The Secret of Kite Hill

Li & Lu, Book 1

By: Bradley Charbonneau

Narrated by: Bradley Charbonneau

Length: 58 mins

Publisher's summary

Do you know every nook and cranny of your neighborhood? How about under your neighborhood?

Do you let your kids walk home from school? It's just a few blocks, right? What lurks in the shadows? In the bushes? Or scarier yet, under the bushes?

Or is it all just happy-go-lucky Huckleberry Finn and exploring and adventuring in your own neighborhood? When do you know the difference? Maybe your kids know. Maybe they don't. How will you learn?

It began as a simple walk home, the same one we did every day after school. But our dog's ball went into something of a hole, or was it a cave? Maybe a tunnel. But are there tunnels in the city? The ball was pretty close to the entrance, but just far enough to be a little spooky. Should we just forget it?

Warning to parents: There are some questionable parenting decisions in this audiobook. It is not intended as a parenting handbook. There's a fine line between making the right decision and making the fun decision. When to choose which? How much do you involve your children in daily decisions? What if they involve danger? But what if your kids think it might be fun? You get the idea. Maybe I need a disclaimer....

You know in scary movies when you yell, "Don't go in there!" We went in. Yeah, I know. Ask your eight-year old why.

©2014 Bradley Charbonneau (P)2014 Bradley Charbonneau

Nice Family story

This is the first book I’ve read/listened to by this author and I would listen to another. It’s nice he did this in collaboration with his sons. I rate it as high as I did purely because it is a wonderful thing to do as a family.

This is the first book I’ve listened to by these narrators. . His kids narrated their parts of the story. Editing is a little lacking and so is cadence but it makes it sound like it is truly what it is ... the kids reading a story they’ve made up.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review

Whimsical family adventure story narrated by dad and his two sons

This was a fun little story like we used to tell on long bus rides in junior high. This was accentuated by the fact that the author got his two kids to narrate their sections of the adventure.

He uses the word “Damn!” early in the story which will disqualify it from many listening lists. And the production quality is amateur with several uncorrected mistakes. This does not take away from your ability to follow the story, it is just foreign on Audible.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review

It's a family affair

This is a short story written by a father and his two sons ages 10 and 8 years old. It is also narrated by the three of them. I think this is a fine example of a an activity parents can do with their children to foster a love of story and writing. And this is the reason one should purchase it. It could serve as a great example for children as they come to grasp such a project.

The story in it'self is not compelling for any reason that would make a story compelling on it's own merits. It does speak of adventure found at a local park and builds as to the reasons of what they are experiencing, but does not deliver any satisfying explanation to the elements that were built up.

The narration is really not a narration but a reading, with some misread words just started over instead of editing them out in post production. It also contains a clear enough recording that at times mouth and throat noises became a distraction.The Author/Father has written and narrates all but two chapters, one of each of the other two being written and then narrated by the 8 year old, and then the 10 year old. Again, fantastic for it's potential to serve as an example to others wanting to take this journey with their own children, but not what one would expect from a purchase on audible.

I was given this audio book for free in exchange for this unbiased and honest review.

A Father and His Kids Having Fun

This isn't really an audiobook, but rather a family fun project. It's a simplistic story about a father and his two kids wandering into a cave. The author narrates and at points so do his kids. So long as you understand that this is more about them having fun telling the story together, and not about winning an Audie, then you'll be fine.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Secret of Kite Hill

I applaud the author for including his children in this production. That being said, it didn’t seem like the story was really complete. There was no real resolution/explanation of their adventure but it wasn’t like a cliffhanger. I guess maybe it just wasn’t for me.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and I have voluntarily left this review.

Cute & Short Kids Adventure

Where does The Secret of Kite Hill rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I listened with my kids and they thought it was a fun story. My daughters only complaint was that it was too short. My kids also enjoyed the boys telling their own parts of the story.

Would you recommend The Secret of Kite Hill to your friends? Why or why not?

I would for a fun short read with the kids. It would be great for the shorter car trips.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It was an easy book to listen to in one sitting being just under an hour long book.

Any additional comments?

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

An adventurous story

It was an enjoyable short read/listen. The entire family, the writer and his two sons, narrated the story. It is a story about them exploring a cave after their dog found it.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review

A Fine Children’s Story

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this unbiased, voluntary review.

This book in essence was just fine. The story wasn’t impressive and neither was the reading.

The story was not very interesting or engaging. The story is about a dog getting lost in a hole that ends up being a cave. That is absolutely it. Since this is a children’s book, I don’t believe it would be able to hold a child’s attention for very long. There is one thing about the story that I find very endearing. It was written for his kids. It is so wonderful a father wrote and narrated an entire story just for his children.

The narration by the author was not good at all. He would stumble on every other sentence, and it made it difficult to pay attention and listen. Even though that’s true, the two boys narrated two chapters. They were a joy to listen to and made my heart melt.

The book is middle-ground. It isn’t great, and it’s not terrible. It could be a suitable story for young children.

Very Entertaining Adventure for all ages

This was a fun adventure story. I really enjoyed the fact that the kids narrated their own parts. For a home/independent recording, the sound quality was quite good.
The story was suspenseful, funny and a tad creepy. Definitely worth a listen with the kids.

The narration was done superbly by the Author and the two children. Great job.

I requested a free preview copy of this audiobook and I am leaving a voluntary and honest review.

Not Recommended

•audiobook•

I picked up the books several weeks (months?) ago and was ecstatic to find the first one on Audible. I listen more than read and had only gotten a few paragraphs into Kite Hill.
Having reared two boys (sans pets), we had our share of adventures and devil-beware-let’s-do-it-because-it’s-fun moments. My first thought was, yeah, if I had them in the digital age, this would have been cool!

In less than 43 pages/ 58 mins, readers/listeners are reminded 12 times the main narrator/dad is “an adult”:
“Since I'm the adult.....” “What happens when the adult ...” “I was the adult ....trying to act adultly.” Yup. A dozen times.

Is he trying to convince himself? The repetition failed to move the story. It switches from past tense to present tense.

I applaud the family project - as it seemed like this was all fun and games and carelessly put together.
However, this is a rating for quality and storytelling, not effort, in which the latter would certainly be several more feathers in dad’s hat.