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Lancelot by Adrian Plitzco
Audio Book

Reviewed by Kathryn Duncan

Childhood should be filled with stories, through reading as well as listening to them read by parents, grandparents, or in the case of Lancelot, the wonderful narration of David Tredinnick, Matthew Whittet and the beautifully expressive Anne Phelan.

Lancelot is the tale of an orphaned joey, Lancelot, brought up by farmers Bill and Emmy. Lancelot thinks of himself as a human and part of Bill and Emmy's family, which he is.

Meryl Sheep, Lancelot's friend, and lover of rosebushes, breaks the bad news that Lancelot is in fact a kangaroo and that Bill and Emmy are not his real parents. Heartbroken by this news, Lancelot leaves home to find a mob of his own. His journey sees him rejected by the mob of kangaroos he desperately wants to join, befriended by a sneaky fox with an ulterior motive, and accepted by a girl kangaroo.

In Lancelot, author, Adrian Plitzco, tackles many issues: adoption disability, acceptance of others, being different, life's lessons and the impact of the drought on Australian wildlife. When reflecting on the number of themes in Lancelot, it is easy to think that the author has taken on too much, but this is not the case. Each theme blends into this beautifully told story and it is not until you look at it in any detail that you realise just how much is included and how well the author has incorporated them.

A great feature of Lancelot is the music and sound effects, which set the mood throughout the story. The music is lively and bouncy, just like Lancelot, and despite the occasional increase in volume, complements the narration and story beautifully.

At almost two and a half hours, and on two CD's, Lancelot is a high quality recording and the pace is perfect for little, and not so little, listeners. Natural breaks allow listeners to stop and start as needed, or to accommodate breaks when travelling (great for a car trip from Melbourne to the Gold Coast).

Whilst ideal for pre-schoolers and young readers happy to listen to stories, Lancelot will also find a following with older children and adults because of the wonderful story. An accompanying picture book would make it more than perfect.