Wildwood

By: Ellis Carson, Colin Meloy

Narrated by: Amanda Plummer

Prue McKeel’s life is ordinary. 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. No one’s ever gone in – or at least returned to tell of it.

So begins an adventure that will take Prue and her friend, Curtis, deep into the Impassable 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. 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. A wilderness the locals call Wildwood.

Wildwood is a spellbinding tale full of wonder, danger, and magic that juxtaposes the thrill of a secret world and modern city life. 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 truly a new classic for the 21st century.

©2011 Unadoptable Books LLC (P)2011 HarperCollinsPublishers

Loved it and loved Amanda Plummer's performance!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would definitely recommend this.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wildwood?

The humor, imagination, and complexity of the story

Which character – as performed by Amanda Plummer – was your favorite?

I disagree with the other reviewers who found fault with her performance. I felt her narration and character voices were varied and nuanced. I'm disappointed she wasn't the reader for Under Wildwood.

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

Yes!

Poor narrator

Good story but often distracted by the narrator. Often read statements as questions and had a strange baby-like voice for dramatic or action parts of the story

Narrator doesn't do story justice

The whispering of the narrator ruins the story. Same with the yelling of the protagonist, who somehow seems to yell. Read the book, don't listen to it.

Untapped potential

Good setting and characters but I struggled to get through it at times. With that said, I will still try the next book and see if his sophomore effort gets going a little faster

great storya

if you are a Harry Potter fan or the Lion the Witch and the wardrobe or Alice in Wonderland you'll like it for sure

I love it!

I love the story, and the performance. A lot of reviewers seemed to not like the performance, but I personally loved it. I guess it's an aquirer taste. You should probably listen to a sample first so you can see how you feel.

Magical-ESPECIALLY if you live in PORTLAND

What a wonderful novel. I purchased the large mass market book at the Portland, OR. Audubon Bird Society in "Wildwood" one day when I ws taking my grand daughter for a hike. When we read about the adventures of sprue and Max in the very area we were hiking, grand kid got very excited..my reading wasn't fast enough!

I really prefer the paper version of Meloys fascinating story, however having someone else read it was just fine. You miss the wonderful drawings however, so I'd encourage your purchasing copies of the book if you plan to share this with your children.

As a Portlander, knowing the Forest Park trails as I do makes the read even more fun..you might read this with a map of the ares--Maloy is spot on with his descriptions of the area. We were on Swan Island last week and I pointed out the Bluffs to grand kid and she was excited to see that it was real! I predict a "Wildwood" Tour one of these days

Great to share-but do buy the book too. Drawings and not to be missed!

Highly recommended.

I like Amanda Plummer

I see some don’t prefer the way she read it - but I loved it. Have listened to it three times. The quirky pauses etc matched the character (Pru) somehow. Going to try 2d book but not sure about Meloy’s flat voice after this...I’ll go in w open mind. Story: just excellent. Great characters. I’m in my 50’s but love YA.

A Very Fun & Adventurist Tale

Would you listen to Wildwood again? Why?

Yes. It is funny, and has a lot of adventure. It would be good for children 5 and up.

What about Amanda Plummer’s performance did you like?

We liked how she could be a lot of characters. Her expression was convincing and she told it at a fluid pace.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was moved when the boughs cradled Mac.

The narration is such a let down

To be honest we only got 5 minutes into this book and had to shut it off. My kids said they just couldn’t even get an idea of who was talking. The narrator does this book no justice. We literally just finished The Whiz Mob and Grenadine kid and that narration puts every other narration to shame. Can’t you get Bronson Pinchot to do this book? He’s amazing.
I’m just going to have to buy this one - but what a shame....