Audiobook Review: Piper Green and the Fairy Tree by Ellen Potter, Illustrated by Qin Leng, Read by Tavia Gilbert



My Rating: 3 Stars


Piper Green: noun. Spunky and big-hearted female 2nd grader who misses her 14-year-old brother terribly. She manifests this ache in her heart by insisting on wearing green monkey earmuffs and playing hooky from school. After some misadventures, all is made right in the end.

She manifests this ache in her heart by insisting on wearing green monkey earmuffs and playing hooky from school. After some misadventures, all is made right in the end.


I just have to say, Tavia Gilbert does a phenomenal job narrating this book. She really brings the book to life and makes it interesting. Her voices for each character are so distinct, I actually listened to parts of the book over again specifically to figure out if there really was just one person narrating the book or if there was a full cast that, for whatever reason, wasn’t listed in the credits. Her voices for each character really are that distinct from one another! It blew me away. Her voice for Piper Green is mildly nasal-y, but not unbearable. She also nails the voice inflections for the unsure-but-determined Piper and the Eastern accents for the adults in the book. From my perspective, Tavia Gilbert makes the book. 


My kids listened to this book with me and loved it so much they wanted to listen to it several times over again (It’s only about 45 minutes in length from start to finish). The plot, while entertaining for my 3- and 5-year old, didn’t impress me too much. There is arguably no resolution to the conflict and the story ends abruptly. However, Tavia Gilbert’s expert reading makes up for this. 


On a more positive note, the content in this book was 100% family-friendly, which I love. There were messages of respect for adults, strong family bonds, and a strong sense of community on the little fishing island where Piper and her family live. There was absolutely no crude language--not even the unsavory toilet humor in so much of today’s juvenile literature (Huzzah!).


If you’re looking for a short listen for the whole family, this audiobook may be for you. Don’t expect anything profound from the plot, but do anticipate having an entertaining narrator. 


Content Guide:


Sex & Affection--None

Language--None (Not even crude humor!)

Drugs, Alcohol, & Substance Use--None

Violence & Crime--A girl skips school, her parents speak to her in stern tones but nothing approaching violence or abuse of any kind.


I received an audio file of this audiobook from Netgalley.com. All opinions are entirely my own.


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