AudioFile Reviews
The narration of this stunning dystopian tale by Nick Podehl and Angela Dawe can only be described as outstanding. The second installment of Ness's trilogy finds 13-year-old New World colonist Todd Hewitt and his friend, settler Viola Eade, at the mercy of self-proclaimed and manipulative President Prentiss. Together they must fight for their freedom and the preservation of the New World, but to do this, they need to find each other and then attempt to contact Viola's fellow settlers. Nick Podehl gives a pitch-perfect portrayal of the confused and fierce Todd; Angela Dawe portrays the frightened but determined Viola. Together, their performances create a stellar listening experience. K.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
Horn Book Magazine Reviews
Set on the recently colonized New World, where "Noise" -- thoughts made audible -- is inescapable, this dark, dynamic trilogy translates brilliantly to audio. Todd (native of a suspiciously all-male settlement) and Viola (survivor of a crashed scout ship) uncover the violent results of human women's lack of Noise. Hostilities between two rival human leaders build inexorably toward war, while a third army composed of the indigenous Spackle rises. Separated and pressed into battle, the teens both make choices that compromise their ethics and their relationship. Nick Podehl as conscience-stricken Todd and Angela Dawe as gutsy Viola eloquently capture each desperate situation, embodying the suspense and intense emotion of Ness's powerful, rhythmic prose. As slave-cum-Spackle leader 1017, MacLeod Andrews masterfully keeps 1017's barely-held-in-check rage at the treatment of his kind simmering under the surface of his narration. Subtle sound effects emphasize how Noise (represented visually in the novels) is heard not with the ears but with the mind. Some inconsistencies in audio quality distract only briefly from this effective adaptation. katie bircher [review covers these titles: The Knife of Never Letting Go, The Ask and the Answer, and Monsters of Men] Copyright 2011 Horn Book Magazine Reviews.