Narrator Michael Crouch's excellent delivery of dialect conveys the 1850s world of Little Charlie Bobo, the 12-year-old son of a sharecropper. Charlie is recovering from the shock of his father's accidental death when Cap'n Buck, overseer of the plantation, announces the boy must fulfill an old debt. Crouch portrays Charlie's innocence and his horror at being thrust into kidnapping an enslaved family that has escaped to freedom in Canada. Crouch's depiction of Cap'n Buck's menace, callousness, and cruelty is chilling. It seems even worse when juxtaposed with the tenderness of the family he entraps. Both set the tone for Charlie's burgeoning understanding and courageous action to undo the evil of Cap'n Buck. An author's note describes Curtis's writing process and the story's origins.
(Historical fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: 2018
Duration: 5 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9780804168014
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
A classic story of high adventure and conflict between good and evil placed in the mythical land of Prydain, The Book of Three is read grippingly and enchantingly by Chris King. Vocal switches are mostly smooth with a few minor pronunciation slips which are quickly corrected. King's voice is clear, easy to understand and memorable, giving the listener a sense of the characters as well as a pronunciation guide to those incredible Gaelic names Alexander uses. Both the characters and the story linger in the mind's eye because of the quality of narration. This is surely a reading that can be listened to again and again and will leave the listeners asking for the entire Prydain series on tape.
AGES 8+Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 5 hrs
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Posy Bates is back, this time with a dog left over from a pet show. Back also are baby Fred and her friend, Sam. But the star of the show is Posy herself, an energetic nine-year-old with a penchant for misadventure. Judy Bennett's rendering of each of the characters in this episodic family story is right on the mark. Her enunciation and impeccable timing clarify the idiomatic text so that its unusual words become another aspect of the book's pleasure. The irrepressible Posy is her greatest challenge, and Bennett gets high marks. She bubbles with enthusiasm, wails and squeals, and dies over and over again. "It's positively brilling!"
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 1 hr
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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