susan's greatest fear is being realised: she is losing control.
-
-
Fantastic read
- By Mrs. Elizabeth Middleton on 04-02-18
-
Girls in Pants
- The Third Summer of the Sisterhood
- By: Ann Brashares
- Narrated by: Angela Goethals
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Pants first came to us at the perfect moment. That is, when we were splitting up for the first time. It was two summers ago when they first worked their magic, and last summer when they shook up our lives once again. You see, we don't wear the Pants year-round. We let them rest so they are extra powerful when summer comes. (There was the time this spring when Carmen wore them to her mom's wedding, but that was a special case.)
-
The Breakdown Lane
- By: Jacquelyn Mitchard
- Narrated by: Anna Fields
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Where can a woman turn when her own life threatens to overwhelm her ability to keep her children safe? New York Times best-selling author Jacquelyn Mitchard takes the readers of her newest novel on a wry and moving journey of loss and healing.
-
Lessons in Chemistry
- By: Bonnie Garmus
- Narrated by: Miranda Raison
- Length: 11 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing. But it's the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute take a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant Nobel-prize-nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results.
-
-
I laughed and cried. A masterpiece.
- By Nicola on 21-04-22
-
Something in the Water
- By: Catherine Steadman
- Narrated by: Catherine Steadman
- Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough, Mark a handsome investment banker with a bright future. They seem to have it all - until Mark loses his job and cracks start to appear in their perfect life. But they’re determined to make it work. They book their dream honeymoon and trust that things will work out - after all, they have each other. Could the life of your dreams turn out to be a nightmare?
-
-
I would have loved to give this book six stars!
- By None on 13-08-18
-
Outlawed
- By: Anna North
- Narrated by: Cynthia Farrell
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ada loves her broad-shouldered, bashful husband and her job as a midwife. But her luck is running out. It is a woman's duty to have a child, to replace those lost in the Great Flu. Unable to get pregnant, Ada must flee from a town where barren women are hanged as witches. When Ada joins the notorious Hole in the Wall Gang, a band of outlaws planning to create a haven for women outcast from society, she must decide if she's willing to risk her life for the possibility of a new kind of future for them all.
-
-
Great feminist twist on a western
- By Michelle Farren on 10-03-21
-
Daisy Jones and the Six
- By: Taylor Jenkins Reid
- Narrated by: Sara Arrington, Jennifer Beals, Arthur Bishop, and others
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is the whole story, right from the beginning: the sun-bleached streets, the grimy bars on the Sunset Strip, knowing Daisy’s moment was coming. Relive the euphoria of success and experience the terror that nothing will ever be as good again. Take the uppers so you can keep on believing, take the downers so you can sleep, eventually. Wonder who you are without the drugs or the music or the fans or the family that prop you up. Make decisions that will forever feel tough. Find beauty where you least expect it.
-
-
😭 Absolutely amazing!
- By Steph on 24-03-19
-
The Henna Artist
- By: Alka Joshi
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Escaping from an abusive marriage, seventeen-year-old Lakshmi makes her way alone to the vibrant 1950s pink city of Jaipur. There she becomes the most highly requested henna artist - and confidante - to the wealthy women of the upper class. But trusted with the secrets of the wealthy, she can never reveal her own....
-
-
A nice, gentle read
- By M. King on 23-07-20
-
The Last Thing He Told Me
- By: Laura Dave
- Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his new wife, Hannah: protect her. Hannah knows exactly who Owen needs her to protect - his 16-year-old daughter, Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. And who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother. As her increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered, his boss is arrested for fraud and the police start questioning her, Hannah realises that her husband isn't who he said he was. And that Bailey might hold the key to discovering Owen's true identity and why he disappeared.
-
-
Good start but gets lost and then boring
- By AM on 27-05-21
-
This Is Not My Beautiful Life
- A Memoir
- By: Victoria Fedden
- Narrated by: Jorjeana Marie
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a squad of federal agents burst through her parents' front door, Victoria Fedden felt ill-prepared to meet them: She was weeks away from her due date, and her T-shirt wasn't long enough to hide her maternity undies. As for the question of how to raise a child when you've just discovered that your mother and stepfather have allegedly masterminded a pump-and-dump scheme? She was pretty sure that wasn't covered in What to Expect When You're Expecting.
-
Born a Crime
- Stories from a South African Childhood
- By: Trevor Noah
- Narrated by: Trevor Noah
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The compelling, inspiring (often comic) coming-of-age story of Trevor Noah, set during the twilight of apartheid and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed. One of the comedy world's brightest new voices, Trevor Noah is a light-footed but sharp-minded observer of the absurdities of politics, race and identity, sharing jokes and insights drawn from the wealth of experience acquired in his relatively young life.
-
-
Excellently read
- By OldskoolHrdcore on 25-08-17
-
Group
- How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life
- By: Christie Tate
- Narrated by: Christie Tate
- Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Christie Tate has just been named the top student in her law school class and seems to finally have got her eating disorder under control. So why is she driving through Chicago fantasising about her own death? Desperate, she joins Dr Rosen’s psychotherapy group, and through his unconventional methods, he challenges everything she thought she knew, about herself and others. In group, secrets are not allowed.
-
-
Vulgar
- By Amazon Customer on 04-07-21
-
The Club
- By: Ellery Lloyd
- Narrated by: Tamaryn Payne
- Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Home Group is a collection of ultra-exclusive private members' clubs and a global phenomenon, and the opening of its most ambitious project yet—Island Home, a forgotten island transformed into the height of luxury—is billed as the celebrity event of the decade. But as the first guests arrive, the weekend soon proves deadly—because it turns out that even the most beautiful people can keep the ugliest secrets and, in a world where reputation is everything, they'll do anything to keep it.
-
-
Overhyped, preposterous plot and clunky characters
- By Passion for Podencos on 11-04-22
Summary
The Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick.
A New York Times Audio best seller.
This is how a family keeps a secret...and how that secret ends up keeping them.
This is how a family lives happily ever after...until happily ever after becomes complicated.
This is how children change...and then change the world.
This is Claude. He's five years old, the youngest of five brothers, and loves peanut butter sandwiches. He also loves wearing a dress, and dreams of being a princess.
When he grows up, Claude says, he wants to be a girl.
Rosie and Penn want Claude to be whoever Claude wants to be. They're just not sure they're ready to share that with the world. Soon the entire family is keeping Claude's secret. Until one day it explodes.
Laurie Frankel's This Is How It Always Is is a novel about revelations, transformations, fairy tales, and family. And it's about the ways this is how it always is: change is always hard and miraculous and hard again, parenting is always a leap into the unknown with crossed fingers and full hearts, children grow but not always according to plan. And families with secrets don't get to keep them forever.
Critic reviews
"An intelligent, life-affirming, emotionally charged story." (Prima)
"Every once in a while, I read a book that opens my eyes in a way I never expected." (Reese Witherspoon, Reese's Book Club x Hello Sunshine book pick)
More from the same
What listeners say about This Is How It Always Is
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Alexandra (Audible Editor)
- 16-03-17
A completely genius debut
Transgender issues have been talked about from many different perspectives but through the eyes of five-year-old Claude, Laurie Frankel manages to present us with something entirely new. And in the process, she's managed to make me think about gender and identity in a completely different way. As young Poppy gradually emerges, the listener is encouraged to confront the complexities of the situation as well as realising that they by no means define a person or their potential.
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Boo
- 11-04-17
An incredible book!
If you could sum up This Is How It Always Is in three words, what would they be?
Engaging, absorbing and brilliant!
What was one of the most memorable moments of This Is How It Always Is?
Claude/Poppy discovering the 'middle way' and Buddhism in Thailand
What does Gabra Zackman bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
The narration brings a sensitivity and vulnerability to the voice of Poppy and Claude.
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
It was at times heartbreaking, at others life-affirming and left me with a sense of optimism
Any additional comments?
I loved the story, the way it was told and will remember the complex cahracters
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ms. Laura Mercier
- 17-06-17
Perfect
One of those stories you don't want to end. Heartbreaking, beautiful and absolutely gorgeous- a must read!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- AA
- 07-03-17
An intelligent take on gender issues
Where does This Is How It Always Is rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
It comes pretty high up!
Which scene did you most enjoy?
The scenes where Penn reads the bedtime stories
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Absolutely
Any additional comments?
Laurie Frankel has done a brilliant job of presenting to the listener all the most pressing and contentious transgender issues in this accessible, often funny and touching novel. From wanting to wear a dress and carry a handbag on his first day at primary school to hiding a secret from the girlfriends that he loves having sleepovers with, Claude has to navigate some complicated truths on the road to properly becoming Poppy. But the true brilliance of this book is in its consistent ability to make you smile through all the mini-disasters and prejudices of others. And all of that coupled with the fact that this is Frankel's debut!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sigrin
- 27-06-20
Transgender story told from a family perspective.
This is the story of Rosie and Pen and there four and a half boys.
The story revolves around their last born child who is not sure of which title to use Claude or Poppy. (The Poppy name choice is also a tender sad moment in the book)
The story has a strong moral compass to what is ethically right. I loved the bedtime story of Princess Stephanie and Grimwald which Pen (writer husband) told to his children, It being a metaphor for growing up and difficult scenarios.
I rather like the last few chapters when Rosie and Claude/Poppy worked in Thailand. The Buddhist enlightenment and way of life was very touching and simply. It helped to explain a lot of issues that we sometimes struggle with in western cultures.
The book throws up lots of questions, which it should considering the subject matter.
It has certainly made me relook at how I see those around me.
Effectively the book asks
Is what we have in our pants relevant to the rest of the world?
Does one have to disclose everything about oneself, if one is perceived by society to be abnormal?
Why does society have the right to judge?
I think it’s worth a listen, but who am I to judge.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Chloe
- 14-02-19
Brilliant story
Really enjoyed this book, a lovely coming of age story bought into the 21st century.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- creative genius
- 27-06-18
Takes a bit of time
It took me a little bit to get into the story and realise what it was about, but totally worth it. A powerful story about being true to who you are for anyone.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Disorganised Mum
- 05-06-17
Wonderful
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Thought provoking and emotional. Very well done on a tricky subject. Extremely well written.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- catherine
- 26-05-17
Brilliant, beautiful, sad and thought provoking
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
For sure. It's brilliantly written and the plot is like nothing i've ever read before. It has changed the way I think about gender.
What was one of the most memorable moments of This Is How It Always Is?
The relationship between mother, father and their 'child' - I loved seeing how they guided Claude/Poppy through her childhood.
What does Gabra Zackman bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
Softly narrated in a tone that made me cry - more than once!
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
For sure, cry. But in a heart warming way.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Laura
- 06-05-17
Beautiful book and narration
I loved everything about the story and the narration. A slightly cheesy novel, but nether the less hard hitting & thought provoking. Very well written and great characters.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Amazon Customer
- 20-03-18
Favourite book of the year
I loved everything about this story! It is well crafted, insightful, tender, deals with complex issues in an authentic and believable way. beautiful performance by the reader.
3 people found this helpful