Issue Date: December 7, 2003

Books

Tapes for kids

Pack fun audiobooks for those road trips and build skills, too.

By Ayesha Court

Families who plan to spend time traveling this holiday may want to consider taking along an audiobook to keep the little ones quiet and entertained. Not only is there a growing library of classic and popular fiction and non-fiction titles available (see below), but educators also are giving the burgeoning niche market good marks. Why? Audiobooks "connect kids to the powerful world of stories; they build listening skills; they improve comprehension skills; and they build vocabulary," says Yale University senior reading researcher Kylene Beers.

Sales of kids' audiobooks are soaring -- up 300% in the past four years, says Tim Ditlow of Random House's Listening Library, the biggest publisher of audiobooks. (That excludes their audio Harry Potter series, which has sold 4 million audiobooks alone.)

Which books for which kids?

Pick age-appropriate books rather than the most popular ones, says Beers, the author of last year's best-selling "When Kids Can't Read" (Heinemann, $28.50): "Five-year-olds aren't going to get what's going on in 'Harry Potter.'" Look for books with characters within two years of the listening children's age, she says.

For preschoolers and kindergartners, choose picture books with accompanying recordings that "ding" to alert the child when to turn the page. This teaches kids to associate letters and words with what they're hearing.

For ages 6 to 10, think series such as the Junie B. Jones books. "There's a lot of comfort in knowing characters and just having the plots change," Beers says.

For teen readers (age 11 and up), look for role models coping with problems like their own. Bonus: Listening as a family encourages open discussion of topics such as sex, drugs and suicide.

Choices, choices

Most audiobooks come on cassette. But CD and MP3 versions are increasingly available from publishers such as Naxos, best known for classical music CDs. Audible.com offers an array of downloadable children's books.

Literacy experts advise purchasing unabridged, or full-length, versions of published works. "It keeps the fidelity of the authors' words," Random House's Ditlow says.

Audiobook reviews are available in newspapers, or magazines such as "Audiofile." Children's librarians can help. Or check out the American Library Association's recommended audio titles (ala.org). Happy listening!

7 audiobooks to enjoy on the way home for the holidays

Pre-readers:

1. "Winnie the Pooh" by A.A. Milne (Harper; CD, $22). Oscar winner Jim Broadbent reads this beloved classic.

2. "The Cat in the Hat and Other Dr. Seuss Favorites," and 3. "Green Eggs and Ham and Other Servings of Dr. Seuss" (Imagination Studio; CD, $19.99). Dustin Hoffman, Kelsey Grammer and John Cleese are a few of the star readers.

Age 6 and up:

4. "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis (Harper; CD, $27.50; cassette, $24). Read by Michael York, this version of Lewis' thrilling tale will engross youngsters and adults alike.

5. "Henry Huggins" by Beverly Cleary, 50th Anniversary Edition (Harper; CD, $20; cassette, $18). Neil Patrick Harris reads these funny, timeless tales of Henry and his mutt, Ribsy.

6. "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens (Listening Library; CD/cassette, $19). Harry Potter reader Jim Dale takes on all of Dickens' characters in this story about rediscovering the meaning of Christmas.

7. "Lyra's Oxford" by Philip Pullman (Listening Library; CD, $14.95). This new short story for fans of Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy is read by the author and a full cast. The CD even includes a map.