Details:
- author: Jon Tilton
- full title: Please Return to the Lands of Luxury
- narrator: Talon David
- genre: children's fiction, middle-grade, sci-fi
- topics: #dystopia
- publisher: Blueberry Finch
- publish date: 21 Mar 2023
- timing: 4:07:00
My Rating of the Audiobook:
- content: 💙💙💙💙.5
- narration: 💙💙💙💙.5
Excerpt from the Book:
She didn’t belong in a junkyard.
Jane lifted the doll from the piled garbage. She had discovered toys before—some covered in grime, others tattered and torn, none worth keeping. But that was part of living in Yarborough Ridge. On an island of trash, everything had its flaws, most of them beyond repair.
But this doll was different. Soft clothes. Wavy brown hair. Blue eyes that glistened like jewels. Besides a few scuffs and some dust, it looked perfect.
Jane brushed a speck of dirt from the doll’s upper lip, revealing a toothy smile. Its mouth was partially open, as if wanting to say something, but couldn’t. Jane took a shallow breath and sighed. She knew what that was like.
My Thoughts:
Jane lives in Yarborough Ridge, which is, in fact, an island of trash. One day she finds a doll with a note: »Please return to Gloria Thatcher« and the address to return it to. Jane decides to find the owner, even though the address is in the Lands of Luxury.
Please Return to the Lands of Luxury is such a heartwarming story for kids. It’s a middle-grade dystopian adventure where Jane, Rodney, and Timothy explore a distant land nothing like their own.
As an adult, I was wondering about some details in the story. This is the first book from the series, so maybe this will be further explored.
The narration by Talon David is wonderful. The voice suits the story and this type of book.
About the Author:
Jon Tilton writes stories filled with adventure, timeless themes, and plenty of heart. He lives in sunny Florida with his wife and their dog, Blueberry. When he’s not writing, you can find him hiking through nature, listening to classical music, playing Nintendo games, and cooking an endless supply of tacos.
About the Narrator:
Talon was born and raised in Nashville, TN. Involved in theatre, music, and performance from a young age, she fell in love with telling stories, several times even reading books to her younger sister, employing crazy character voices and excitable narration. Little did Talon know this was a foreshadowing experience. She ended up continuing her passion for music, specifically, through a Bachelor of Music from Belmont University. However, when trying to find a suitable job after graduation, in the aftermath of COVID, Talon realized she could use her audio editing skills--and musicianship--for audiobook narration. After almost two years in the professional VO world, Talon has been involved in commercial adverts for Intel, IBEX, Provide, etc., played characters in video games and animated children's shows, and (as her specialty is narration) completed 40 audiobooks and counting, spanning from commercial fiction, to urban fantasy, to mystery/thrillers, to regency romance, to sci-fi, to Christian nonfiction with a 4.7 average rating. Safe to say, Talon has definitely caught the bug for voice acting.
