{"id":28316,"date":"2015-09-04T23:28:58","date_gmt":"2015-09-05T03:28:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=28316"},"modified":"2015-09-04T23:28:58","modified_gmt":"2015-09-05T03:28:58","slug":"review-of-the-screaming-staircase-by-jonathan-stroud-read-by-miranda-raison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=28316","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Screaming Staircase, by Jonathan Stroud, read by Miranda Raison"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"screaming_staircase_audio_large\"<\/a>Lockwood & Co.<\/p>\n

The Screaming Staircase<\/em><\/p>\n

by Jonathan Stroud<\/p>\n

read by Miranda Raison<\/p>\n

Listening Library, 2013. 10 hours on 8 compact discs.
\n2013 Cybils Winner: Speculative Fiction, Elementary and Middle Grades
\n2013 Sonderbooks Stand-out<\/a>: #1 Children\u2019s Fiction
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

Normally, I won\u2019t listen to a book I\u2019ve already read. In the case of The Screaming Staircase<\/em>, I\u2019d already read it twice: Once when it came out, and once for the Cybils Award. (It won.) I also named it my favorite children\u2019s book read in 2013<\/a>. (I don\u2019t allow rereads to count as Sonderbooks Stand-outs any more, so that way I won\u2019t be tempted to give it to this book again in 2015.) So you won\u2019t be surprised that I loved this audiobook (which our library finally purchased). Apparently, I don\u2019t get tired of this story at all!<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll refer you to my original review<\/a>, but point out a few things I noticed.<\/p>\n

As a straight mystery (Who killed Annabelle Ward?), this book is wonderfully well-crafted. There are clues and red herrings as well as a life-endangering denouement accompanying some clever deductions from our heroes.<\/p>\n

This book is scarier than I remembered it. The Red Room \u2013 with blood dripping down from the ceiling threatening to flood them (and they\u2019ll die if it touches them) is incredibly sinister, not to mention the Screaming Staircase, where long-ago monks were led to their deaths and today you can hear their screams in your head. So that\u2019s the only caveat when giving this book to children or suggesting it for family listening (It would be great!) \u2013 they have to be able to handle Scary.<\/p>\n

As I suspected, though, the only thing better than reading this book is having it read to you with a British accent. The narrator is utterly wonderful! When I got to the part I used to read aloud at schools when booktalking last summer \u2013 I could recite the words along with the narrator, but they sounded so much better with a British accent! This narrator also captured the different voices with excellence.<\/p>\n

As I mentioned in my first review, there\u2019s so much going on with this book. We\u2019ve got ghosts, swordplay, a deadline which must be met to keep their business, banter between colleagues, an interesting alternate world with great detail as to the different types of ghosts, kids in charge (because only they can see ghosts), and our heroes setting out to show the world that they are excellent at what they do \u2013 without the supervision of adults.<\/p>\n

If your kids are old enough to handle Scary, this would make phenomenal family listening, because I guarantee the adults will be as mesmerized as the kids. I certainly was. And this was a book I successfully recommended to several adult coworkers. I am having fun listening to the audio version of the first two books in the series in preparation for Book Three coming out soon. I can hardly wait!<\/p>\n

jonathanstroud.com<\/a>
\nlockwoodandco.com<\/a>
\nListeninglibrary.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Childrens_Fiction\/screaming_staircase_audio.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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