Watch our interview with Jim Dale
We’re lucky enough to know Jim as the voice behind some of our favorite stories. He has lent his voice to dozens of books in a variety of genres. He has won two Grammy Awards, seven Grammy nominations, ten Audie Awards, and was the first inductee into the American Audio Hall of Fame. His work includes The Night Circus, the Peter and the Starcatchers series, various classics, and most famously, the complete Harry Potter audio collection.
Learn more about this truly legendary performer in our exclusive interview—and explore some of his best work.
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Book 1
- By: J.K. Rowling
- Narrated by: Jim Dale
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin!
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A great reading of the wrong book
- By P on 11-24-15
Jim Dale is perhaps best known as the beloved voice of the Harry Potter series. Over the course of the series, Jim voiced hundreds of J.K. Rowling's characters, and even once held a Guinness World Record for the number of voices he created for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (134).
One of Jim's Favorite Performances
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The Boy with the Cuckoo-Clock Heart
- A Novel
- By: Mathias Malzieu, Sarah Ardizzone - translator
- Narrated by: Jim Dale
- Length: 4 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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A fantastical novel, a wildly inventive tale—by turns poignant and funny, lusty and wrenching—about love and heartbreak. Edinburgh, 1874: Born with a frozen heart, Jack is nearly dead when his mother abandons him to the care of Dr. Madeleine—witch doctor, midwife, protector of orphans—who saves Jack by placing a cuckoo clock in his chest. It is in her orphanage that Jack grows up, amid tear-filled flasks, eggs containing memories, a man with a musical spine.
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Jim Dale is the only reason to listen
- By Jeanie on 04-13-10
Jim Dale calls this unique, fantastical novel "the most extraordinary book [he] ever recorded." It tells the story of Jack, a boy with a heart too fragile for strong emotions, who is warned never to fall in love. And, of course, he does: on his 10th birthday and with head-over-heels abandon.
A Few of Our Editors' Favorites
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The Night Circus
- A Novel
- By: Erin Morgenstern
- Narrated by: Jim Dale
- Length: 13 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors.
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Dreamlike Experience to Savor
- By Suzn F on 09-18-11
"The Night Circus is a beautiful, enchanting, and utterly fascinating tale. I fell in love with this book in the first few minutes of listening - Jim Dale’s performance sets the scene effortlessly, brilliantly evoking the magic, history, and romance of the story. And Erin Morgenstern’s use of imagery is so memorable, it’s almost hard to believe that this is her debut novel." -- Laura, Audible Editor
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Bikeman
- By: Thomas F. Flynn
- Narrated by: Jim Dale
- Length: 1 hr and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Seasoned journalist Tom Flynn shares his experiences on that "forever September morning" from his perspective as a journalist and neutral observer who stands apart from the event, but also as a participant, a survivor, and now a defining chronicler of the morning that changed our nation forever: September 11, 2001.
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Absolutely wonderful
- By Mebythesea on 09-11-08
"Taking the form of an epic poem (that by its very nature is meant to be read aloud), Bikeman is one of the most harrowing and close-to-the-bone firsthand accounts of 9-11 that I have ever experienced. Tom Flynn shares his experiences of that 'forever September morning' when he, like so many others, arrived at the indescribable apex of history and devastation. Journalism, with all its mores of rational reporting, had for him – a tenured newsman - lost its ability to adequately describe a world that had suddenly evolved into a Greek Tragedy." -- Emily, Audible Editor
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Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
- By: David Benedictus
- Narrated by: Jim Dale
- Length: 3 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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It was 80 years ago, on the publication of The House at Pooh Corner, when Christopher Robin said good-bye to Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood. Now they are all back in new adventures, for the first time approved by the Trustees of the Pooh Properties. This is a companion volume that truly captures the style of A. A. Milne - a worthy sequel to The House at Pooh Corner and Winnie-the-Pooh.
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Glorious Jim Dale
- By Laura Cohen on 03-21-10
"Sometimes, a new author returning to a beloved, established series can be a controversial thing - but luckily, David Benedictus delivers the essence of A.A. Milne's original Pooh tales, and Jim Dale seals the deal with a delightful, effortlessly charming performance. Just try not to smile listening to him evoke Pooh, Piglet, Eyeore, and the rest of the gang." -- Sam, Audible Editor
Jim's Book Recommendation
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In the Kingdom of Ice
- The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette
- By: Hampton Sides
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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In the late nineteenth century, people were obsessed by one of the last unmapped areas of the globe: The North Pole. No one knew what existed beyond the fortress of ice rimming the northern oceans. On July 8, 1879, the USS Jeannette set sail from San Francisco to cheering crowds in the grip of "Arctic Fever." The ship sailed into uncharted seas, but soon was trapped in pack ice. Two years into the harrowing voyage, the hull was breached. Amid the rush of water and the shrieks of breaking wooden boards, the crew abandoned the ship.
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Superb tale that unravels at an iceburg's pace
- By Mel on 03-19-15
The Latest Book He Enjoyed
Jim Dale recently finished Hampton Sides' In the Kingdom of Ice. He says: "It was one of the most fascinating books I've ever read. . . . It really is a thriller."