Narrator Nicola Barber gives a delightful performance of this gripping fantasy filled with magic, science, and dragons. Barber's youthful voices are clear and unique, and her infectious energy transports listeners to a beautifully imagined steampunk-like world. Thirteen-year-old Paisley is assigned her destiny, but it is not one she wants. With the help of her brother, Dax; her mother's lab assistant; and others, Paisley tries to defeat the Dark Dragon and outrun fate itself. As Barber tells the story from two contrasting points of view, her accents and intonations are on point. She skillfully balances the Dark Dragon's sinister tones with the vulnerability of his lackey, Roach, and maintains Paisley's fierceness.
(Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2021
Duration: 7 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781338780536
Publisher: Scholastic Audiobooks
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Listeners can expect fantasy at its silliest, with humorous voices to match.
Daniel Henning narrates this middle-grade fantasy with a dose of zaniness. Henning creates individualized voices for a cast that includes Adelbert, the forgetful magician; an irritable king; a host of royal attendants; a curmudgeonly, wish-granting tree; and the heroine, Bernadette the Brave. Bernadette is a kind, soft-spoken girl who is “hired” (kidnapped) to serve as keeper of the 24 goats upon which the king’s castle improbably rests. As the story's narrator, Henning is humorous and conversational, recounting Bernadette and Adelbert’s quest to rescue the turtle, Perseverance. This fun romp is completely out of order, beginning in Chapter 13, and dotted with morals, Latin, and the bleating of goats.
Listeners can expect fantasy at its silliest, with humorous voices to match. (Fantasy. 9-13)Pub Date: April 7, 2026
Duration: 6 hrs, 35 mins
DD ISBN: 9798899737732
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: April 21, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2026
Hamilton excels at grounding listeners while channeling the novel’s whimsy and mystery.
Nikola Hamilton’s narration anchors listeners as 12-year-old Roman tries to understand his complex family history. With a comforting frankness, Grandpa Henry tells Roman fantastical stories, like the tale of his own victimization by the Toe Beast, a creature grown from his amputated toe. This leads to other stories featuring a curious girl and her pack of dogs and a bucket that makes time travel possible. In the past, these stories frightened Roman, and Hamilton’s narration reflects Roman’s growing courage—until he finally travels through time in order to decipher strange symbols and secrets.
Hamilton excels at grounding listeners while channeling the novel’s whimsy and mystery. (Fiction. 9-13)Pub Date: March 24, 2026
Duration: 5 hrs, 57 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217280537
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: yesterday
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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