Skillful soundscaping and a full cast heighten the atmosphere and emotion in this audiobook, inspired by the childhood of coauthor Omar Mohamed. The story follows young Omar, a Somali boy living in a Kenyan refugee camp, where he cares for his brother, studies hard, and tries to balance his hope of resettlement against grim reality. Narrator Faysal Ahmed is thoroughly sympathetic as Omar, his mellifluous rolled “r”s and gentle tones adding to the intimacy of the narration. The variously accented supporting cast include such notables as Robin Miles and Bahni Turpin, and their chorus of voices emphasizes the caring community that surrounds Omar. Ambient noises and sound effects—from boisterous classroom chatter to evening cricket song—further envelop listeners. Collectively, it’s a moving and memorable listening experience.
(Graphic memoir. 9-13)Pub Date: April 14, 2020
Duration: 3 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593162583
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Far-north fun for emerging readers.
Narrator Mark Sanderlin guides listeners through this graphic early reader. When Wally Mammoth challenges friend Wolf to a game of hide-and-seek, it quickly becomes apparent that all-white Wolf has a notable advantage in their Arctic landscape. While their auk pal Otto’s voice is easily recognizable, Sanderlin’s vocal characterizations of Wally and Wolf are not so easily parsed, and they dominate the dialogue. This is one case where the audiobook and the print book should be experienced together. Even then, with no text other than speech balloons, this audiobook counts on its listeners to have some facility with letter and word recognition to accurately follow the banter.
Far-north fun for emerging readers. (Graphic early reader. 4-8)Pub Date: March 3, 2026
Duration: 3 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063478213
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2026
Listeners lose some of the fun without print; with print, they find confusion.
The titular penguins travel through time in this audio rendition of Dempsey’s series-opening graphic novel. When impulsive Splash proposes a tropical HOLIDAY (a fanfare accompanies the word’s every utterance), cautious Pablo is willing to go along…but the beach they find after a chaotic trip has dinosaurs! This agreeable romp has been lightly adapted for audio, relying on sound effects to convey the action. Listeners eager to see the humor those sounds evoke will want to read along with the book—but in the U.S., they’ll find that the print edition has been Americanized, whereas the audio has not. The audio's Briticisms have been “translated”—including the oft-repeated HOLIDAY, which is rendered in print as VACATION.
Listeners lose some of the fun without print; with print, they find confusion. (Graphic adventure. 7-10)Pub Date: Feb. 26, 2026
Duration: 48 mins
DD ISBN: 9781547620951
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2026
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