Little Lord Fauntleroy ANNOTATION
An American boy goes to live with his grandfather in England, where he becomes heir to a title and a fortune.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
At the age of sixteen Frances Hodgson Burnett moved to Tennessee with her bankrupt family and began writing for American magazines as means to support herself. Over two decades later Burnett published Little Lord Fauntleroy, modeling the character after her son Vivian. Burnett's text and Reginald Birch's original illustrations helped popularize a very romantic style of dress for boys -- a velvet suit with a broad lace collar -- in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
SYNOPSIS
Published in 1886, the story begins with young long-curly-haired Cedric Errol living in New York with his widowed mother. After inheriting a title and estate, he moves to England, charming all he meets, doing good deeds for those in high and low positions, and encountering plenty of adventures (including a rival claim to his estate) along the way.
FROM THE CRITICS
AudioFile - Toni Buzzeo
In his rich, gravelly voice John McDonough narrates the story of 12-year-old orphan, Lucas Whitaker, who comes to apprentice with Dr. Uriah Beecher when his family is lost to consumption in the mid-1800�s. McDonough�s readings of the deep-voiced doctor and his brusque and officious sister are differentiated from Lucas�s lighter, more tentative tones. The unhurried pace is in keeping with an era that lacked haste and allowed for the sort of rumination Lucas must undertake as he struggles to untangle the scientific and popular beliefs about the causes of disease. Middle-grade listeners will be attracted by the skull in the cover art and won�t be disappointed. T.B. �AudioFile, Portland, Maine
AudioFile - Sharon Grover
A boy from New York City, young Cedric Errol, is whisked off to England to claim his rightful place as Lord Fauntleroy, heir to the vile-tempered, old Earl of Dorincourt. The romantic tale has surprising charm despite its extreme sentimentality. Langbehn's dramatic reading and pleasant voice are quite effective in communicating Burnett's nineteenth-century style to modern day listeners. There are a few lapses in her characterizations and some slight production faults, such as the volume from tape to tape varying significantly, but these are very minor in an overall enjoyable recording for listeners grade 4 to adult. S.G. �AudioFile, Portland, Maine
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