I began Kathryn Ma’s novel after different readers advised me how humorous it’s. I rapidly found that it’s — but additionally that it’s psychologically penetrating, culturally astute and an excellent character examine. Shelley, a younger Chinese man with a fantasy model of America caught in his head, travels to San Francisco to examine and make a fortune. He presents himself on the home of Ted, a distant cousin who, Shelley mistakenly believes, is wealthy and highly effective. Ted, dismayed, gathers that Shelley intends to reside with him and his spouse. Though Shelley is out for the primary likelihood, he’s additionally sincerely in search of household connection, and his important goodness emerges as his route to his survival. James Chen’s narration is stunningly good; he tailors his voice and method to the assorted characters, amongst them the initially naive however alert Shelley, two vexatious, sophisticated outdated males, two fraudsters who sound prefer it, all of them and others as actual in Chen’s supply as they’d be in life. This is without doubt one of the greatest novels I’ve listened to this yr. (Random House, 10¼ hours, $28)

Katherine A. Powers critiques audiobooks each month for The Washington Post.