Books 17 & 18 - Audio (Geronimo Stilton)

Gr 2—4—Bill Lobley's versatile voice ably captures the excitable, self-proclaimed 'fraidy-mouse, Geronimo Stilton, in these two adventures (both Scholastic, 2005). In the first, Stilton discovers that a one-eyed rat has paid enor-mouse amounts of money to put his newspaper, The Rodent's Gazette, out of business. His business manager books him on a ghoulish game show called "The Mousetrap," where Stilton's wide-reaching literary knowledge wins him a million dollars and literally saves his tail as well as the newspaper. Having tracked down his nemesis, the kind-hearted Stilton helps one-eyed Flusher Potty Paws launch a literary career of his own. In the second tale, Stilton accompanies his sister and nephew on a vacation to the Pirate Islands. Their plane goes down on a sight-seeing jaunt, and they are marooned on Thump Flop Island, supposedly haunted by the ghost of the pirate Silver Paw. Listeners who enjoyed Edward Herrmann's well-modulated narration of the first nine Stilton stories may have difficulty adjusting to Bill Lobley's energetic, over-the-top style. This recording doesn't have the background music and sound effects used earlier. Filled with cheesy humor and non-stop action, youngsters will enjoy Stilton's adventures.—Mary Jean Smith, Southside Elementary School, Lebanon, TN