The Case of the Cursed Dodo

The Endangered Files, Book 1

By: Jake G. Panda

Narrated by: Michael McConnohie, J.W. Terry, Dave Mallow, Molly Brandenburg, Antoinette Attell, Ian Whitcomb

Length: 2 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World meets The Maltese Falcon with plenty of jokes and gags to keep you laughing out loud. If you loved Who Framed Roger Rabbit or Zootopia this is the audio adventure for you!

The Case of the Cursed Dodo is a hilarious throwback to old time radio serials starring a hardboiled Winnie-the-Pooh. His name's Jake G. Panda, and he's a wildlife investigator. He works at a flophouse for endangered critters called the Last Resort. He's the hotel snoop. The resident fuzz.

It's his job to keep these unusual guests safe and out of harm's way. This first installment of The Endangered Files is a wild and woolly mystery involving a missing guest, a green bird, and a bunch of double-crossing critters all hot on the trail of a valuable artifact called The Cursed Dodo.

This audiobook is designed to introduce young listeners to the subject of endangered species in a fun and informative way. So join this tough talking panda detective and a cast of endangered creatures on a globe-trotting audio adventure that will appeal to the kid in all of us.

The complete list of narrators includes: Michael McConnohie, J.W. Terry, Dave Mallow, Molly Brandenburg, Antoinette Attell, Ian Whitcomb, Barbara Watkins, and Bobb Lynes.

©2014 Jake G. Panda (P)2017 Jake G. Panda

Audio Cartoon a winner.

Would you consider the audio edition of The Case of the Cursed Dodo to be better than the print version?

Have only listened to the Audio..... My suspicion is that kids would enjoy the Audio more after reading the book.

What other book might you compare The Case of the Cursed Dodo to and why?

Sort of a animated version of many of the classic detectives.

What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The variety of narrators bring depth to the story especially to children.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The entire book is a delightful experience that anyone could enjoy.

Any additional comments?

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review

Full of surprises, suspense, and FUN

What an original story! We meet Jake, a hard boiled panda detective, who's hot on the trail to solve a mystery, and to save endangered species while he's at it.

Completely imaginative tale, with a wide range of different characters/animals. Full of puns (which I love if handled masterfully, and Jake does not disappoint).

The sound effects, added music, enhanced background accents were right on the money as only this experienced, talented producer knows how to do. Each scene, every chapter was brought to life, sparkle, and adventure by this fantastic achievement.

I enjoyed this story better by listening to the CDs. :)

Can't wait to hear more of Jake G. Panda's tales. This was classic, and FUN!

(Says it's for kids -- are you kidding me? It's for everybody!!!)

More than an audio-movie

Very fun format - more like listening to a movie than a book. Kids would love this one full of lot of animals and action and sound effects!

THIS AUDIOBOOK IS ADORABLE!

**I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Jake G. Panda. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.**

I’m not going to lie: I signed up for this tour by accident. I was distracted and got a little click-happy in one of the Audiobookworm's’ emails, and once I realized it, I almost canceled...

...I'm really glad I didn't!

THIS AUDIOBOOK IS ADORABLE!

For me, this was Indiana Jones meets Dick Tracy meets Zootopia. I giggled quite a bit during my listening experience and couldn’t help picturing Jake G. Panda in a fedora and coat. He’s your genre-typical hardboiled detective who’s been softened around the edges to make him more enjoyable for children. As an adult, I found him (and the other characters) to be delightful and can’t wait to introduce The Endangered Files to my nieces! The mystery in “The Case of the Cursed Dodo” was genuinely intriguing and I could see this being an excellent opportunity to get kids curious about endangered species. This was an example of educational + adventure done right, and had the perfect old-timey radio series feel to it to fire my imagination!

My one complaint about this audiobook was the format. As unique as the noir-movie-script approach was, it didn’t read as well as a ‘regular’ story. The sound effects were fun, but they didn’t do a great job fleshing out scenes and they seemed to stand in place of actual narrative description. This style also made it hard to get to know the characters; they moved ‘on and off screen’ with the speed/frequency one would expect from a movie, but in a strictly audio format, that tendency made it really difficult to get to know the cast. Speaking of cast, I did enjoy the variety of voice actors. There were a few too many male characters for my taste, but they were done really, really well!

Bottom line: “The Case of the Cursed Dodo” was just a fun book. The characters were creative and the plot was fun. If you choose to pick this up for yourself or a child in your life, I’d suggest trying the print version first and only picking up this audio version after you’ve gotten familiar with the characters. Recommended for those who love noir and Zootopia!

Review first appeared on the "Notes from 'Round the Bend" blog

fun times!

really enjoyed listening to this book narrators kept me giggling, intrigued story kept me hooked really easy to sit and just laugh. This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

Energetic storytelling of a P.I-Panda investigator

Would you try another book from Jake G. Panda and/or the narrators?

Alright, this story is just pure CAMP. It's unapologetically funny and great fun. I'd bet children would love this story when you're driving and beg to hear more.

Could you see The Case of the Cursed Dodo being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

This novel is written as a manuscript, so it could make a fun little short movie. Jake G Panda would need to be voiced by someone who loves to be a large ham, so I'd vote for Patrick Warburton (Kronk - Emperor's New Groove); or possibly Alan Tudyk (King Candy - Wreck-it Ralph)

Any additional comments?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I was provided with a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for a fair and honest review"

A Unique and Entertaining Story

What did you love best about The Case of the Cursed Dodo?

The various character voices were nice; it made it easier to keep track of who was speaking. I also enjoyed the cliche, goofy jokes. I chuckled many times while listening. I really liked the quick summaries at the beginning of each chapter. Even though I literally just listened, it helped sort of reel me back in and keep me on track. I found the story to be entertaining and it had some plot twists that kept me engaged.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Case of the Cursed Dodo?

Well, I'll try to describe it so that I don't spoil anything, but so that those who have read it know what I'm talking about... The scene at the end with Jake and Daisy, when she has the item from the box. Then, the very end when we find out more about the item. That plot twist was my favorite, and I thought it was pretty clever.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

Yep. The "movie script reading" style was great. I enjoyed the pace of the narration and the pace of the story.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I have an hour commute, so it took me three rides to listen to it all. If I had time I would have loved to listen to it all; it was hard to turn it off an go into work. Next long road trip with my girlfriend, we might give it a shot.

Any additional comments?

I did have a few criticisms on the "performance". The scene change noise (two camera shutters) was annoying; I appreciated the notification of a scene change, but it should have been a different noise. Also I was not a fan of the sound/voice for text being read. It sounded like someone yelling in an empty auditorium, including the echo. Lastly, some scenes also sounded quite echo-ey, and was distracting.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

WOW! Audiobook performed as a play/script

A dynamic treat! This audio included a full cast of performers, sound effects, and music. It was similar to listening to a play.
The characters were ... lolz characters within themselves! Very enjoyable and lively! Very upbeat and riddled with jokes and easy humour.
I absolutely LOVED it and am excited to share it with my infant granddaughters when they get older.
A deep and genuine thank you to the authors and narrators for providing me with this, at my request. It's a gift that will easily catapult me to title of the best grandmother (competition is fierce!)
I strongly recommend others to download and listen to this!

Dick Tracy meets Indiana Jones as a panda

Dick Tracy meets Indiana Jones and he is a panda. Great story for any and all ages. An old serial radio style production with a full cast brings to life this wonderful whimsical gritty tale of a hotel detective panda and his entourage of endangered animal acquaintances. What a truly wonderful story and a great way to introduce kids to endangered animals. Can't wait to listen to more in this series. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Fun story of animals; good for children and adults

Jake G. Panda is a bold wildlife investigator. He cares about the people/critters he lives with at the Last Resort, a hotel where endangered species gather. Jake is quick to set out to investigate when one of the hotel guests calls in while on exploration and the call is cut off.

Jake races off to foreign lands to rescue the Professor, a rare Hispid hare. Jake soon finds himself and a few friends tricked and captured. A small thing like a cage won’t stop Jake and his cohorts. As they chase down a suitcase with a rare green dodo, Jake comes across old friends, including a very special one from his past.

Other employees at the Last Resort include Rose, an El Hierro giant lizard, Gloria, a Mexican grizzly who works the front desk, and Timmy a Round Island day gecko selling newspapers in the lobby.

The enemy critters include a wild yak, a one-eyed cave salamander, a large slithery, Bimini boa, with his much-abused assistant, the shrew. They are countered by the Endangered Underground. This wildlife resistance who fight against the human intruders, are led by the legendary Diego “the Desert Rascal”, a Mexican prairie dog and Lieutenant Nina, a Tehuantepec jackrabbit.

This is a fun, quick tale that describes endangered species. Jake and critter friends run through several dangerous situations and share some lessons along the way. The presentation of the story is unusual as it is set up like a screen play with ‘fade in’ and ‘fade out’ scenes. Although I found this to be fun, I am not sure how children would follow the scene changes. Also, the detective tone has a noir atmosphere and some of the fun irony will be lost on children. I liked the characters, sass and mystery. I note that the kindle version has images that might be more engaging for children. However, as an adult I thoroughly enjoyed the audio.

Audio Notes: The audio book has a cast of narrators who bring the various characters to life. I found myself smiling and chuckling through the listen. I am glad I had the opportunity to enjoy this.

I received this from the author. My rating 4.25.