Audiobook Review

Children Make Terrible Pets
Written and Illustrated by Peter Brown
Read by Emily Eiden
Age Range: 3-6

Produced 2010 by Weston Woods

ISBN:9780545398367

I am happy to call myself an audiobook fan. I think the medium has a lot of appeal for children – after all, most kids are used to being read to. When I think of audiobooks for children, though, I generally picture chapter books or nonfiction for middle-grade children. The idea of an audio version of a picture book seems a bit odd. After all, one of the major jobs of a picture book is to help the reader learn to process stories both visually and verbally and draw connections between words and images. How effective can a picture book be when the pictures are taken away?

Thus my interest in the audio version of Children Make Terrible Pets. Peter Brown’s 2010 picture book introduces the audience to Lucy, a little bear in a bow and a tutu who comes upon a strange, squeaky (yet adorable) creature in the woods one day. She names him Squeaker and brings him home to her mother, who takes no responsibility for the boy—for he is a little boy—but says Lucy may keep him if she cares for him. The book relies heavily on the visual gag of a bear treating a little boy like a pet, so I wondered how successful an audio version could be.

The audio version of Children Make Terrible Pets is read by actress Emily Eiden, who has a bubbly and expressive voice. It is enhanced by music and sound effects and has enough charm to keep young listeners engaged. One does, however, miss out on most of the jokes and a fair amount of the plot if one only listens to it. Listening to an audio picture book has made me realize that it serves a different purpose than an audio chapter book: while audio chapter books can be listened to independent of the original text (making them a great option when travelling with children), audio picture books work best when used to enhance the text, not replace it. A child who is just learning to read can listen to the recording and follow along in the book, thus building a connection between what words look like and what they sound like. Reading along with a recording can also help children slow their pace and really absorb dialogue, jokes and other textual details that may be skimmed over if a child is not a confident reader. It can also help build listening skills.

While my skepticism was not unfounded with regard to audio picture books as standalone items, listening to one has helped me to understand that they do have a place in a child’s library – right next to the print version of the same book. 

Readalikes:
I'm Dirty by Kate McMullan, read by Steve Buscemi
Dooby Dooby Moo by Doreen Cronin, read by Randy Travis
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems, read by Mo Willems and Jon Scieszka