Hugh Laurie's warm, intimate storyteller's voice is the perfect match for this pleasingly old-fashioned story. Allen is rescued at age 6, along with his mother, from a shipwreck by the Puffin Island lighthouse keeper, Benjamin Postlethwaite. Years later, Allen returns to Puffin Island, off the coast of Cornwall, England, and strikes up a lifelong friendship with Ben. Together they nurse a young puffin back to health, and Allen teaches Ben to read. Laurie's voice for Ben is gruff and kind; Allen's French mother has the appropriate accent. Allen loves the sea, and author Morpurgo's descriptions of the natural world and the wheels and dives and calls of seabirds set the scene beautifully. Listening to this brief audiobook feels like stepping back in time.
(Historical fiction. 7-11)Pub Date: 2020
Duration: 44 mins
Publisher: Penguin Audio UK
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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: 2026
Duration: 5 hrs
DD ISBN: 9798217080861
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
In a lilting voice, narrator Christopher Hampton captures the hope and curiosity of Will, a young Black boy who is hoping to claim land during the Oklahoma Land Rush. Will's companions include his stern father and their mule, Belle, and later the gentle but wizened ex-Union soldier, Caesar. Southern accents, including Will's, and twangy cowboy voices enhance the historic setting. Northern characters are more neutral, but moments of racial tension are full of anger and stress. Throughout the harrowing story, Will is anguished during a fight, Pa falters in fearful moments, and Caesar strains when he is badly injured. As he nears Oklahoma, Will's confidence grows, as does his father's pride in him. Adventure abounds in this moving production.
(Historical fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: 2025
Duration: 4 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781668647417
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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