On the Block: Stories of Home

Gr 4-7–Immediate kudos go to responsible producers who appended a should-always-be-available credits list; equally impressive is the characters’ and narrators’ (mostly) aligned backgrounds. We Need Diverse Books cofounder Oh magically puzzled together 11 powerhouse writers to populate the Entrada, a could-be-anywhere multi-unit apartment building, with 12 diverse families. Oh warmly opens the audio with a dedication and welcome; she also contributes the final story—energetically read by Raymond J. Lee—that brings the entire community together. Outgoing National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Meg Medina provides—and invitingly reads—a thoughtful foreword about her own four-story Queens walk-up childhood. Neighbors naturally, continuously overlap: 5B’s new resident Lila (by Tracey Baptiste, read by Mwanza) meets Emi (Debbi Michiko Florence, read by Sarah Skaer), whose Japanese aunt now lives in 3B. The building owner’s son Lenny (Adam Gidwitz, read by Schiff) in 1B learns the shocking reason why Entrada evictions will never happen; 2B’s Navarro family (David Bowles, read by Oscar Emmanuel Fabela) benefits. A few minor glitches (names get botched, accents are inconsistent between apartments) are easily overlooked in such an overall stupendous production.