Listeners of all ages will appreciate this collection of poems featuring monsters, in which the wildly imaginative Rex considers a variety of quirky questions. What happens when the Phantom of the Opera can’t get a tune out of his head? When Dracula has spinach stuck in his teeth? Or when the Creature from the Black Lagoon ignores his mother’s advice and goes swimming right after lunch? L.J. Ganser clearly relishes Rex’s oddball premises and clever wordplay. Whether called upon to sing, speak in British tones, recite limericks, cackle like a witch, or scold like a mom (“That black lagoon is dark and damp/you’re going to get a stomach cramp!”), Ganser rises to the occasion with an energetic glee that enhances the humor in Rex’s poetry.
Ages 6+Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2008
Duration: 30 mins
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Narrators John Lithgow and Kate Mulgrew alternately share poems and songs created by Fred Rogers for his long-standing television show. Rogers's messages affirm children and give voice to the myriad feelings, good and bad, that all people feel from time to time. Wonder, joy, questions, exploration, outsides and insides, a new baby, one-of-a-kindness, needs emotional and material are examples of the breadth of Rogers's words. Lithgow's voice has its own richness, reminiscent of Rogers's own. His tone is firm and straightforward. When his voice expresses the anger of a poem, for example, he soon becomes calm as the anger fades. Kate Mulgrew is equally genuine and sets a pace for children's consideration of each message.
(Poetry. 3-8)Pub Date: March 19, 2019
Duration: 1 hr, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781683691808
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Updike’s 12 poems celebrate the changing seasons with images that might catch a child’s eye. His verses, some of which are very lovely, focus on changes in the natural world (from snow to mud to crocuses) and on celebrations that accompany these changes (Christmas, Valentine's, Fourth of July). Each verse ends with a sound image that connects to the month’s poem (such as the sound of fireworks or baseball heard on TV). Updike’s presentation is earnest. While he sometimes overemphasizes line breaks in his poems, he has a kind voice and reads carefully, allowing time for children to enjoy the lovely gem-like illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman.
Ages 4-6Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2004
Duration: 13 mins
Publisher: Live Oak Media
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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