The best audio drama audiobooks for long drives & road trips
A long drive needs a audio drama audiobook that grips — propulsive plot, a narrator who carries hours of runtime, a story you stay in the driveway to finish. Every title below won the Audie Award in the audio drama category, the audiobook industry's own pick for the best audio drama production of its year, which makes them the safest road-trip credits. The most recent winner is George Orwell's 1984 by George Orwell, adapted by Joe White (2025).
Oliver Twist| Audiobook | Author | Narrator(s) | Award |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Orwell's 1984 | George Orwell, adapted by Joe White | Andrew Garfield, Cynthia Erivo, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2025) |
| Third Eye | Felicia Day | Felicia Day, Neil Gaiman, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2024) |
| Pipeline | Dominique Morisseau | Sophina Brown, Eugene Byrd, Demetrius Grosse, Sharon Lawrence, X Mayo, Uyoata Udi, Karen Malina White | Audie Audio Drama (2023) |
| Sherlock Holmes: The Seamstress of Peckham Rye | Jonathan Barnes | Nicholas Briggs, Richard Earl, Lucy Briggs-Owen, India Fisher, James Joyce, Anjella MacKintosh, Glen McCready, Mark Elstob | Audie Audio Drama (2022) |
| Doctor Who: Stranded (Series 1) | Matt Fitton, David K. Barnes, Lisa McMullin, John Dorney | Paul McGann, Nicola Walker, Hattie Morahan, Rebecca Root, Tom Price, Tom Baker | Audie Audio Drama (2021) |
| Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes | Tony Kushner | Andrew Garfield, Nathan Lane, Susan Brown, Denise Gough, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2020) |
| The Martian Invasion of Earth | H. G. Wells, adapted by Nicholas Briggs | Richard Armitage, Lucy Briggs-Owen | Audie Audio Drama (2019) |
| Brother Francis: The Barefoot Saint of Assisi | Paul McCusker | Joseph Timms, Owen Teale, Geoffrey Palmer, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2018) |
| In the Embers | Brian Price, Jerry Stearns | Robin Miles, Edwin Strout, Dean Johnson, Jacquie Maddix, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2017) |
| The Jungle Book: The Mowgli Stories | Rudyard Kipling, adapted by Bev Doyle, Richard Kurti | Bill Bailey, Richard E. Grant, Colin Salmon, Tim McInnerny, Bernard Cribbins, Celia Imrie, Martin Shaw | Audie Audio Drama (2016) |
| The Hound of the Baskervilles | Arthur Conan Doyle, adapted by David Pichette, R. Hamilton Wright | Geoffrey Arend, Wilson Bethel, Seamus Dever, Sarah Drew, Henri Lubatti, James Marsters, Christopher Neame, Moira Quirk, Darren Richardson | Audie Audio Drama (2015) |
| Oliver Twist | Charles Dickens, adapted by Paul McCusker | Joe Holgate, Henry Goodman, Lee Boardman, Geoffrey Palmer, Roy Hudd, Finty Williams, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2014) |
| Swordspoint | Ellen Kushner | Ellen Kushner, Dion Graham, Katherine Kellgren, Robert Fass, Nick Sullivan, Simon Jones, Sam Guncler, Anne Bobby | Audie Audio Drama (2013) |
| The Arthur Miller Collection | Arthur Miller | full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2012) |
| Saint Joan | George Bernard Shaw | Amy Irving, Edward Herrmann, Kristoffer Tabori, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2011) |
| The Word of Promise | Carl Amari | Michael York, Richard Dreyfuss, Gary Sinise, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2010) |
| The Odyssey | Homer, dramatized by Simon Armitage | Tim McInnerny, Amanda Redman, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2009) |
| Sweeney Todd and the String of Pearls | Yuri Rasovsky | Phil Proctor, Simon Templeman, Moira Quirk, Martin Jarvis, Rosalind Ayres, Robertson Dean, W. Morgan Sheppard | Audie Audio Drama (2008) |
| The Life of Jesus: Dramatic Eyewitness Accounts from the Luke Reports | Paul McCusker | full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2007) |
| The Sherlock Holmes Theatre | Arthur Conan Doyle, adapted by William Gillette, Yuri Rasovsky | Martin Jarvis, Kristoffer Tabori, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2006) |
| Buddha Boy | Kathe Koja | Spencer Murphy, full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2005) |
| The Complete Arkangel Shakespeare | William Shakespeare | full cast | Audie Audio Drama (2004) |
| The Guys | Anne Nelson | Swoosie Kurtz, Bill Irwin | Audie Audio Drama (2003) |
| Agnes of God | John Pielmeier | Barbara Bain, Emily Bergl, Harriet Harris | Audie Audio Drama (2001) |
| A Prairie Home Companion: 25th Anniversary | Garrison Keillor | Garrison Keillor | Audie Audio Drama (2000) |
| The Road to Mecca | Athol Fugard | Julie Harris, Amy Irving, Harris Yulin | Audie Audio Drama (1999) |
Listen to a gripping audio drama audiobook for the road free
An Audible Premium Plus trial is free for 30 days and includes one credit — enough to get one audiobook of your choice and keep it, even if you cancel.
Try Audible free for 30 daysAs an Amazon Associate, AudiobookIndex earns from qualifying purchases and program sign-ups made through links on this page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best audio drama audiobook for a road trip?
Among award winners, the most recent Audie Audio Drama winner is "George Orwell's 1984" by George Orwell, adapted by Joe White (2025) — a strong road-trip pick. Every audiobook on this page won the Audie Award in the Audio Drama category, so any of them is a safe choice for a long drive.
How long are award-winning audio drama audiobooks?
Most run roughly 8 to 16 hours — long enough to cover a full day of driving on a single audiobook. Exact runtimes are listed on each title's Audible page.
Where can I listen to these audiobooks?
All are available on Audible. A free 30-day Audible Premium Plus trial includes one credit — enough to download and keep one of these audio drama audiobooks even if you cancel before the trial ends.
More audio drama guides: every Audie-winning audio drama audiobook · audio drama audiobooks for beginners · full-cast audio drama audiobooks · all listening guides · best audiobooks by award.