An evocative story of family, love, and the immigrant experience.
Felisha Wong’s youthful voice is convincing as the story’s young narrator and her father deliver takeout from their family’s Chinese restaurant. Unlike some other audiobook adaptations of picture books, there are no sound effects or music, and the spareness makes it even easier to imagine just the two of them together in their minivan at night. Using a paper map to guide her Baba to customers’ addresses, the story’s narrator wishes she were “a normal kid,” and Baba shares stories of his own childhood and his arrival in the U.S. Perhaps most interesting for listeners is hearing Wong pronounce Cantonese words and phrases, seamlessly integrating them into the narrative.
An evocative story of family, love, and the immigrant experience. (Picture book. 4-10)Pub Date: March 10, 2026
Duration: 8 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217284092
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2026
Liam Aiken narrates this prequel to the Series of Unfortunate Events in a somber, deadpan tone that heightens its dark humor. As a teenaged Lemony Snicket investigates a series of arsons in a town called Stain’d-by-the-Sea, Aiken creates voices that delineate character and help keep clear the large cast of Snicket’s associates, enemies, and enemies that turn out to be associates. Aiken’s tone of quiet urgency will keep listeners hooked through wordplay, mysteries, good meals, romance, and the appearance of a new villain named Hangfire, who hoodwinks adults, frames a librarian, and kidnaps all the children in town. This smart and funny listen will please Snicket fans and create new ones.
(Mystery. 8-14)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2014
Duration: 6 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781478955733
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
While narrator Liam Aiken evokes the wistful, dolorous tone of Snicket’s second mystery in his All the Wrong Questions series, he fails to deliver Snicket’s signature snark with appropriate vigor. In this episode, the main character, 12-year-old Lemony Snicket, continues the investigations that began in STAIN’D BY THE SEA with the case of the missing chemist, Cleo Knight. As Aiken delivers Snicket’s declarative sentences in a deadpan voice, his remote reading keeps listeners distant from the story. Furthermore, Aiken does not always play up the quirks of the town’s eccentric characters. When he does use individualized voicings, the story shakes off its languidness to some degree. Aiken’s melancholy narration echoes Snicket’s loneliness but doesn’t enliven the recording for young listeners. An attached PDF file includes the character Seth’s illustrations.
(Mystery. 8-14)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2013
Duration: 4 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781478924845
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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