MarsDinosaur

A Beautiful End

Revisado: 05-18-20

This final book in the Ember series was beautiful. My kids were as enthralled in the story as they always are when listening to or reading S.D. Smith's tales. They weren't sure what was going to happen (in a good way) and felt like it was a *real* story (which, the author talks about in his Author's note at the end...it is a "real story") in all the important ways. We will enjoy rereading these tales as the characters have become friends, and the stories are ones that uplift and encourage our souls. Yay for inspiring adventure, and worthwhile storylines that aren't shallow.
The parents of this review would also like to note (as we have thought in all the others of his narration) that Joel Clarkson is a fantastic narrator. His voice is so easy to listen to, his cadence spot-on and he makes the characters distinguishable but not distracting. He is on par with some of the best audio-narrators we've listened to, and we're even thankful that he uses his voice for such a worthy set of tales. Bravo Mr. Clarkson. Good pick Mr. Smith.

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Hopeful Adventure

Revisado: 08-07-18

Our whole family loves this adventure. It is full of well rounded characters who aren't perfect but inspire us and grow in themselves along the way. The family bonds, the betrayal, the loyalty, the despair, the hope....all these elements are present but in such an easy way that from our 4 year-old to our 37-year old, we were all cheering along. The narrator is easy and enjoyable to listen to.

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Adventure continues and we're loving it!

Revisado: 06-24-17

Would you listen to Risk again? Why?

Yes! our whole family loves this adventure - from the 4 y/o up to the 37 y/o! Its family-friendly but has tense parts and thrilling parts and sweet parts - something for everyone!

What about LC Kane’s performance did you like?

we love hearing the pronunciations of the characters and places as intended by the author. Listening to Kane also helps us get through some of the bigger-word description/"jargon" that is a little harder for my younger readers/listeners when they're reading on their own or listening to mommy!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

the "reconciliation" between Austin and Oliver and each recognizing his own downfalls in their actions

Any additional comments?

we have the hard copies of The Quest for Truth books and are reading them as well as listening (we're further along than the audible versions so far). I HIGHLY recommend listening to the audible of the 1st book (Taken) either before or while reading the hard copy. It is so helpful in hearing the names/words of the characters that we wouldn't know how to pronounce and so now as we read the books ourselves (either as family read-alouds or my 8 y/o on her own), we read with the pronunciations as intended! We got a clearer picture of the characters by listening to the audible narration!

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Whole family enthralled!

Revisado: 06-24-17

Where does Taken rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Our family as a whole loves this series - 2 parents, 8 y/o girl, 6 y/o girl and 4 y/o boy. We listen in the car mostly but sometimes just can't take waiting and listen at home also. Mom and my two girls are probably the most obsessed and this is in our top 10 audiobooks for sure!

What did you like best about this story?

We love the family-friendly adventure. This is a story that is probably meant for kids in the YA audience most (maybe older elementary-tween-teen?) but we all love it and I as a parent appreciate the appropriate nature of the content and the integrity and respectfulness in the characters while still listening to intense adventure. I like how the author has them "think through"/talk through attitudes and motives.

Which character – as performed by LC Kane – was your favorite?

I'm not sure we can choose - we love all the characters. And they each have their strengths AND weaknesses. One daughter loves Tiffany most. Mom is torn between Oliver and the twins but appreciates when they work out their differences together and recognize mistakes and apologize for them.

Any additional comments?

I will say that when we first started listening (first couple chapters) I as the adult wasn't sold on the narrator - it seemed very "cold"....but I was soon won over and realized that it has more subtle nuances and the "evenness" of the narrator actually lends perfectly to the settings/time period of the books. I don't think she has a huge differentiation in voices for the characters but it doesn't deter us from listening. ALSO - we have the hard copies of The Quest for Truth books and are reading them as well as listening (we're further along than the audible versions so far). I HIGHLY recommend listening to the audible of the 1st book (Taken) either before or while reading the hard copy. It is so helpful in hearing the names/words of the characters that we wouldn't know how to pronounce and so now as we read the books ourselves (either as family read-alouds or my 8 y/o on her own), we read with the pronunciations as intended! We got a clearer picture of the characters by listening to the audible narration!

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