American Fantasy Audiobook By Emma Straub cover art

American Fantasy

A Novel

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American Fantasy

By: Emma Straub
Narrated by: Marin Ireland
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INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

American Fantasy has everything we need right now: '90s nostalgia, humor, and it is a great escape.” —Jenna Bush Hager on NBC Today Show

"I can hardly remember the last time I read anything that brought me such pure joy.” —Ann Patchett

American Fantasy is such a fun, delicious, big-hearted book.” —Taylor Jenkins Reid

“Comedy and redemption on the high seas...breezy, tenderhearted.”—New York Times

From New York Times bestselling author of This Time Tomorrow, an irresistible story about what happens when your teenage fantasy comes true after you’re already an adult.


When the American Fantasy cruise ship sets sail for a four-day themed voyage, aboard are all five members of a famous, nineties-era boy band and three thousand screaming women who have worshipped them since childhood.

Feeling slightly out of place amid this crowd is Annie, here on a lark to appease her sister. Yet when the lights come up and the idols of her youth begin to sing, something is unlocked. Call it memory. Call it nostalgia. Call it the chemical reaction of hormones, hope, and sexual reawakening. Between the slushy alcoholic drinks, the familiar music, and the throngs of middle-aged women acting like lovesick teenagers, Annie finally reconnects to a long-submerged part of herself. By the time she meets one of the band members—not just a celebrity but someone in need of a friend—she has accessed a new sense of possibility.

In a smart and incisive book packed with laugh-out-loud reflections on fame, aging, and marriage, Emma Straub delivers a richly textured story that shows us real passion is never truly lost, that what we love makes us who we are, and that deep meaning can sometimes be found in a sea of screaming fans.

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Great beach read for the summer! Peppered with sufficient insight to make it worthwhile but ultimately good fun.

Fun escapist read.

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Saw this book in People Magazine and immediately downloaded on Audible. Having been a passenger on 7 of 12 New Kids on the Block cruises, I was excited about the “comparison” of the real thing of a Boy Band obsession, experience, life…I smiled the entire time while listening; reliving my own memories and experiences. It was also bittersweet, as rumor has it that there will be no more NKOTB Cruises.

NKOTB Cruise Parody

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American Fantasy is a cute, surface-level read without a huge plot, but that’s part of its charm. It’s an easy, quick beach read that feels like NSYNC decided to go on a cruise together. The book brings back memories of childhood and those fun teenage years filled with boy bands, crushes, and summer nostalgia. A great pick if you want something light, entertaining, and perfect for a quick summer getaway.

Beach read

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I never even thought about taking a cruise ship with a band I liked or actors ... I may have thought about this when I was watching RUPAUL! I laughed at some parts and shook my head at others. I have only been on one cruise myself and not sure I could do it but enjouyed the read and am happy bookclub suggested this book

Cruise ship anyone?

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But over all not bad, it builds it own universe wirhour yiu needed ro know rhe history of every boy band ever

Meandered in the last few hours

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