Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl

Title: Danny the Champion of the World
Author: Roald Dahl

Read by: Peter Serafinowicz
Publisher: Penguin Audio

Length: Approximately 5 hours (4 CDs)
Source: Penguin Audio Review Copy – Thank-you

Danny and his Dad live in a gypsy caravan behind his Dad’s filling station.  Working with his Dad, Danny’s become the youngest master car mechanic anyone has ever seen.  Danny discovers that his Dad has a secret life as a poacher of pheasants and that many other upstanding citizens of the town share in this secret underground life.  The nemesis in town is Victor Hazell, a wealthy landowner with a great source of pheasants and a very unpleasant personality. Danny comes up with a great scheme on how to foil Victor Hazell.

We started listening to this audiobook last Christmas on our way to Minnesota.  As the young protagonist is named Danny, my son Daniel / Danny thought it was great. Unfortunately his older brother Kile wanted nothing to do with it as it was not called Kile the Champion of the World.  Brothers!  We finished listening to it this summer on a back to school shopping trip to Green Bay.  The tense situations were not for the kids at all times, but they thought it was funny and interesting.  I liked how it had an overall message of not being greedy and sharing what you have with everyone.  Peter Serafinowicz was an excellent narrator and the sound effects and music between scenes kept the kids interested.

Overall Danny the Champion of the World is another great novel by Roald Dahl that makes an excellent audiobook to listen to with your family on travels.  I wasn’t sure who enjoyed this one more, the parents or the kids – it was a tie!