Louise Erdrich’s BIRCHBARK HOUSE is reminiscent of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s LITTLE HOUSE IN THE BIG WOODS. Both provide detailed windows into life in the mid-1800s--Wilder as a white settler of the northern Midwest; Erdrich as an Ojibwa of Lake Superior. In the cycle of one year, the listener becomes familiar with life-sustaining events, such as the maple sugar and wild rice harvests, and is introduced to young Omakayas and her extended family. Nicolle Littrell narrates with a gentle and quiet voice. Her presentation is light and immediate, giving the listener the opportunity to bear witness to each event, whether it be Omakayas talking to her bear brothers and gaining insight into being a healer or Old Tallow telling of the sickness that impacts both Omakayas’s and Ojibwa life. Stories from Ojibwa tradition complement the seasonal narrative.
(Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2002
Duration: 6 hrs
Publisher: Audio Bookshelf
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
A poignant portrait of bravery.
Graham Halstead’s narration contains layers of emotion that fully reveal the character and growth of 13-year-old Lucas Dubois, an orphan living in 1944 occupied France. Halstead shows Lucas’ compassion as he rescues newborn kittens from being drowned. Lucas’ tenderness extends to a teen mother kept at the Lebensborn, a Nazi maternity home dedicated to producing soldiers-to-be. Lucas delivers groceries and conveys underground messages. Halstead also reveals the prickly nature of Alice, an older teen protecting her horse from being captured by Nazis. Halstead’s performance matches the breakneck pacing when Lucas stands up to German soldiers and confronts his own sense of insecurity.
A poignant portrait of bravery. (Historical fiction. 8-13)Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026
Duration: 9 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781250433039
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: yesterday
It's 1975, and eleven-year-old Gao Sheng, a Hmong girl, is living in the highlands of Laos in a one-room house with her family. Then they are forced to flee. Narrator Robyn Morales lends a soft, feminine huskiness to the protagonist's voice as she describes the family's journey to a refugee camp, to gentle and thoughtful effect. The listener is transported alongside Gao Sheng to a new world as she reflects on memory, gender, and family relations in her culture; the events that change her life; and conditions in the refugee camp. An afterword provides context about the author's family's real-life experience. Morales' narration is comforting, even as she describes the difficult circumstances of refugees.
(Verse historical fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2026
Duration: 5 hrs
DD ISBN: 9798217080861
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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