THE NORTHERN

Actor Peter Outerbridge, who doesn't have a large body of work as a narrator of audiobooks, is outstanding in this debut novel by fellow Canadian Mooney. Although the story is told from the point of view of a 12-year-old boy in the early 1950s, it's not nostalgic, and Outerbridge captures the forthright, occasionally detached, tone of the preteen. The other primary characters--males, females, adults, children--also get distinctive and appropriate voices, keeping the listener perfectly oriented. Outerbridge is particularly skilled at portraying little brother Mikey with a higher pitch that avoids being cloying. The novel may be longer than it needs to be, but Mooney's characters are well drawn, and they're given added dimension by Outerbridge's portrayals. D.B. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2025]