While I Was Away
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Narrated by:
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Chieko Hidaka
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By:
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Waka T. Brown
About this listen
Named one of New York Public Library's Best Books of the Year!
The Farewell meets Erin Entrada Kelly's Blackbird Fly in this empowering middle-grade memoir from debut author Waka T. Brown, who takes listeners on a journey to 1980s Japan, where she was sent as a child to reconnect to her family’s roots.
When 12-year-old Waka’s parents suspect she can’t understand the basic Japanese they speak to her, they make a drastic decision to send her to Tokyo to live for several months with her strict grandmother. Forced to say good-bye to her friends and what would have been her summer vacation, Waka is plucked from her straight-A-student life in rural Kansas and flown across the globe, where she faces the culture shock of a lifetime.
In Japan, Waka struggles with reading and writing in kanji, doesn’t quite mesh with her complicated and distant Obaasama, and gets made fun of by the students in her Japanese public-school classes. Even though this is the country her parents came from, Waka has never felt more like an outsider.
If she’s always been the “smart Japanese girl” in America but is now the “dumb foreigner” in Japan, where is home...and who will Waka be when she finds it?
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- By: Christine Day
- Narrated by: Kimberly Woods
- Length: 4 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It’s been a hard year for Maisie Cannon, ever since she hurt her leg and could not keep up with her ballet training and auditions. Her blended family is loving and supportive, but Maisie knows that they just can’t understand how hopeless she feels. With everything she’s dealing with, Maisie is not excited for their family midwinter road trip along the coast, near the Makah community where her mother grew up. But soon, Maisie’s anxieties and dark moods start to hurt as much as the pain in her knee. How can she keep pretending to be strong when she feels as cold as the ocean?
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It’s great!
- By Annie R. on 10-09-23
By: Christine Day
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Being Mary Bennet
- By: J. C. Peterson
- Narrated by: Sarah Beth Pfeifer
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
For Marnie Barnes, realizing she’s a Mary Bennet is devastating. But she’s determined to reinvent herself, so she enlists the help of her bubbly roommate and opens up to the world. And between new friends, a very cute boy, and a rescue pup named Sir Pat, Marnie finds herself on a path to becoming a new person entirely. But she’s no Lizzy, or even Mary—instead, she’s someone even better: just plain Marnie.
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Wonderful
- By Ty on 03-01-23
By: J. C. Peterson
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The Very Unfortunate Wish of Melony Yoshimura
- By: Waka T. Brown
- Narrated by: Chieko Hidaka
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Melony Yoshimura’s parents have always been overprotective. They say it’s because a demonic spirit called the Amanjaku once preyed upon kids back in Japan, but Melony suspects it’s just a cautionary tale to keep her in line. So on her twelfth birthday, Melony takes a chance and wishes for the freedom and adventure her parents seem determined to keep her from.
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Very enjoyable story
- By File Squirrel on 09-29-23
By: Waka T. Brown
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How to Disappear Completely
- By: Ali Standish
- Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
While her grandmother was alive, Emma's world was filled with enchantment. But now Gram is gone, and suddenly strange spots are appearing on Emma's skin. Soon, she's diagnosed with vitiligo - a condition that makes patches of her skin lose their color - and the magic in her world is suddenly replaced with school bullies and doctor appointments. But when Emma writes one last story in the journal she shared with Gram, something strange happens.
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It's great!
- By A. Galvan on 06-17-20
By: Ali Standish
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Dear Sweet Pea
- By: Julie Murphy
- Narrated by: Phoebe Strole
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Patricia “Sweet Pea” DiMarco wasn’t sure what to expect when her parents announced they were getting a divorce. She never could have imagined that they would have the “brilliant” idea of living in nearly identical houses on the same street. In the one house between them lives their eccentric neighbor Miss Flora Mae, the famed local advice columnist behind “Miss Flora Mae I?”
By: Julie Murphy
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The Truth Project
- By: Dante Medema
- Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky
- Length: 4 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Debut author Dante Medema explores the emotional fallout after a teenage girl discovers she is the product of an affair. Told through a series of poems, text messages, and emails, this contemporary YA is perfect for fans of Ellen Hopkins and Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin. Seventeen-year-old Cordelia Koenig intended to breeze through her senior project. While her peers stressed, Cordelia planned to use the same trace-your-roots genealogy idea her older sister used years prior. And getting partnered with her longtime crush, Kodiak Jones, is icing on the cake.
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The girls' friendship, although I only made it through a few chapters because of the narrator.
- By Atticus on 11-09-24
By: Dante Medema
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The Sea in Winter
- By: Christine Day
- Narrated by: Kimberly Woods
- Length: 4 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
-
Story
It’s been a hard year for Maisie Cannon, ever since she hurt her leg and could not keep up with her ballet training and auditions. Her blended family is loving and supportive, but Maisie knows that they just can’t understand how hopeless she feels. With everything she’s dealing with, Maisie is not excited for their family midwinter road trip along the coast, near the Makah community where her mother grew up. But soon, Maisie’s anxieties and dark moods start to hurt as much as the pain in her knee. How can she keep pretending to be strong when she feels as cold as the ocean?
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It’s great!
- By Annie R. on 10-09-23
By: Christine Day
-
Being Mary Bennet
- By: J. C. Peterson
- Narrated by: Sarah Beth Pfeifer
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For Marnie Barnes, realizing she’s a Mary Bennet is devastating. But she’s determined to reinvent herself, so she enlists the help of her bubbly roommate and opens up to the world. And between new friends, a very cute boy, and a rescue pup named Sir Pat, Marnie finds herself on a path to becoming a new person entirely. But she’s no Lizzy, or even Mary—instead, she’s someone even better: just plain Marnie.
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Wonderful
- By Ty on 03-01-23
By: J. C. Peterson
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The Very Unfortunate Wish of Melony Yoshimura
- By: Waka T. Brown
- Narrated by: Chieko Hidaka
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Melony Yoshimura’s parents have always been overprotective. They say it’s because a demonic spirit called the Amanjaku once preyed upon kids back in Japan, but Melony suspects it’s just a cautionary tale to keep her in line. So on her twelfth birthday, Melony takes a chance and wishes for the freedom and adventure her parents seem determined to keep her from.
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Very enjoyable story
- By File Squirrel on 09-29-23
By: Waka T. Brown
-
How to Disappear Completely
- By: Ali Standish
- Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
While her grandmother was alive, Emma's world was filled with enchantment. But now Gram is gone, and suddenly strange spots are appearing on Emma's skin. Soon, she's diagnosed with vitiligo - a condition that makes patches of her skin lose their color - and the magic in her world is suddenly replaced with school bullies and doctor appointments. But when Emma writes one last story in the journal she shared with Gram, something strange happens.
-
-
It's great!
- By A. Galvan on 06-17-20
By: Ali Standish
-
Dear Sweet Pea
- By: Julie Murphy
- Narrated by: Phoebe Strole
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Patricia “Sweet Pea” DiMarco wasn’t sure what to expect when her parents announced they were getting a divorce. She never could have imagined that they would have the “brilliant” idea of living in nearly identical houses on the same street. In the one house between them lives their eccentric neighbor Miss Flora Mae, the famed local advice columnist behind “Miss Flora Mae I?”
By: Julie Murphy
-
The Truth Project
- By: Dante Medema
- Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky
- Length: 4 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Debut author Dante Medema explores the emotional fallout after a teenage girl discovers she is the product of an affair. Told through a series of poems, text messages, and emails, this contemporary YA is perfect for fans of Ellen Hopkins and Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin. Seventeen-year-old Cordelia Koenig intended to breeze through her senior project. While her peers stressed, Cordelia planned to use the same trace-your-roots genealogy idea her older sister used years prior. And getting partnered with her longtime crush, Kodiak Jones, is icing on the cake.
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The girls' friendship, although I only made it through a few chapters because of the narrator.
- By Atticus on 11-09-24
By: Dante Medema
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Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?
- By: Leslie Connor
- Narrated by: Ferdelle Capistrano, André Santana, Andrew Eiden, and others
- Length: 6 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Eleven-year-old Aurora Petrequin’s best friend has never spoken a word to her. In fact, Frenchie Livernois doesn’t talk. Aurora is bouncy, loud and impulsive—“a big old blurter.” Making friends has never come easily. When Frenchie, who is autistic, silently chose Aurora as his person back in third grade, she chose him back. They make a good team, sharing their love of the natural world in coastal Maine.
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Amazing!!!!!
- By Kent on 10-19-24
By: Leslie Connor
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The List of Things That Will Not Change
- By: Rebecca Stead
- Narrated by: Rachel L. Jacobs
- Length: 4 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
After her parents' divorce, Bea's life became different in many ways. But she can always look back at the list she keeps in her green notebook to remember the things that will stay the same. The first and most important: Mom and Dad will always love Bea, and each other. When Dad tells Bea that he and his boyfriend, Jesse, are getting married, Bea is thrilled. Bea loves Jesse, and when he and Dad get married, she'll finally (finally!) have what she's always wanted - a sister. Even though she's never met Jesse's daughter, Sonia, Bea is sure that they'll be "just like sisters anywhere."
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Great story - okay narration
- By LuckyMonkey on 10-21-22
By: Rebecca Stead
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Alias Anna
- A True Story of Outwitting the Nazis
- By: Susan Hood, Greg Dawson
- Narrated by: Aimée B. Dawson
- Length: 3 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The moving true story of how young Ukrainian Jewish piano prodigies Zhanna (alias “Anna”) and her sister Frina outplayed their pursuers while hiding in plain sight during the Holocaust. A middle grade nonfiction novel-in-verse by award-winning author Susan Hood with Greg Dawson (Zhanna’s son).
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Incredible story.
- By Dee on 09-15-24
By: Susan Hood, and others
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Kisses and Croissants
- By: Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau
- Narrated by: Imani Jade Powers
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Mia Jenrow has always known she's destined to be a professional ballerina. In fact, it’s in her blood - according to family legend, her too-many-greats-to-count-grandmother once danced for the Paris Opera and was painted by Degas himself! Her parents say it’s just a fantasy, but to Mia it’s so much more than that. It’s her fate.
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It’s a decent listen
- By Customer on 09-25-24
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The Kate in Between
- By: Claire Swinarski
- Narrated by: Cassandra Morris
- Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Kate McAllister is desperate for a change. Something to hit refresh and erase the pain of her mother leaving town without her. So when a group of popular girls folds Kate into their clique, it feels like the answer to all her problems - even if it means ditching Haddie, her childhood bestie. But when Kate’s new friends decide that Haddie is their next target, Kate becomes a passive participant in a cruel incident that could have killed Haddie...had Kate not stepped in, at the last minute, and saved her.
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Bullying
- By Pink Amy on 09-13-24
By: Claire Swinarski
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Three Things I Know Are True
- By: Betty Culley
- Narrated by: Cassandra Morris
- Length: 4 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Life changes forever for Liv when her older brother, Jonah, accidentally shoots himself with his best friend Clay’s father’s gun. Now, Jonah needs round-the-clock care just to stay alive, and Liv feels like she’s the only person who can see that her brother is still there inside his broken body. With Liv’s mom suing Clay’s family, there are divisions in the community that Liv knows she’s not supposed to cross. But Clay is her friend, too, and she refuses to turn away from him - just like she refuses to give up on Jonah.
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Amazing book!
- By Eric Axelman on 01-09-20
By: Betty Culley
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The Name She Gave Me
- By: Betty Culley
- Narrated by: Ariana Delawari, Lisa Cordileone
- Length: 4 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Rynn was born with a hole in her heart—literally. Although it was fixed long ago, she still feels an emptiness there when she wonders about her birth family. As her relationship with her adoptive mother fractures, Rynn finally decides she needs to know more about the rest of her family. Her search starts with a name, the only thing she has from her birth mother, and she quickly learns that she has a younger sister living in foster care in a nearby town. But if Rynn reconnects with her biological sister, it may drive her adoptive family apart for good.
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Great story - stilted performance
- By Gabbbbbbbby on 02-13-24
By: Betty Culley
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The Greatest Kid in the World
- By: John David Anderson
- Narrated by: Josh Hurley
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Zeke Stahls is not the best kid in the world. Some days he struggles just to be good. He'd rather be pulling pranks than doing extra credit, and he's too busy performing experiments on his little brother, Nate, or tormenting his older sister, Jackie, to volunteer for charity. Which is why Zeke and his entire family are shocked when they receive word that he has been selected as a contestant in an online competition to find the World's Greatest Kid.
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Fantastic Read
- By Kim R. on 05-26-23
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The Civil War of Amos Abernathy
- By: Michael Leali
- Narrated by: Mark Sanderlin
- Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Amos Abernathy lives for history. Literally. He’s been a historical reenactor nearly all his life. But when a cute new volunteer arrives at his Living History Park, Amos finds himself wondering if there’s something missing from history: someone like the two of them. Amos is sure there must have been LGBTQ+ people in nineteenth-century Illinois. His search turns up Albert D. J. Cashier, a Civil War soldier who might have identified as a trans man if he’d lived today.
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A Must Read!
- By Robin on 07-06-22
By: Michael Leali
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Blackbird Fly
- By: Erin Entrada Kelly
- Narrated by: Ferdelle Capistrano
- Length: 5 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Apple has always felt a little different from her classmates. She and her mother moved to Louisiana from the Philippines when she was little, and her mother still cooks Filipino foods and chastises Apple for becoming “too American.” When Apple’s friends turn on her and everything about her life starts to seem weird and embarrassing, Apple turns to music. If she can just save enough to buy a guitar and learn to play, maybe she can change herself. It might be the music that saves her . . . or it might be her two new friends, who show her how special she really is.
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The book that got me back into books
- By Makayla on 11-03-24
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Give Me a Sign
- By: Anna Sortino
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Robbins
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Lilah is stuck in the middle. At least, that’s what having a hearing loss seems like sometimes—when you don’t feel “deaf enough” to identify as Deaf or hearing enough to meet the world’s expectations. But this summer, Lilah is ready for a change. When Lilah becomes a counselor at a summer camp for the deaf and blind, her plan is to brush up on her ASL. Once there, she also finds a community. There are cute British lifeguards who break hearts but not rules, a YouTuber who’s just a bit desperate for clout, the campers Lilah’s responsible for (and overwhelmed by)—and then there’s Isaac.
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Amazing!
- By Kristina Duffy on 07-22-23
By: Anna Sortino
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Red Hood
- By: Elana K. Arnold
- Narrated by: January LaVoy
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Since her grandmother became her caretaker when she was four years old, Bisou Martel has lived a quiet life in a little house in Seattle. She’s kept mostly to herself. She’s been good. But then comes the night of homecoming, when she finds herself running for her life over roots and between trees, a fury of claws and teeth behind her. A wolf attacks. Bisou fights back. A new moon rises. And with it, questions. About the blood in Bisou’s past, and on her hands as she stumbles home. About broken boys and vicious wolves. About girls lost in the woods - frightened, but not alone.
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Promising idea but falls flat
- By Vampyvixen88 on 08-17-21
By: Elana K. Arnold
What listeners say about While I Was Away
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Performance
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- Sam Brancg
- 06-22-23
Great book
This was a great read. This can help young readers relate to new environments and be identifiable with new elements of life.
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- Patricia Quan
- 02-19-23
A story for all ages.
A thoroughly enjoyable book. Can relate to all ages and the customs of Japan. Would recommend to anyone.
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- Chris Neff
- 05-13-21
Growing up a little differentl for the best.
I truly enjoyed the journey of this young girl and watching her confidence grow in some very challenging life situations.
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- Gotham reader
- 09-10-21
This book was amazing!
I love this book so much ! I love how it makes you feel like you are actually in Japan!
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