A full cast dramatizes the Martín family's eventful 1977 road trip from California's central coast to Jalisco, Mexico, to bring Abuelito back with them. As recounted by third-youngest sibling Pedro, the 2,000-mile journey features plentiful poop jokes, sibling bickering, and references to 1970s pop culture. This audio adaptation of Martín's graphic memoir is a bumpy one. As Pedro, Oscar Fabela makes an unconvincing child, persistently overacting in an apparent attempt to replicate the print edition's broad humor. Much of that depends on the interplay between illustrations and text, and the audiobook's reliance on exaggeration for effect cannot compensate for the loss. Spanish-language dialogue is repeated immediately in English, another jolting artifice. A disappointment--listeners are better served by the print book.
(Graphic memoir. 9-14)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
Duration: 3 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593681572
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
The plot, performances, and production are funny and engaging and make Pedro’s world feel vibrant and full.
This full cast audio rendition of a graphic memoir conveys the energy and brightness of that visual medium. The story recounts Pedro’s challenging but hopeful and humorous childhood as a migrant farmworker in the U.S., growing up with dreams of a life in the arts. Sound effects and musical interludes punctuate the narrative. Plates rattle as an earthquake shakes a restaurant, and birds sing in the bushes on a berry farm as Pedro’s family works. The animated performances by this large cast, especially the boyish voice of Oscar Emmanuel Fabela as Pedro, are perfect to hook preteen listeners—and adults, too.
The plot, performances, and production are funny and engaging and make Pedro’s world feel vibrant and full. (Graphic memoir. 10-16)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2026
Duration: 3 hrs, 38 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217349708
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Sept. 22, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2026
With his voice occasionally cracking and squeaking, narrator Brandon McInnis leads a full cast as author Rex Ogle's protagonist, also named Rex, navigates seventh grade in this sequel to FOUR EYES. At school, Rex struggles with changing friendships, lagging physical development, and, as the title indicates, zits. At home he and his mother frequently clash. Fortunately, Rex has the steadying support of his abuela, voiced with pure Spanish-accented love by Eileen Galindo. The actors' talents and a graceful adaptation ensure a good listening experience, but kids who enjoy the audiobook together with the graphic novel in print will especially enjoy the robust diversity of artist Dave Valeza's and colorist Ash Szymanik's panels. Young listeners who are grappling with early adolescence will find much that resonates.
(Graphic memoir. 9-13)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2024
Duration: 2 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781546120971
Publisher: Scholastic Audiobooks
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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