Michael Morpurgo has 22 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 27 narrators, with an average listener rating of 4.6★ across 21 ratings. The most-rated is War Horse.
War Horse
Summary
Over the course of a story that is both intense and poignant, Morpurgo takes us on a journey through the very darkest times of the First World War and the horrors faced by those who endured it, be they man or beast. Beautifully performed by Dan Stevens, War Horse has taken the world by storm. First published back in 1982, the book was adapted to the stage and was performed at the National Theatre back in 2007. It's well-deserved success means that it has now gone into it's third year at the New London Theatre and will be later debuting on Broadway in New York City. At the outbreak of World War I, Joey, young Albert's beloved horse, is sold to the cavalry and shipped to France. He's soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary odyssey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man's land. But Albert cannot forget Joey and, still not old enough to enlist, he embarks on a treacherous mission to the trenches to find him and bring him home.
©2010 HarperCollins Publishers (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers
Dancing Bear
Summary
A gentle and deeply moving story of a young girl and her bear, told with great charm by a master storyteller. High in the mountains, in a tiny village, an abandoned bear cub is adopted by a lonely orphan child. Soon they are inseparable, beloved by the whole village - safe, until the arrival of a glamorous film crew who need a dancing bear....
©2013 Michael Morpurgo (P)2013 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Private Peaceful
Summary
Told in the voice of a young soldier, the story follows 24 hours in his life at the front during World War I, and captures his memories as he looks back over his life. Full of stunningly researched detail and engrossing atmosphere, the book leads to a dramatic and moving conclusion. Both a love story and a deeply moving account of the horrors of the First World War, this audiobook will reach everyone from 9 to 90.
©2003 HarperCollins UK; 2003 Michael Morpurgo
The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips
Summary
It's 1943 and Lily Tregenza lives on a farm in the idyllic seaside village of Slapton. Apart from her father being away, and the "townie" evacuees at school, her life is scarcely touched by the war. Until one day, when Lily and her family, along with 3,000 other villagers, are told to move out of their homes: lock, stock, and barrel. Soon, the whole area is out of bounds, as the Allied forces practise their landings for D-day, preparing to invade France. But Tips, Lily's adored cat, has other ideas; barbed wire and keep-out signs mean nothing to her, nor does the danger of guns and bombs. Frantic to find her, Lily makes friends with two young American soldiers, who promise to help her. But will she ever see her cat again? Lily decides to cross the wire into the danger zone to look for Tips herself. Now, many years later, as Michael is reading his Grandma Lily's diary, he learns about The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips, and wonders how one adventurous cat could still affect their lives 60 years later.
©2005 Michael Morpurgo (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Sparrow
Summary
Eloise has always loved Joan of Arc. Noble, honest and brave, she was everything Eloise wishes to be. And on a bright sunny day in Orleans, Eloise has a very special daydream…. A superb reimagining of Joan of Arc by master storyteller and author of War Horse, Michael Morpurgo. “There was only one creature on this earth who really knew Joan. He was a sparrow, just an ordinary sparrow…. He was her best friend on this earth, maybe her only friend, too.” A young girl faces an impossible task - to save her beloved France from tyrants. To free her country, Joan will lose everyone she has ever loved. But she listens to her heart and believes in her calling. Through patience, perseverance, and unbreakable spirit, Joan of Arc leads armies to victory and finds the strength to face the cruellest of destinies.
©2012 Michael Morpurgo (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
War Horse
Summary
Michael Morpurgo’s classic tale, capturing the power of the human spirit. First published back in 1982, War Horse has taken the world by storm. The book was adapted to the stage and was performed at the National Theatre and on Broadway. This full and unabridged edition is beautifully performed here by the National Theatre’s first Albert, OIivier-award-winner Luke Treadaway. At the outbreak of World War 1, Joey, young Albert's beloved horse, is sold to the cavalry and shipped to France. He's soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary odyssey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man's land. But Albert cannot forget Joey and, still not old enough to enlist, he embarks on a treacherous mission to the trenches to find him and bring him home.
©1982 Michael Morpurgo (P)2014 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
The Butterfly Lion
Summary
A lyrical and moving tale of a young boy growing up in Africa, and his lifelong friendship with a white lion. Bertie rescues an orphaned lion cub from the African veld. They are inseparable until Bertie is sent to boarding school far away in England and the lion is sold to a circus. Bertie swears that one day they will see one another again, but it is the butterfly lion which ensures that their friendship will never be forgotten.
©2011 Michael Morpurgo (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
An Elephant in the Garden
Summary
It’s 1944. Elizabeth's father is fighting with the German army on the eastern front. Her mother works at Dresden zoo, where her favourite animal is a young elephant named Marlene. When the zoo director tells her the dangerous animals must be shot to prevent them running amok when the town is bombed, Elizabeth's mother moves Marlene into the back garden to save her….and then the bombs start to fall. Their home destroyed, Elizabeth and her family must flee the bombed-out city and through the wintery landscape, all the while avoiding the Russian troops who are drawing ever closer. It would be hard enough, without an elephant in tow….
©2010 HarperCollins Publishers (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers
Running Wild
Summary
For Will and his mother, going to Indonesia isn't just a holiday. It's an escape, a new start, a chance to put things behind them - things like the death of Will's father. And to begin with, it seems to be just what they both needed. But then Oona, the elephant Will is riding on the beach, begins acting strangely, shying away from the sea. And that's when the tsunami comes crashing in, and Oona begins to run. Except that when the tsunami is gone, Oona just keeps on running. With nothing on his back but a shirt and nothing to sustain him but a bottle of water, Will must learn to survive deep in the jungle. Luckily, though, he's not completely alone... He's got Oona.
©2009 HarperCollins Publishers (P)2009 HarperCollins Publishers
War Horse
Summary
This production - adapted by John Tams and Sally Ward at the behest of the author - is a moving tale of a boy's extraordinary bond with his horse during World War One. The story of a farm horse sold from Devon into the mire, wire and machine guns of the Great War of 1914-1918 brings together a stellar cast, including Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn and Bob Hoskins, with music and songs from some of the UK's finest folk musicians. This drama was directed by John Tams, who was nominated for an Olivier Award for his work on the phenomenally successful War Horse stage epic at the National Theatre ['the theatrical event of the decade' (Times)] and which also inspired the Steven Spielberg film. 'Sublime.' (Michael Morpurgo, on hearing this completed drama)
©2017 Michael Morpurgo (P)2017 BBC AudioBooks
The Wreck of the Zanzibar
Summary
Laura Perryman's family has always lived on Bryher. She lives with her twin brother, Billy, and her mother and father and her Granny May. They have four milking cows, which is enough to keep the entire population of the island supplied with milk. Of course, almost every family keeps a fishing boat. Bryher is one of the Isles of Scilly. It's a very tiny island, and it is very hard work trying to scratch a living there. The sea feeds the people of Bryher. Billy, fourteen years old and bored with the unending milking routine, is feeling the strain. So, when the General Lee, bound for New York, calls at St. Mary's for repairs to the mizzen mast Billy secures his passage as a cabin boy. He has left the islands before his parents know anything about it. Laura has lost her twin brother. She is devastated. Her parents are also devastated. They have lost their only son. And ill fortune besets the family. They lose their cows. It's a very bad time. Everyone is hungry and families start to drift away from Bryher. Things seem hopeless for Laura's family until the Zanzibar is wrecked and washes up on the island....
©2012 Michael Morpurgo (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
The Last Wolf
Summary
Robbie McLeod has the misfortune to be orphaned at a very young age and is brought up for a while by his heartless uncle. He is also born into a difficult age, being young and idealistic, in Scotland, at the time of the Jacobite Uprising in 1745. That's when Bonnie Prince Charlie came back to Scotland out of exile in France, to claim the throne which was rightfully his. The charismatic Prince swept through Scotland calling men to arms as he went, and Robbie joined them. Robbie was there at Culloden, when the Scots were overwhelmed by the English, and Robbie ran for his life from the field of battle. And he became a hunted man. Except he was still no more than a boy of sixteen. The English redcoats hunted the Scots mercilessly. Robbie hid in a distant and remote glen, and it was there that he made the best friend of his life, Charlie. Now, not everyone would be able to make a friend from a wild wolf, but Robbie did. And if you want to know how he did it, you will have to listen to this audiobook.
©2010 MIchael Morpurgo (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Michael Morpurgo: Stories of War Audio Collection
Summary
Three classic wartime tales of identity, revelation and love that capture the power and scope of the human spirit. War Horse At the outbreak of World War 1, Joey, young Albert's beloved horse, is sold to the cavalry and shipped to France. He's soon caught up in enemy fire, and fate takes him on an extraordinary odyssey, serving on both sides before finding himself alone in no man's land. But Albert cannot forget Joey and, still not old enough to enlist, he embarks on a treacherous mission to the trenches to find him and bring him home. This full and unabridged version is beautifully performed by the National Theatre’s first Olivier Award winner, Luke Treadaway. Private Peaceful Told in the voice of a young soldier, the story follows 24 hours in his life at the front during WW1 and captures his memories as he looks back over his life. Full of stunningly researched detail and engrossing atmosphere, the book leads to a dramatic and moving conclusion. A Medal for Leroy Michael doesn’t remember his father, an RAF pilot lost in the war. And his French mother, heartbroken and passionate, doesn’t like to talk about her husband. But then Auntie Snowdrop gives Michael a medal, followed by a photograph, which begin to reveal a hidden history. A story of love and loss inspired by the true story of Walter Tull, the first black officer in the British army.
©2020 Michael Morpurgo (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Farm Boy
Summary
Set on a farm in rural Devon, Farm Boy is a collection of Grandpa's reminiscences and stories, touchingly told to his grandson. Joey was the last working horse on the farm, and the apple of Grandpa's eye. In War Horse, published 12 years ago, Joey was sent away from the farm to be a warhorse in World War I. Grandpa had joined the cavalry in order to find, and fight, with Joey. Farm Boy brings us forward 50 years, with Grandpa not only telling his grandson Joey's story but also a 'shameful secret' which he has held for years -- Grandpa has never learned to read and write. The story is set in Iddesleigh in Devon and lovingly evokes the bonds between farm and farmer; grandson and grandfather. The spirit of rural life is superbly captured in Michael Morpurgo's writing.
©2010 Michael Morpurgo (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Le roi Arthur
Summary
Un jeune garçon décide de se rendre dans les îles du Levant lors de la grande marée d'équinoxe. Le brouillard se lève et la mer l'engloutit. Lorsqu'il revient à lui, il est près d'un vieil homme qui affirme être le roi Arthur et lui raconte sa vie, son enfance, le couronnement, le rôle de Merlin, Guenièvre, les chevaliers de la Table ronde et sa disparition. Le roman est une magnifique réécriture de la légende arthurienne, croisant les textes de Chrétien de Troyes avec ses continuations. La légende des chevaliers de la Table ronde enflamme depuis des siècles l'imagination. C'est l'une des plus belles et des plus riches légendes de tous les temps. Michael Morpurgo a adapté à son tour le texte de Chrétien de Troyes : voici le captivant récit que fait le roi Arthur à un jeune garçon d'aujourd'hui. Une lecture captivante grâce au jeu intense, aux nuances multiples et subtiles de la voix chaude et feutrée de Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu.
©1995 Gallimard Jeunesse (P)2009 Éditions Gallimard Jeunesse
Born to Run
Summary
Joy and heartbreak combine in this bittersweet tale of a champion greyhound’s journey through life – and from owner to owner…“The sack wasn't just drifting gently along like everything else, it was turning of its own accord. There was definitely something inside it, struggling against the side of the plastic bag, kicking at it, squeaking and squealing in terror. He had no idea what it might be, only that it was alive and in danger of drowning.” When Patrick saves a litter of greyhound puppies from the canal, he can’t bear to hand them all over to the RSPCA. He pleads with his parents: couldn’t he just keep one of them? But nothing will convince them and Patrick cries himself to sleep – only to be woken by a greyhound puppy licking his face! Patrick christens his puppy Best Mate, and that’s what he becomes. Patrick’s favourite thing is to watch Best Mate running at full stretch on the heath, a speeding bullet, a cheetah-dog. Until one day Best Mate is kidnapped by a greyhound trainer, and begins a new life as a champion race dog. Suzie, the greyhound trainer’s step-daughter, loves Best Mate on first sight and gives him a new name, Bright Eyes. But what will happen when he can’t run anymore?
©2011 Michael Morpurgo (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Toro ! Toro !
Summary
Antonito n'a pas de plus grand ami que Paco, le petit taureau qu'il a vu naître. Paco est destiné à la corrida et le petit garçon ne peut se résoudre à voir son taureau mourir dans l'arène. À l'aube, les deux amis prendront la fuite. Nous sommes en 1936. Ils ne savent pas que la guerre civile gronde derrière les collines...
©2002 Editions Gallimard Jeunesse (P)2020 Editions Gallimard Jeunesse
Kaspar
Summary
A heart-warming novel about Kaspar the Savoy cat, from the award-winning author of Born to Run and The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips. Kaspar the cat first came to the Savoy Hotel in a basket - Johnny Trott knows, because he was the one who carried him in. Johnny was a bell-boy, you see, and he carried all of Countess Kandinsky's things to her room. But Johnny didn't expect to end up with Kaspar on his hands forever, and nor did he count on making friends with Lizzie Beth, a spirited American heiress. Pretty soon, events are set in motion that will take Johnny - and Kaspar - all around the world, surviving theft, shipwreck, and rooftop rescues along the way - because everything changes with a cat like Kaspar around. After all, he's Prince Kaspar Kandinsky, Prince of Cats, a Muscovite, a Londoner and a New Yorker, and as far as anyone knows, the only cat to survive the sinking of the Titanic….
©2010 Michael Morpurgo (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Soldat Peaceful
Summary
On m'appelle Tommo et j'ai dix-sept ans. Ce soir, j'ai la nuit entière devant moi, et je ne la gaspillerai pas à dormir, je ne la passerai pas à rêver. Je veux essayer de me souvenir de tout. Me souvenir de mon frère Charlie tel qu'il était à la maison, de nous tels que nous étions tous. Cette nuit, plus que jamais dans ma vie, je veux me sentir vivant...
©2004 Editions Gallimard Jeunesse (P)2021 Editions Gallimard Jeunesse
Morpurgo: The Mozart Question
Summary
Children’s author Michael Morpurgo narrates his book The Mozart Question, an eloquent and ultimately uplifting story charting a small boy’s discovery of his love for the violin, and of his parents’ traumatic past in a concentration camp during the Second World War. This audiobook weaves together the book’s narration with musical extracts to bring the story alive, featuring pieces by Beethoven, Vivaldi, Bach and Mozart performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. The musical extracts interpersed with the narration include movements from Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik, and Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time. Nicholas Collon conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra with violin soloist Jack Liebeck. Michael Morpurgo is one of Britain’s best-loved children’s authors. He has written more than 100 books and has won the Smarties Prize, the Whitbread Award, and most recently the Blue Peter Book Award for Private Peaceful. He is also the author of War Horse, which has been made into a Tony Award-winning Broadway play and a Golden Globe-nominated film. Michael was Writer in Residence at The Savoy Hotel from January to March 2007, and previously he was Children’s Laureate from 2003–2005, a role that took him across Britain to inspire a love of reading in children.
©2008 Michael Morpurgo (P)2012 Naxos Audiobooks