You're an Animal

A Novel

By: Jardine Libaire

Narrated by: Dani Martineck

A tender portrait of four misfits, on the run across Texas, that speaks to those who are left out, those who opt out—and to the wild animal in us all

“Libaire creates a delicious universe at a constant brink of collapse, a universe I never wanted to see end.”—Gerardo Sámano Córdova, author of Monstrilio

It’s springtime in Oklahoma, and Ernie, an outcast in a group of outcasts, feels uneasy. Nerves at the abandoned summer camp where he and his fellow oddballs are crashing have been on edge since the arrival of a teenager named Coral, unceremoniously dropped off from her family’s minivan one afternoon. Adding to her aura of mystery, Coral doesn’t say a word. Ever.

When a drug lab explosion burns the compound to the ground, Ernie, Coral, and the hard-living couple Staci and Ray escape on a pair of motorcycles. Feeling shaky with fear and alive with a new surge of freedom, the four outcasts find a rundown house in rural Texas: It's a place to stay, they tell themselves, for now. Yet to their surprise, over card games and wild strawberries and target-shooting and late-night dancing to ZZ Top on the local radio, a quirky little family forms. At the heart of their new home is Coral, whose silence only amplifies her strange, undefinable power and the sense that she found them for a reason.

But soon, tensions rise, and a mysterious threat begins to materialize—whether it’s coming from inside or outside the house still isn’t clear. All this crew knows is, now there’s something at stake: their chosen family, forged by both loneliness and joy, and bonded by an awkward kind of love.

©2023 Jardine Libaire (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Funny, smart, and heart-wrenchingly tender, Libaire creates a delicious universe at a constant brink of collapse, a universe I never wanted to see end.” —Gerardo Sámano Córdova, author of Monstrilio

“You’re an Animal is a fast and perilous ride toward the center of what makes us human in the most desperate of circumstances . . . Roving and mysterious, this novel is hot to the touch.” —Chelsea Bieker, author of Godshot and Heartbroke

“Absolutely freaking breathtaking . . . This will be the best love story you read this year, trust me!” —Elin Hilderbrand, author of The Five-Star Weekend

not for me

Dani Martineck did a great job bringing this story to my ears. However, I found the story hard to get into and when I did get into it, I wanted more. Maybe I'm being too picky. I felt like there wasn't a climax to the story. It continued at a nice pace and then you're at the epilogue with an ending that feels like an after thought.

I'm not going to say don't read it because you may love it. Always try a book if it interests you, even if the reviews aren't raving about it.