Showing results by narrator "Ben Bailey-Smith" in All Categories

Ray has trouble at home, and he has trouble at school - until he’s permanently excluded and ends up sleeping on the floor of a record shop. What happens to a boy like Ray? If he’s lucky, maybe he gets a chance to shine. The story of three boys who aren’t easy. They don’t fit in. They seem to attract trouble. But they know what they want, and they’ve got the talent to back it up.

Sixteen-year-old Marlon has made his mum a promise - he'll never follow his big brother, Andre, down the wrong path. So far it's been easy, but when a date ends in tragedy, Marlon finds himself hunted. They're after the mysterious Mr Orange, and they're going to use Marlon to get to him. Marlon's out of choices - can he become the person he never wanted to be, to protect everyone he loves?

Acclaimed performance poet and novelist Benjamin Zephaniah's honest, wry and poignant story of a young refugee left in London is of even more power and pertinence today than when it was first published. Life is not safe for Alem. His father is Ethopian, his mother Eritrean. Their countries are at war, and Alem is welcome in neither place. So Alem is excited to spend a holiday in London with his father - until he wakes up to find him gone. What seems like a betrayal is in fact an act of love, but now Alem is alone in a strange country and he must forge his own path....

In the moving and compelling debut novel from Benjamin Zephaniah, a young man's life is completely changed when his face is badly scarred in a car accident. Martin seems to have it all. He's cool, funny and he's the undisputed leader of the Gang of Three, who roam their East London estate during the holidays looking for fun. But one night after the Gang leave a late-night rap club, Martin accepts a ride from Pete, a Raider's Posse gang member. Too late, he realises that the car is stolen and that the police are after them.

On this adventure we're travelling right around the world - to visit Australia! We're going to learn about everything this brilliant vibrant county has to offer. We're going to learn about the amazing Great Barrier Reef, see the magnificent Uluru, encounter some wonderful wildlife and we might even have time to take in a performance at the Opera House.

Runaway Robot is a funny and heartwarming adventure about two best friends helping put themselves back together. From the award-winning author and UK Children's Laureate 2024–2026, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, illustrated by Steven Lenton. 'A funny, charming, life-affirming book' – Richard Osman...

Meet our fearless adventurers Cassandra, Otto and Missy AKA the smartest raven in the universe as they set out on their next action-packed Ladybird Audio Adventure! On this adventure, we're travelling to the arid desert where we'll learn about the different species that live in these hot climes, such as coyotes, lions and rattlesnakes! Remember to bring plenty of water on this journey as we'll be exploring the driest deserts on earth!

On 28th September 1985, Lee Lawrence's mother, Cherry Groce, was wrongly shot by police during a raid on her Brixton home. The bullet shattered her spine, and she never walked again. In the chaos that followed, 11-year-old Lee watched in horror as the news falsely pronounced his mother dead. In Brixton, already a powder keg because of the deep racism that the community was experiencing, it was the spark needed to trigger two days of rioting that saw buildings brought down by petrol bombs, cars torched and shops looted.

For 13-year-old Carmichael Taylor, life is one big joke - in a good way. He just can’t understand why no one else seems to find everything as funny as he does. When Car is filmed stumbling into performing a piece of hilarious stand-up at the school talent show - targeting his family, school and friends - the footage ends up creating international infamy. But with the promise of fame and fortune comes trouble, and it’s up to Car to decide what or who he’s willing to risk to chase his comedy dream.

Join our intrepid adventurers Otto and Cassandra (and Missy, the smartest bird in the universe) as they embark on a brand new Ladybird Audio Adventure! In this adventure Otto and Missy are off to explore the Frozen World. Setting course for the Artic and Antarctica they discover penguins, orcas and seals and a whole lot of snow! Now if they can just figure out how to get the heating going in Otto's teleporter they'll be able to get back home!

Brought to you by Ladybird. Winner of The FutureBook of the Year Award 2019 and Week Junior Audiobook of the Year 2023. Meet our fearless adventurers Cassandra, Otto and Missy AKA the smartest raven in the universe as they set out on their next action-packed Ladybird Audio Adventure! Step into a...

Guy Gunaratne's blistering debut, In Our Mad and Furious City, is an unforgettable portrait of 48 hours on a London council estate. For Selvon, Ardan and Yusuf, growing up under the towers of Stones Estate, summer means what it does anywhere: football, music, freedom. But now, after the killing of a British soldier, riots are spreading across the city, and nowhere is safe. While the fury swirls around them, Selvon and Ardan remain focused on their own obsessions, girls and grime.

Bailey is 17, mixed race, lives with his mum and dad and spends all his time playing guitar or tending to his luscious afro. Indigo is 17 and newly returned to London, having grown up in the care system after being found by her mum's dead body as a toddler. All Indigo wants is to know who she really is. When Bailey and Indigo meet, sparks fly. But when Bailey becomes the target of a homeless man who seems to know more about Indigo than is normal, Bailey is forced to make a choice he should never have to make.

After a fun Christmas Eve decorating the tree and singing along with his mum to Queen, 15-year-old Spey wakes up on Christmas morning to find the ex-prisoner father he has never met asleep on the sofa. Then he receives a mysterious package in the post: a torn envelope filled with half a collage he made with his old friend, Dee, on her sixth birthday. Dee bounced between schools and pupil referral units until a tragedy meant she ended up in care outside of London, drawn into the world of county lines gangs.

Kidnapped as a child into slavery, Equiano spent the rest of his life fighting for his freedom. After years of slavery, working on ships that carried him across empire and into battle during the Seven Years War, he eventually managed to purchase his own freedom, and went on to become a leading figure in the early abolition movement. Published to coincide with the first attempt to abolish the slave trade in 1789, Equiano's remarkable autobiography became a sensation and turned its author into the most famous Black person in Georgian Britain.

Paused in Cosmic Reflection is the definitive story of The Chemical Brothers, told in the voices of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons, with contributions from friends and collaborators.

Will Trey and Ariel find their happily ever after in this hopelessly romantic Christmas love story? ‘A screen-worthy holiday romance.’ Joya Goffney, author of Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry Trey Anderson is popular and handsome, and he works at his family’s beloved Black-owned bookshop...

A splendiferous new anthology of Christmas stories inspired by the world of Roald Dahl with six new stories by six all-star authors! A perfect gift for the holiday season! Experience the wonder that is Willy Wonka's factory at Christmastime, make Santa grow ten times his size with a fresh batch...

Hold Tight is the book that kick-started the 'Grime Library'. Bursting into bookshops in July 2017 to rave reviews and a sold-out event at Rough Trade East, Hold Tight paved the way for Grime-related books such as Wiley's Eskiboy, Dan Hancox's Inner City Pressure and DJ Target’s Grime Kids. Celebrating more than 60 key songs that make up Grime’s DNA, Jeffrey Boakye explores the meaning of the music and why it has such resonance in the UK.

Brought to you by Ladybird. Winner of The FutureBook of the Year Award 2019 and Week Junior Audiobook of the Year 2023. Meet our fearless adventurers Cassandra, Otto and Missy AKA the smartest raven in the universe as they set out on their next action-packed Ladybird Audio Adventure! All aboard...