BY JOHN VIGOR, AUDIOBOOK NARRATED BY THERESA MEIS (PRODUCED BY GOOD OLD BOAT, 2006; 2 HOURS; $15.00/DOWNLOAD, $19.95/MP3 CD, $24.00/AUDIO CD)
REVIEWED BY MORGAN DOYLE, AGE 12.
Sally Steals an Elephant is by John Vigor, who also wrote So Long, Foxtrot Charlie and Danger, Dolphins, and Ginger Beer. Sally Steals an Elephant is the sequel to Danger, Dolphins, and Ginger Beer. All three audio CDs are narrated by Theresa Meis. She reads clearly and changes the tone of her voice to match the characters. The book comes to life as if the characters are actually speaking. The PDF map, included with this audio CD, helped me understand and visualize the adventure.
The main characters are Sally and her two younger brothers, Peter and Andy Grant. They are sailing around the world with their father on a diesel-powered monohull. The story begins with the Grant children in the jungles of South Africa. They notice a tethered elephant outside the town and go to look at it. They discover a zookeeper is mistreating the elephant so the Grant children decide to rescue the elephant at night. But the frightened elephant runs off into the jungle; now the Grants have to find the elephant before the evil zookeeper does.
This audio CD is best for ages 8 to 12. You don’t have to be a boating kid to enjoy this story, but it was fun to listen to the kids’ explorations by dinghy. I had a great time listening to Sally Steals an Elephant.
