Thirteen-year-old Dina has learned her family's trade of fine tailoring in their German home in the 1870s. When she's sent to Mama's brother in Brooklyn, she expects to be relieved of the endless needlework, but instead she finds a house of tailors poorer than the one she left. Dina's nimble fingers are desperately required in this dreary place, but she longs to return to Germany. In this impeccable reading by Blair Brown, the voices are just different enough for the listener to discern which character is speaking. Dina's youthful exasperation and naïve expectations are presented with a suitably delicate touch. A lovely story to be shared by adults and children. N.M.C. 2005 ALA Notable Recording © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine
Ages 10+Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2004
Duration: 3 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 1400090555
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Live Oak Media recently caught our attention with this new read-along book and cassette program. We listened first, and were so delighted we couldn't wait to get the book. The picture book made the experience even better, but the audio recordings was strong and vibrant by itself. THE GARDENER, Sarah Stewart's Depression-era story of a young girl sent to live with her Uncle Jim in the city has a sweet, wistful quality with narration alone, but coupled with David Small's soft-edged pencil illustration, it's a total delight. The reading is repeated on both sides of the tape, one with and without page-turning signals.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: N/A
Publisher: Live Oak Media
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Powerful listening.
Four narrators personalize the tragedy of Houston’s 2017 Hurricane Harvey through the viewpoints of three struggling teens. Sunil Malhotra depicts Pakistani American Yasir’s many facets—his determination to succeed at soccer, his barely controlled rage about racism, his sadness about his father’s death, and his deep fear of drowning. Nikhaar Kashnani portrays South Asian American Mona. Weighed down by caring for her young brother, she loses herself in art and dreads her recurring nightmare about a flood. Josh Hurley renders Cody’s cruel, racist bullying as well as his fear of the dark, a result of being abused by his father. Christopher Salazar enthusiastically delivers interstitial news bulletins. When flooding from Harvey makes them face their worst fears, the resilient threesome’s separate stories come together and they support each other’s bravery.
Powerful listening.Pub Date: Feb. 10, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs
DD ISBN: 9780063389557
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Feb. 10, 2026
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