There's an Ogre-Beast in the Playground

By: Christopher Francis

Narrated by: Coleman Christian

I hated school. I hated everything about it. Mostly, I hated Corban Barkley, because he convinced my entire class I looked like an overgrown circus monkey - or something like that. Life was pretty miserable for me at Red Apple Creek Public School - that is until the Ogre-Beast came to visit - then my life totally changed.

©2019 Christopher Francis (P)2019 Christopher Francis

Being bullied isn’t fun but being different can be

Learning you are different at school can be scary. Being the large awkward kid especially. It is hard being different and wanting to be the same. However this is a great reminder that sometimes, our differences make us special.

Fun Audio Book!

This was a fun book to listen to with my kids! The narrator was wonderful and really brought all the characters to life!!

Acceptance

Christopher Francis has written a delightful story geared towards younger readers. In this tale, Henry is a large boy that is not accepted by his peers and all he wants to do is fit in with everyone else. No matter what he does, the other children don't accept him. One day an ogre-beast comes to town and Henry approaches him differently than the other people and this helps Henry to accept his own differences. My children and I enjoyed listening to this story. Coleman Christian's narration is fun adding an extra layer of enjoyment to the experience. I was given a free copy of the audiobook and I have voluntarily left this review.

There’s an Ogre-Beast in the Playground

Great story with a good message. Narration made the whole story come alive. Very well done, voices and descriptions almost created a picture of each character in my mind.

We fear what we don't understand...

Henry isn't like the other students at his school. Despite his attempts to make friends, one other kid manages to turn everyone in the school against him. But, things change when the school is visited (attacked?) by an ogre-beast.

This was a fun book to listen to. We know that while kids can be accepting, kids can also be discriminatory - especially when the thing that makes someone different makes them really different. For Henry, a 4th grader, he isn't just tall for a 4th grader. At 6'6" he's tall for an adult, which makes him <i>really</i> tall for a 4th grader. That height also makes him a target for the school bully.

Unlike many kids, Henry understands that people often fear what they don't understand, and people often make up stories about things they don't understand. So, when an ogre-beast that has been seen in the area shows up at the school, frightening everyone - teachers and students alike - Henry tries to help. He helps by going outside to talk to the ogre-beast.

As with other books by Francis, there is a message for children in this story. Also similar to other books by Francis, the message is not presented in a condescending way. While the message in this book is a bit more obvious. that is also because the intended audience is a bit younger than the other books I have read/listened to by Francis.

This audiobook was narrated by Coleman Christian, who also narrated The Altruism Trials (another book by Christopher Francis that I recommend). The only issue that I noticed with the audiobook was a production issue, rather than a narrator issue. In Chapter 4, from 7:28 - 11:53, there is dead air. I'm not sure if that was supposed to be words that somehow went missing, or if it was just dead air that wasn't removed during the editing process.

Aside from that one little issue. this is a good book for any child who is struggling to fit it to read/listen to. It is also good for any kid who knows someone who is a little different to listen to, to help them understand what it's like to be different.

Great book

Thank you for publishing this book. It’s reality of what our everyday kids are facing in schools.
But we can all be ourselves just like Henry.
Every kid should read this book.
I enjoyed listening to the audiobook with my twelve year old.👍

Great Listen!

Fantastic book and I absolutely love the message that it sends to kids. The narrator is engaging and humorous which makes it very entertaining. Great listen!