by Dashka Slater ; read by Robin Miles ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 22, 2017
Robin Miles provides a solid narration for investigative journalist Dashka Slater's balanced account of the traumatic intersection of two Oakland teens' lives. This is a work of nonfiction in which many individuals are presented, both as Slater observes and analyzes them and through their interview responses. Since Slater includes the personal expressive styles of the responders without quoting them verbatim, Miles must be careful to render the variety of perspectives without imbuing each with a voicing that weakens this accuracy in favor of dramatization. She succeeds in maintaining an even tone, for the most part, while pacing the performance so that listeners can follow this nuanced account of how differences in race, gender expression, and access to support shaped the two teens.
(Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2017
Duration: 5 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781501977381
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
by Avi ; read by Alexandra O'Karma ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A
In 1832 thirteen-year-old Charlotte Doyle is sailing from Liverpool to Rhode Island to rejoin her family. Shocked to discover that the families who were to have been both guardians and companions will not accompany her, Charlotte embarks on a journey filled with terror and swashbuckling adventure. The first-person narrative makes this Newbery Honor book a wonderful choice for recording. O'Karma's reading, with its hint of cross-gender differentiation, allows the listener to feel as if Charlotte Doyle herself were relating the tale. This story should be particularly alluring to adolescent girls although the fast-paced action and the nautical setting will also appeal to male listeners. Ages 12-adult.
Ages 12+Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 6 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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by Jacinda Ardern ; adapted by Ruby Shamir ; read by Jacinda Ardern ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 2, 2026
Listeners will be inspired by this principled prime minister who tackled her country’s biggest challenges with...
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Aspiring leaders, take note! In her Kiwi accent, Jacinda Ardern narrates this heartfelt and sincere adaptation of her memoir A Different Kind of Power, eliciting chuckles with amusing anecdotes and tears over tragedies. Ardern recounts her modest childhood, her unlikely path to politics, and her rise to New Zealand’s highest office as a young, pregnant, unmarried woman—armed with empathy, intelligence, faith, supportive loved ones, and a desire to serve. She shepherded her country through a volcanic eruption, Covid-19, and a mass shooting. Her heartrending narration of the shooting switches to steely resolve as she works to ban assault rifles.
Listeners will be inspired by this principled prime minister who tackled her country’s biggest challenges with kindness. (Memoir. 12-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2026
Duration: 5 hrs, 55 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217342044
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: tomorrow
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