The Children's Hour cover art

The Children's Hour

 Preview

Get 30 days of Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30-day free trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £15.99

Buy Now for £15.99

About this listen

 In the big old house overlooking the sea, five small children listened as their mother read them a story. Theirs was an idyllic childhood, as they played on the beach, in the gardens and the woods, before the war and other tragedies disrupted their lives. Now, many years later, Nest and Mina still live at their beautiful childhood home, surrounded by the glorious Devon country side. But, when their sister Georgie comes to stay at Ottercombe, memories of their past start to revisit them.©2003 Marcia Willett Limited (P)2014 Audible, Inc. Fiction Genre Fiction

Critic reviews

"June Barrie offers a warm performance; her voice is a velvety purr and her delivery appropriately lively. The setting, brimming with gardens and seascapes, comes alive with Willett's descriptions and Barrie's attention to the beauty of words. The Children's Hour offers a pleasant escape to the beach and a thoughtful exploration of the meaning of family." (AudioFile)
All stars
Most relevant
my second 'listening ' of this story and probably not my last. This beautifully written and comfortingly read novel is like a warm blanket wrapping g itself around you.

such a comforting book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved this story for it's easy listening style and many threads that eventually came together. I felt I knew the house and the characters well and didn't want to say goodbye to them. It is not a taxing tale in any way and may be too slow moving for many people, but brought to me cosy feelings of sitting around a fire with my family while someone read a book to us.

A very good way to relax after a stressful day

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is a really good story but I'm afraid I won't be buying anything else narrated by June Barrie. I'm sure she's a perfectly lovely woman but she is so terribly, terribly 'posh'. Every single character is endowed with the same 'well-bred gels' accent it's like listening to a BBC drama from the 1940s. Shame as I really enjoyed the story but the narration really spoilt it for me.

Narration dreadful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.