The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus

By: L. Frank Baum

Narrated by: Cindy Hardin Killavey

Everyone knows about Santa Claus of course and his wonderful trip around the world on the night before Christmas. But what about his early life? Where was he born? What was he like as a youth? How did he come to be such a wonderful toymaker? When did he start using the Reindeer? And, most importantly, how has he been able to live so very long?

In this holiday classic from the author of The Wonderful Wizard of OZ, all these questions are answered. We find out about Santa's life from his birth and childhood days all the way up to the time he began his magical trips on Christmas Eve. Baum paints a picture of a wonderful place called Burzee, where Santa grew up, that has all the charm and fantasy of Oz. This is a must-listen for all ages.

Public Domain (P)2007 Jimcin Recordings

Critic reviews

"The pure spring-fed voice of...[Harden] is the best argument I know for simply putting great books in the hands of great readersand getting out of the way. Hers is a trained voice but it is also something more basic. It is the voice of a mother reading to her children." (The Lost Angeles Times Book Review)
"The story has both the charm and clunkiness of fantasies of its era...there's a lot of imagination at work, as Baum creates whole races of fairies, gnomes and magical woodsfolk who help Santa along the way...Veteran storyteller Cindy Killavey is a warm presence as she recounts the tale, doing especially well with the voices of small children to whom Claus has pledged to bring joy." (The Providence Journal)

Christmas Mythology

What did you love best about The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus?

Excellent imagining of Santa Claus as a a mythical figure incorporating fairy tale elements.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The great Auk as I am always drawn to the wise old mystic figures.

What about Cindy Hardin Killavey’s performance did you like?

She did not go over the top in changing her voice between genders and her singing was very good.

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

It was and I was almost able to accomplish this.

Any additional comments?

I picked this up because I remember the TV version and wanted to get Frank L. Baum's original version. Just enough fun and myth to keep the story entertaining.

Good Read

If you could sum up The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus in three words, what would they be?

a classic novel

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus?

This book really added to the legend of Santa Claus.

Have you listened to any of Cindy Hardin Killavey???s other performances before? How does this one compare?

The book was well-written with great descriptions of the characters and the world they inhabited.

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

The narrator did fantastic with female voices. She also did great at singing the songs found in the book. However, her male voices were kind of flat. The movie does not do the book justice as movie's often do.

Any additional comments?

It is a good read. I look forward to seeing what else i can find on Audible this year.

Fantastic Story, but narrator isn't right for it

This has been my all-time favorite Yuletide book/story for many, many years (A Christmas Carol comes in second). The story is brilliant (and this is from someone who dislikes the Oz books L. Frank Baum wrote), but the narrator lacks the depth to do this justice. She is OK, but she tends to sound too much like a grandmother telling the story to her grandchildren far too often to make the book truly come alive, especially when trying to voice the male characters (then it sounds just awful). This book should be narrated by a male and female, both with rich voices and a good talent for voice acting.

Of special note for me, as I come from a family (my mother's father's side) who never gave up, fully, the Celtic "Christian" religion, having parts of both the Pagan Irish Traditions and the Roman Catholic ones, and chose at age 16 to go fully Pagan, is the fact that this story works equally well for both Christian and Pagan readers (or in this case listeners).

Anyone looking for a good story about "Santa Claus" for both themselves and their children will find this book wonderful. A new version, though, with a male narrator and female narrator for the numerous female characters, would make this a five-star book across the board, but I can only give it four-stars as Ms. Killavey simply isn't up to the task this story requires. She's not a bad narrator, just not the one for this book, and a strong male narrator to do the male voices is sorely needed. However, the story by itself is five-star all the way!

Good Read

If you could sum up The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus in three words, what would they be?

a classic novel

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus?

This book really added to the legend of Santa Claus.

Have you listened to any of Cindy Hardin Killavey’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

The book was well-written with great descriptions of the characters and the world they inhabited.

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

The narrator did fantastic with female voices. She also did great at singing the songs found in the book. However, her male voices were kind of flat. The movie does not do the book justice as movie's often do.

Any additional comments?

It is a good read. I look forward to seeing what else i can find on Audible this year.

Terrific

My family and I listened to this on a car trip a few weeks before Christmas. Every was enthralled, from the grandparents to the six year old. Terrific story and terrific narrator. I can't believe that I had never heard of this book before.

beautifully nostalgic

Would you consider the audio edition of The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus to be better than the print version?

I've never read this story, only listened. This was as good as could be.

What did you like best about this story?

This story is so much a part of my childhood memories, and I was surprised to learn it was by Baum.

Disappointing

Struggled to finish, could have been more interesting if the narrator was different, poor narrating.