Igraine the Brave

By: Cornelia Funke

Narrated by: Xanthe Elbrick

Igraine, who turns 12 tomorrow, dreams of becoming a famous knight. But today, like most days, life at the family castle remains...rather boring.

Until the nefarious nephew of the baroness next door shows up. Greedy Osmund's got a dastardly plan to capture Pimpernel Castle and steal the singing magic books that belong to Igraine's mom and dad. Complicating matters, on the eve of the siege her parents misspeak a spell and turn themselves into pigs! (How inconvenient.)

Igraine's birthday wish has come true, and the challenge is bigger than she ever bargained for. Will she face her fears and find the courage to save the day - and the books?

©2007 Cornelia Funke (P)2007 Random House, Inc. Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

Critic reviews

"Narrator Xanthe Elbrick has just the right touch for Igraine, whose courage and determination overshadow her youth and inexperience. Elbrick employs a superb range of accents for Igraine's various sidekicks. She portrays Igraine’s older brother with a delightful combination of teenage scorn and begrudging pride. Igraine’s parents, who have accidentally turned themselves into pigs, are simultaneously supportive and "piggy." Elbrick’s effortless-sounding enunciation keeps the action lively but lighthearted. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award." (AudioFile magazine)

Fun for Mom and Son

Would you listen to Igraine the Brave again? Why?

I most likely will listen to it again simply because my son has been asking to hear it again! My son said, "Yeah!!! Because I love it so much!"

Who was your favorite character and why?

My son: "Igraine because she was a knight."

Which scene was your favorite?

My son: "It was funny when Albert snapped his fingers and the arrows went backward!"

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

My son: "Happy. I LOVED it!"

Any additional comments?

My 5-year old son and I listened to this book together and talked about it as we went along. It gave us some great topics for discussion. While very simple in its storyline, it was not too juvenile for an adult to enjoy as a light read. At the same time, it was not too heavy, hyper or violent for a young child to enjoy. We hope there will be a sequal!

Fair

I loved it. If you like fantasy, it is not bad. As foreign person, some books like Harry Potter is somewhat difficult but it isn't. Go listen it.

8 year olds favourite book!

My eight year old son adores this book and can listen to it many times. It is the perfect combination of humour and adventure, without being too scary for this sensitive age.

A whole crowd pleaser

If you could sum up Igraine the Brave in three words, what would they be?

Kind, Adventurous and Fun.

Any additional comments?

I have read this book aloud 4 times to my oldest (age 8) and once to my youngest (age 5). I lost my voice to a cold and they begged to hear it again, thank you audible for providing a way for my kids to enjoy this book. They were once again captivated. We are now busy creating costumes to perform the story in our living room.I also appreciated that nothing was too scary for my sensitive boys.

Knights, Magic, and a Castle

My 7yo son loved this book. We listened to it over just 2 days. Enjoy! :)

Awesome

I really loved ingraine I've listened to it like a hundred times . I recommend it to everyone loved it
Thank u

The brave

I loved all the action. It was amazing to see what a magical world would look like.

Fun Inspirational Story for my 4th grader

We listed to about 30 minutes a day reading along in the book and she really enjoyed the story, as did I. You can do anything you put your mind to! The reader did a great job changing voices for characters and we were really impressed by her story telling tones!

It's an amazing book

it's and amazing book they should make it into a movie that's how great it is

Amazing!

We enjoyed this book very much. It was heartwarming and full of magic and wisdom. It was so good we’ve read it three times. Highly recommend to those of love fantasy tales from the medieval times. Strong writing and lovely characters.