In this holiday tale, Robin Miles's vocalizations of the five Vanderbeeker children, their family, and their friends place the listener firmly in the family's old brownstone in their Harlem neighborhood. By using distinct voices for each of the characters, Miles displays the generational and ethnic diversity of the family and their community--from 4-year-old Laney to the Vanderbeekers's elderly upstairs neighbors. When their crotchety landlord, Mr. Beiderman, decides against renewing their lease, the children conspire to save their beloved home. Additional dramas, such as misunderstandings between friends and preparing for Christmas despite the need to quickly move into a new home, are captured in Miles's narration. This is a heartwarming story with a "happily-ever-after" that is sure to delight listeners of every age.
(Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2017
Duration: 5 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781501966767
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 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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