Mara Wilson offers a graceful performance of Hoffman's fictionalized account of Anne Frank's life before her family went into hiding. In a clear, warm tone, Wilson describes a young Anne, who is passionate about writing and infectiously high-spirited and curious. While conveying Anne's vexation at her sister and mother, Wilson also communicates her unshakable love for her family. Because listeners will likely know the end of Anne's story, the portents of doom delicately woven into the novel--for instance, black moths that gather at the windows--are all the more impactful. Hoffman's heartfelt afterword, which she narrates herself, ties the novel together, offering devastating details about Anne's death, even as it stresses the impact of Anne's legacy and the resilience of the human spirit.
(Historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2024
Duration: 6 hrs
Publisher: Scholastic Audiobooks
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Lawrence enthusiastically portrays Cora and her friends in this fast-paced historical-fiction adventure.
Narrator Emily Lawrence creates a determined voice for Cora, who is desperately trying to survive the tragic 1906 earthquake in San Francisco with her two friends Chi and Oliver. Lawrence captures Cora’s tumultuous emotions as she and Chi are buried in rubble following the disaster and saved by her forbidden friend Oliver. Despite the bitter feud between their parents, Cora and Oliver work together to try to find her family as fire keeps spreading throughout their beloved city, all while running from bullies who are after Cora. Lawrence makes each character unique and adds a slight Irish accent for Oliver.
Lawrence enthusiastically portrays Cora and her friends in this fast-paced historical-fiction adventure. (Historical fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: March 3, 2026
Duration: 7 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798225033521
Publisher: Scholastic Audio
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2026
Past and present come together seamlessly.
Casey Holloway and Emily Eiden perform alternating chapters of this audiobook about two girls connected through time. In the present day, 13-year-old Penny Marks is angry and resentful about her parents’ decision to move their family to Paris for her mother’s museum job. In 1943, 13-year-old Marie Bonnet and her sister live alone in Nazi-occupied Paris. Holloway depicts the curious, determined, artistic Penny, who pursues the mystery of a painting hidden in a wall and a letter written 80 years earlier. With an accented narration, Eiden reveals Marie’s entry into the French Resistance and her commitment to hiding French art from the Germans.
Past and present come together seamlessly. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
Duration: 6 hrs, 42 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063321816
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: March 10, 2026
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