@neauoire anything from the Inspector Montalbano series by Andrea Camilleri: I wouldn’t strictly say these are GREAT books but they’re pretty snappy detective novels, and they would be great to read aloud.

The Humorless Ladies of Border Control by Frank Nicolay: a neat Eastern European travelogue by one of the members of The Hold Steady. It’s very well told short vignettes which would make for a good read out loud.