The Mysterious Howling

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, Book 1

By: Maryrose Wood

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren

Length: 5 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Of especially naughty children, it is sometimes said: “They must have been raised by wolves.” The Incorrigible children actually were. Discovered in the forests of Ashton Place, the Incorrigibles are no ordinary children: Alexander keeps his siblings in line with gentle nips; Cassiopeia has a bark that is (usually) worse than her bite; and Beowulf is alarmingly adept at chasing squirrels.

Luckily, Miss Penelope Lumley is no ordinary governess. Only fifteen years old and a graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, Penelope embraces the challenge of her new position. Though she is eager to instruct the children in Latin verbs and the proper use of globes, first she must eliminate their canine tendencies.But mysteries abound at Ashton Place: Who are these three wild creatures? Why does Old Timothy, the coachman, lurk around every corner? Will Penelope be able to civilize the Incorrigibles in time for Lady Constance’s holiday ball? And what on earth is a schottische?

Penelope is no stranger to mystery, as her own origins are also cloaked in secrecy. But as Agatha Swanburne herself once said, “Things may happen for a reason, but that doesn’t mean we know what the reason is—at least, not yet.

©2010 Maryrose Wood (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

Great listening

My children are 7 and 9 (boy and girl) - we all enjoyed listening to this audio book, which we found hilarous at times. The narration was brilliant. We have bought the second book with great expectation. Highly recommended.

wow!

Amazing book! Truly entertaining for the whole family. Kids ages 9, 7 and 5 all loved it.

A delight to the ear and heart!

Fun and imaginative I heard myself laughing out loud. I'm looking forward to more of these incouragable children.

Wow! This is a neat fairytale ... pure escapism

I really enjoyed this crazy story, which is odd. Normally I don't read stories set in the more distant past ... I want present-day. This one is set in England, during the time of Charles Dickens, horse-drawn carriages, and gas lamps (somewhere between 1840 and 1870).

Of all the accents in the world, I find the British accent the most difficult to cope with, despite having numerous relatives & ancestors from the British Isles. This book takes place in England, and the audio is with a British accent, which I had no trouble understanding.
At this point it is necessary to comment upon the magnificent job done by the narrator, Katherine Kellgren. All voices were distinguishable according to character, and the voices of the children were absolutely fabulous. When checking for Book Two, I first checked to see that the narrator was the same person as in this Book One.

Of course, it is absolutely essential that the listener not be looking for total realism in a story: the "... suspension of disbelief ..." is a definite requirement here.
This, especially, is true when the Governess is instructing the children by speaking in full sentences, and introducing poetry, such as the somber "The Wreck of the Hesperus", to these half wild creature-children.

But I found it a very entertaining listen, despite being so unlike my usual fare. And I even surprised myself when I went looking for the sequel.

A Thoroughly Charming Return to Childhood

What did you love best about The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place?

I happened on this by accident when it was part of an Audible sale. Ashton Place is in the best tradition of children's stories which are even funnier for the adults: Rocky & Bullwinkle, Series of Unfortunate Events and now Ashton Place. Children will have fun with this, but may miss many of the jokes.

What other book might you compare The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place to and why?

Lemony Snicket meets Jane Eyre by way of Charles Adams.

What does Katherine Kellgren bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Ms. Kellgren is a delight as the POV governess, but even better as the Incorrigibles. And every other character. Each of the many voices make this performance a jewel.

Fun series to follow

I thought this story was pretty cute. Even though its a light and easy listen, it still has enough depth to keep you interested, focused, and eager to follow the series. I really enjoy how the characters developed throughout the chapters and also how there was always an air of mystery to most of them.
Katherine Kellgren is one of my favorite performers, so in my eyes she cant do wrong. She has enough personality, talent, and spunk to carry this series and I really look forward to listening to her narrate the rest of the Incorrigible's as well!
As for an age group, I don't really know if this would be the best story for little kids, just because it has lot of whit and humor which may go over their heads. Im in my 30's and enjoyed listening to it while I worked on a project, so I'd definitely recommend it for an older audience. Again, very light, but a very well developed story and plot with enough depth and that hint of mystery to keep you attention and interest.

Exciting adventure for family road trip.

The story was very intriguing and exciting. The performance was amazing and kept even my 3 year old boy entertained.

Excellent book for all ages!

What did you love best about The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place?

The story and reader kept me spellbound throughout the book. I am eager to acquire the next book in the series.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The teenage Miss Lumley (Lumeroo) was captivating as the protagonist and narrator.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

I like the full book title minus the book number and hope that a screenplay or made-for-television mini-series is in the works.

LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!!!👍👍👍👍👍👍👏👏😍

3 cheers for Mary Rose Wood!👏👏👏 loved this so much,perfect amount of mystery mixed in with the fun and spunk of Miss Penelope Lumley and the lncorrigible children.Read the hole series!👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏😁😁😁😁😁👏👏👏

Enjoyable but...

The story is quite lovely and our family enjoyed it. The only thing I found annoying was the author left too many unfinished story lines. I realize this is a book series but I do believe each book should be able to stand alone. Imagine if Harry Potter's first book ended before he figured out the bit about the mirror. It feels very incomplete.