A select group of the Homeschool Review Crew would get to review the new audio adventure, Captain Bayley's Heir.
Reviewers also got short-term access to the Live the Adventure Club website.
My daughter and I love these audio adventures! I begged to be on the review. My groveling was rewarded! Before I knew it, my CD set arrived in the mail!
I like to listen to audio adventures in the car. The CD player is right there, and car passengers are a captive audience! I took the CDs out to the car and we listened through as the days went by.
The story starts out with "Mr. George" (George A. Henty) traveling in America and talking to some young men he has met about a story he is planning to write that he is doing research for. From there it jumps pretty quickly into the main story of Captain Bayley's Heir.
The story begins with a crippled boy, Harry Hall, in his house playing violin. Mrs. Hall encourages Harry to go outside with the dog, Flossie, so Harry goes out using a special wagon, propelling himself with crutches.
The pace changes when we learn that Flossie has fallen through the ice and is in risk of drowning. That is when we meet the hero of the story, Frank Bayley, who ignores personal risk and jumps into the river and swims to the dog and saves her.
The story transitions, and we meet Frank's cousin Fred, and another "cousin", Alice, who was adopted into the family by Captain Bayley, Frank's grandfather, when her parents passed away. As the story continues, we learn that Captain Bayley had a daughter who eloped and moved away. He has tried unsuccessfully to locate her, and he does not talk about her.
Frank and Fred leave to attend boarding school. Through a series of events, Frank is accused by his teacher of stealing ten pounds from the teacher's desk. Frank is judged guilty by circumstantial evidence and is to be expelled, with great humiliation, the next day. He sends a desperate plea, by post, to inform his grandfather and ask his grandfather to assure him he believes in his innocence by return post. However he does not hear back from his grandfather. In sadness, Frank escapes from his school dorm room by night and flees to America to start a new life.
The second CD is about Frank's journey to and life in America. He works his way across "The Pond", proving himself by his hard work and solid ethical character. Upon arrival in America, Frank works his way to the gold fields of California. He makes friendships and partnerships along the way. Hunting for gold is hard work, and not always profitable, but Frank also is able to make money by securing and selling supplies to the miners.
Meanwhile, back in England, Grandfather has had a private investigator hunting for his daughter. We learn that there is much more to Harry Hall than we had expected. Finally, Grandfather and Alice go traveling to various distant lands.
G.A. Henty really knows how to weave a tale and tie up the loose ends, and the story resolves in a most satisfying manner. I don't want to give it all away -- that would spoil your fun! Suffice it to say there is some loss and some gain, and there is some reconciliation.
After listening to the story I went to look at the study guide. I think a week had passed, and already I was forgetting details and finding myself unable to answer questions in the study guide! I couldn't even remember the various names of the different folks in the story! ::sigh:: So the moral of the story is that it is easier if you listen to a section, do the study guide for that section, listen to the next section, etc. Or you can listen twice, like I had to do, but I know my kids would never tolerate that!
So let me tell you about the study guide.
The Study Guide is easier to read. There is an introduction explaining how to best use the Study Guide, and then there is a brief biography about G.A. Henty. Quickly you get into the meat of the study guide with questions and vocabulary words. Each section has questions for "Listening Well", "Thinking Further" and "Defining Words". The vocabulary words all seem fairly easy (as in pre-high school, or 4th through 8th grade maybe). Each of the two CDs has 10 tracks, and the Study Guide has a study section for each of these 20 tracks. In addition to the three sections mentioned above, some of the track study sections also have an "Expand your Learning" section. I saw one about various currencies, and another about the Gold Rush Mining Camps, to mention a few. At the end there are also additional suggested resources.
I was also surprised to find three Bible Studies tacked on at the end of the Study Guide! That was a little like unexpectedly finding some buried gold!
We really love Heirloom Audio Productions audio dramas in my house! Captain Bayley's Heir did not leave us disappointed. The only question I'm still a little unsure of, though, is which of Captain Bayley's Heirs is the title really about? I mean is it referring to Frank? Or Fred? Or Alice? ...Or someone else?... Listen yourself and let me know your conclusion.
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