A sweet, charming, children's fantasy classic!

I had this book years ago, and was delighted to find it on audio. Although I was sad that the illustrations are not included, I loved all the sound effects that were added. There are lovely musical transitions between scenes, and cute sound effects for things that bump or scurry, squish or squeak. This audio version seems to have been very lovingly produced.

Terry Nation, best known for inventing the Daleks on Dr. Who, wrote this delicious little treat for his daughter Rebecca when she was small. I'm not sure when it was first published, but I got my copy in the mid 1980's. Paul Darrow, best known as the ruthless computer genius Avon on Terry Nation's science fiction cult favorite "Blake's 7" was a good friend of Terry and his family, so grown up Rebecca asked him to narrate this after her father had passed away. The last chapter of the recording is actually an interview with Paul Darrow about the making of the recording.

A summery of the plot, without spoilers: A little girl from Earth is teleported via a telescope interception to another planet, where she is stuck until someone can figure out how to return her. She quickly makes friends with an odd trio of misfits, whose hearts are in the right place even if they are hopelessly incompetent at nearly everything. She also makes an enemy of Mr. Glister, a devilishly charming and oily millionaire, portrayed with great Avon-ish relish by Pau Darrow. A quest ensues, with Rebecca and her misfit friends racing against the evil Mr. Glister to find the last surviving ghost tree on the planet, which can be used to save or enslave the populace. Rebecca musters up courage, perseverance, and wits to face all obstacles, which include many weird and wonderful creatures.

Terry Nation was quite a creative writer, and it's great fun to see what strange menaces he can come up with other than Daleks. And it's just sheer pleasure to listen to Paul Darrow's velvet tones. I had no idea he had such vocal range, but he maintains distinct voices for all the characters.

I think the story holds up well, though modern kids may find it a bit quaint in this age of video games and celebrity culture. I will admit to being drenched in nostalgia while listening, so I'm obviously biased. But there aren't many books that give me such a warm glow to revisit, so I whole-heartedly recommend it. I hope others will discover and enjoy it too!

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