THE TALKING HORSE AND THE SAD GIRL AND THE VILLAGE UNDER THE SEA

Mark Haddon followed up his novel THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME with this collection of poems. The subjects are eclectic, and there are some especially clever gems, such as "This Poem is Certificate 18," which pokes fun at our age of rating systems and parental warnings. They're all read beautifully by 11 British narrators, including Jo Wyatt, Steven Crossley, and Maggie Mash. The actors are named at the beginning of the recording, but it's frustrating that there's no designation of who's reading which poem. Also, having so many different voices reading the poems, no matter how skillfully, makes them feel disjointed and distances the listener. A more intimate audio experience might have been achieved by a single narrator, or by the poet himself. J.M.D. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 08]