The sections where there is no conversation suffers from similar problems, such as it sounds like the narrator is trying to make those sections very exciting by putting in far too much 'expression.' The narration was so irritating that I did not finish the book. There are some attempts at accents (bad fake Irish accent mixed with what sounds like Southern 'drawl' stands out) which fall flat and are unnecessary. Words that are insignificant may be given a great deal of expression as if they are significant, for example. In addition, the 'expression' of many of the characters' words is unexpected and just sounds 'wrong'. It sounds as though she's inserting full stops where there shouldn't be any (as if the author had put a period in the middle of a sentence) - this is a very consistent flaw. What didn’t you like about Amanda Plummer’s performance? But there is much to delight in that feels fresh and inventive. In some ways though it does come a bit too close, with a witch-like character as the central villain. The next best thing is probably the fun of the details, which aren't quite what you'd expect. To be honest? The best thing is the illustrations, which you can't partake of in an audiobook.

But the performance is a real distraction. The book is fun and not quite what you'd expect from the Talking-Animal genre. Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not? Wildwood is truly a new classic for the 21st century. Original and fresh yet steeped in classic fantasy, this is a novel could have only come from the imagination of Colin Meloy, celebrated for his inventive and fantastic storytelling as the lead singer of the Decemberists. Wildwood is a spellbinding tale full of wonder, danger, and magic that juxtaposes the thrill of a secret world and modern city life. And what begins as a rescue mission becomes something much greater, as the two friends find themselves entwined in a struggle for the very freedom of this wilderness. There they uncover a secret world in the midst of violent upheaval - a world full of warring creatures, peaceable mystics, and powerful figures with the darkest intentions. So begins an adventure that will take Prue and her friend, Curtis, deep into the Impassable Wilderness. No one’s ever gone in – or at least returned to tell of it. At least until her brother is abducted by a murder of crows and taken to the Impassable Wilderness, a dense, tangled forest on the edge of Portland.

Wildwood chronicles review