Narrator Stephen Fry delivers a heartwarming and spirited performance in this fresh production on the origins of Christmas rituals. Fry's dynamic narration brings out the humor as well as the heartache in young protagonist Nikolas, who sets off on an adventure to find his father and stumbles upon a mystical elf kingdom. Fry's hearty range of voices expresses not only Nikolas's quiet bravery, anguish, and joy during his journey but also a myriad of animated human and nonhuman characters, including a humorous troll and a sweet elf. Fry's delightful storytelling weaves heartfelt emotion with the magic of elves and the power of goodness, making it easy to believe in Christmas.
(Fantasy. 6-13)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2016
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780735207806
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Sanderlin brings gravitas to the story’s most serious scenes while adding humor to its frequent moments of whimsy.
Mark Sanderlin tells this middle-grade story as the Royal Chronicler, an unnamed adult at an entertaining scholarly remove from the adventures of the main characters. Eleven-year-old Olly leaves his younger sister, Jenny, at home when he reluctantly goes out to find work, a necessity for kids in their struggling community. Their bleak reality becomes more colorful when Olly’s first job ends up being at a secret refuge for endangered dragons, and when Jenny develops magical powers. As they stumble into a quest to save the fantastical species, Olly and Jenny’s dialogue sounds convincingly kidlike, a nice contrast with the chronicler’s news anchor-style delivery of the rest of the prose.
Sanderlin brings gravitas to the story’s most serious scenes while adding humor to its frequent moments of whimsy. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 12, 2026
Duration: 7 hrs, 24 mins
DD ISBN: 9798898850296
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: June 23, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2026
A futuristic tale that illustrates the uncertain boundaries between humanity and technology.
This middle-grade audiobook is full of robots, and Ferdelle Capistrano’s performance of their voices, while carefully portraying them as not-quite-alive, is still lively and never dully mechanical. Entrenched inequality, unchecked corporate power, and rapid technological change are all threatening forces in this setting, but even the darkest moments of the story are delivered in a bright, kid-friendly way. Capistrano adjusts her tone to distinguish the dialogue of kids, adults, and machines; some of the adults’ voices are a bit cartoonish in their villainy or well-meaning cluelessness.
A futuristic tale that illustrates the uncertain boundaries between humanity and technology. (Science fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: May 12, 2026
Duration: 3 hrs, 18 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063485983
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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