Whatever your age, the adventures of part-human, part-animal Number 39 and Trinket in Mira Bartók's steampunk otherworld are captivating. Add Simon Vance's enthusiastic narration, and this is an audiobook to be cherished. The plot, which is unique while paying homage to DAVID COPPERFIELD, WIND IN THE WILLOWS, and other classics, sets our "groundlings," mild-mannered part-badger Number 39 and flightless-bird Trinket, in a horrible orphanage. After a madcap, daring escape, they search for Trinket's family and Number 39's destiny. Set in a world of horse-drawn carriages, insect-machines, and flying bicycles, as well as humans and groundlings, the tale offers Vance a chance to invent a myriad of voices and to support the action with his usual attentive pacing. The results will charm young and old alike.
(Fiction. 9-13)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2017
Duration: 9 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781536685671
Publisher: Brilliance Audio/ Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
A classic story of high adventure and conflict between good and evil placed in the mythical land of Prydain, The Book of Three is read grippingly and enchantingly by Chris King. Vocal switches are mostly smooth with a few minor pronunciation slips which are quickly corrected. King's voice is clear, easy to understand and memorable, giving the listener a sense of the characters as well as a pronunciation guide to those incredible Gaelic names Alexander uses. Both the characters and the story linger in the mind's eye because of the quality of narration. This is surely a reading that can be listened to again and again and will leave the listeners asking for the entire Prydain series on tape.
AGES 8+Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 5 hrs
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Posy Bates is back, this time with a dog left over from a pet show. Back also are baby Fred and her friend, Sam. But the star of the show is Posy herself, an energetic nine-year-old with a penchant for misadventure. Judy Bennett's rendering of each of the characters in this episodic family story is right on the mark. Her enunciation and impeccable timing clarify the idiomatic text so that its unusual words become another aspect of the book's pleasure. The irrepressible Posy is her greatest challenge, and Bennett gets high marks. She bubbles with enthusiasm, wails and squeals, and dies over and over again. "It's positively brilling!"
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 1 hr
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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