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    Born to Run
    Born to Run
    Born to Run
    Audiobook3 hours

    Born to Run

    Written by Michael Morpurgo

    Narrated by Isla Blair

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Joy and heartbreak combine in this bittersweet tale of a champion greyhound’s journey through life – and from owner to owner…

    “The sack wasn't just drifting gently along like everything else, it was turning of its own accord. There was definitely something inside it, struggling against the side of the plastic bag, kicking at it, squeaking and squealing in terror. He had no idea what it might be, only that it was alive and in danger of drowning.”

    When Patrick saves a litter of greyhound puppies from the canal, he can’t bear to hand them all over to the RSPCA. He pleads with his parents: couldn’t he just keep one of them? But nothing will convince them and Patrick cries himself to sleep – only to be woken by a greyhound puppy licking his face!

    Patrick christens his puppy Best Mate, and that’s what he becomes. Patrick’s favourite thing is to watch Best Mate running at full stretch on the heath, a speeding bullet, a cheetah-dog. Until one day Best Mate is kidnapped by a greyhound trainer, and begins a new life as a champion race dog. Suzie, the greyhound trainer’s step-daughter, loves Best Mate on first sight and gives him a new name, Bright Eyes. But what will happen when he can’t run any more?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateAug 4, 2011
    ISBN9780007452835
    Born to Run
    Author

    Michael Morpurgo

    Michael Morpurgo is one of Britain’s best-loved writers for children. He has written over 130 books including War Horse, which was adapted for a hugely successful stage production by the National Theatre and then, in 2011, for a film directed by Steven Spielberg. Michael was Children’s Laureate from 2003 to 2005. The charity Farms for City Children, which he founded thirty years ago with his wife Clare, has now enabled over 70,000 children to spend a week living and working down on the farm. His enormous success has continued with his most recent novels Flamingo Boy and The Snowman, inspired by the classic story by Raymond Briggs. He was knighted in 2018 for services to literature and charity.

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    Reviews for Born to Run

    4/5

    17 ratings8 reviews

    What did you think?

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    • 5/5
      The story and the narration were brilliant - my children loved listening to it. The storyline was captivating and gave us unique insights into a small variety of characters. We love Michael Morporgo stories! The narration was incredibly engaging and beautifully performed.

      What could be improved was the structure of the audio chapters - they were rather random and it made it difficult to track where you are at. (I know you can book mark but with 3 children trying to catch up after one was on camp and another one was sick, they were all at different spots and it was hard trying to find who was where.)

    • 4/5
      A friend of mine received this fro Christmas so, of course, I had to borrow this book thinking Mr. Grippando was a new writer. Well, he is, to me but no longer.This is a thrilling, fast-paced mystery and though you will probably figure out the ending, it will keep you interested to the end.Filled with government types, hit men, lawyers, thugs, and all around "good guys" and one badly-used Bullitt-like Mustang, this is a really good yarn indeed.
    • 1/5
      The audio has a click in it. Not able to stomach the noise in order to listen, unfortunately.
    • 4/5
      Another fastly paced plot in the JACK SWYTECK series...although I enjoyed this thriller, it wasn't up to the level of the previous novels in this series...but, it is by one of my favorite authors and one of my favorite characters and it kept my interest down to the usual GRIPPANDO TWIST ending.
    • 3/5
      Quick, light read. Nothing spectacular. The narration was bland. It was fun enough to finish, but not interesting enough for me to rewind to hear parts I missed.
    • 5/5
      One of Grippando's best.
    • 3/5
      James Grippando's 'Born to Run,' although a part of the Jack Swyteck series, works well as a stand alone novel; it was my first Grippando read. Briefly, Jack, son of former governor Harry Swyteck, is a Miami trial lawyer with a penchant for defending hopeless cases. The novel begins with the Everglades demise of the current vice president and Harry's selection as the next VP. Jack tags along to Washington and the plot thickens when he receives a call offering to make his father the next president. Now mix in an immoral White House intern, a relentless CNN reporter, a mysterious Greek, the Mafia, and Jack's 'new' green Mustang and we're ready to run. This is more a series mystery than a political thriller - Jack and his cohorts are the stars, and, I assume, well liked by regular readers. It's a quick, undemanding read, with emphasis on quick. Read this only if you have no plans to ponder the plotting and are willing to go big into suspension of disbelief. Three stars: good enough to finish, but not good enough to keep.
    • 5/5
      My first James Grippando and I enjoyed it very much.