What I Saw And How I Lied - Audio [Audiobook, CD] [Audio CD]

Judy Blundell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2009

This National Book Award winner set during the aftermath of WWII is now available on audio!

Format: 4 CDs, Unabridged
NARRATOR: Caitlin Greer


When Evie's father returned home from World War II, the family fell back into its normal life pretty quickly. But Joe Spooner brought more back with him than just good war stories. When movie-star handsome Peter Coleridge, a young ex-GI who served in Joe's company in postwar Austria, shows up, Evie is suddenly caught in a complicated web of lies that she only slowly recognizes. She finds herself falling for Peter, ignoring the secrets that surround him . . . until a tragedy occurs that shatters her family and breaks her life in two.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up—It's 1947 and Evie's stepfather Joe has returned home to Brooklyn after World War II. Life is slowly returning to normal, until the devastatingly handsome Peter Coleridge appears, looking for his old war buddy. Joe, obviously upset by Peter's appearance, decides to take Evie and her mother on a vacation to West Palm Beach, Florida. Evie's family quickly makes friends with another New York City couple, the Graysons, and Joe and Mr. Grayson begin to make business plans. Then Peter appears and Evie, who is almost 16, begins falling in love with him. She doesn't find it easy to spend time with him because her mother accompanies them everywhere. Tensions mount as Joe's hatred for Peter and her mother's infatuation with the younger man grow and put Evie in the middle of something she does not understand. When tragedy strikes and Peter disappears during a sailing expedition with her parents, Evie must determine who is lying and what is the truth in order to save her family. Judy Blundell's National Book Award winner (Scholastic, 2008) translates well to the audio format, with Caitlin Greer perfectly capturing Evie's voice in this intricate coming-of-age novel that is compelling blend of romance, adventure, mystery, and historical fiction.—Janet Hilbun, Texas Women's University, Denton
(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

From AudioFile

In 1947 postwar New York, when the Dodgers are still in Brooklyn, Evie Spooner appears to have an idyllic life. That all changes when her family takes an extended trip to Palm Beach, where a boating accident ends in a tragic death. Caitlin Greer paces the story perfectly, drawing out each scene, pulling each character into the drama. Each story line is given equal emphasis, so the listener doesn't see how all the pieces fit together until the end. When Evie's mother and stepfather are suspected of murder, Evie takes it upon herself to sort out the conflicting stories and lies to reach her own truth. An interview with the author gives insights into how Blundell came to write this story. E.N. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Audio CD
• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.; Unabridged edition (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0545160898
• ISBN-13: 978-0545160896
• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 5.2 x 6.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #887,473 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Story, January 23, 2011

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Librarian (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: What I Saw And How I Lied - Audio (Audio CD)

"What I Saw and How I Lied" by Judy Blundell is the loss-of-innocence, coming-of-age story of fifteen-year-old Evie Spooner living in Queens, New York after WWII. As you would expect of a National Book Award winner, the narrative is well-written with its elements of mystery and suspense tightly controlled. But more than that, all the characters--their dialogue, relationships, and actions--ring consistently true. There are no moments when you think, "It wouldn't have happened that way. She wouldn't have said that. He wouldn't have done that."

While the story begins in Queens, where Evie lives with her mother, step-father, and Grandma Glad Spooner, it quickly moves to West Palm Beach, Florida where Evie and parents travel on an impromptu vacation and end up staying in the only hotel open there in the off-season. At the hotel her parents meet the Graysons and quickly strike up a friendship. Mr. Grayson and Joe, Evie's step-father and WWII veteran, enter into a partnership to buy the hotel, which is for sale. Also staying at the hotel is Peter Coleridge, a young man in his twenties, whom knew Joe during the war. Evie, on the verge of womanhood, falls hard for Peter. But there are currents moving among the adults that Evie can't see and, on the final day of their stay, Evie is pushed into a rising and turbulent emotional tide. As a hurricane bears down on the coast, Evie's parents and Peter embark on an ill-fated afternoon fishing trip with unforeseen consequences for all. In the storm's aftermath, Evie must sort through everything she has heard and seen and make a decision that could destroy or save those she loves most.

"What I Saw and How I Lied" is a story with depth and cross-currents that raise questions without easy answers. It's definitely one for your to-be-read list.

This review is of the unabridged audio version narrated by Caitlin Greer.