Review of Heirloom Audio Productions | The Cat of Bubastes | #TheCatOfBubastes

Guess who has a new radio drama out? Heirloom Audio Productions has done it again with their newest Christian audio drama, The Cat of Bubastes! Get ready to travel to back in time to the land of Egypt.


You may have heard me say this each time a new audio drama is produced but this one is so far my favorite. I remember my oldest son reading this book a few years ago and he loved it. That means a lot coming from someone who is not a big fan of reading. So when the opportunity came up to review this, we were all excited. We listened to each CD in one sitting because we just could not stop!

In this historical fiction adventure, you follow a sixteen year old prince, Amuba, and his protector, Jethro, as they are kidnapped from their land all the while no one knowing they have kidnapped a prince. You will follow along as God provides the path of protection and salvation for each of these men. First, by allowing an Egyptian priest who secretly believes in the one true God to bring them in as his servants. Second, providing protection for them over and over again as they find themselves in the middle of a conspiracy against the priest and his family. Lastly, as they fight together to capture what rightly belonged to them to begin with. Where is the cat in all this you might ask?  Well, the climax begins with the cat and an arrow.  I will tell you that the Egyptians considered cats sacred.  True to Henty's style, The Cat of Bubastes contains adventure, adversity, a hint of romance, all on top of betrayal, conspiracy, defeat, and triumph. Now you can see why we had such a hard time stopping once we began!

Again, these dramas are not just audio books being read to you but complete theater productions with exciting sound effects!  

We also received access to special bonuses in addition to the CDs. We received a Study Guide, a mp3 soundtrack, 2 mp3 files of the audio drama,The Cat of Bubastes ebook with beautiful color pictures, a behind-the-scenes video which we all thought was so fun to see, and a couple of printable posters including this beautiful inspirational verse poster.

I love that we can easily transport The Cat of Bubastes. We listened to the CD's on the way to and from basketball practice and then discussed the questions from the study guide when we returned home.

There are 29 tracks/lessons in study guide so we are completing 1 track/lesson per day and listening to the track again if needed. I love the fact that the study guide is made so user friendly by marking each track with the time stamp.

I still can't rave enough about the full color guide and era background pictures making it so much more fun to use. I don't know why but we all love our resources in color. We have never printed the guide out because we just answer the questions straight from the file on my laptop.

Questions are broken down into 3 sets:

• The Listening Well questions - comprehension questions
• The Thinking Further questions - these require a little more thought, sometimes finding places on a map, and student's interpretations
• The Defining Words - vocabulary words

I also loved that we could find the spelling of the character names on the study guide too since we were dealing with very unfamiliar names.

On some tracks were additional expand your learning categories that students could read/do to enhance their studies further such as pharaoh information, recipes, maps, additional resource links, pictures of the historical period, historical background information, and more.

The study guide also includes 3 Bible studies with tons of Scripture verses for students to look up. We took one statement each day and looked up the verses together as a family.

Our entire family loved this audio drama and would highly recommend any of the audio dramas produced so far! If you are looking for a way to make history come alive, you will definitely want to check these out.

You can also see our reviews of With Lee In Virginia, In Freedom's Cause, Under Drake's Flag, and Beric The Briton from Heirloom Audio Productions.

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Review of Beric The Briton

If you have been a reader here long you already know that we are a huge fan of Heirloom Audio Productions. Their line of audio dramas make you feel like you are right there in the moment of history. The latest radio adventure from their lineup is Beric The Briton.

Beric The Briton, the audio drama, is based on the book, Beric The Briton, by G.A. Henty.  In this historical fiction adventure, you will be transmitted back to ancient times in Rome when Nero was the Roman Emperor. You will be taken all the way to the times of the great Roman fire where Nero blames Christians for the disaster. Only you will be following a couple of Britons from the land of Brittania who were captured by the Romans and trained to be gladiators. As the background story unfolds of Beric and friend Bodouc and their struggles with revenge for themselves and country, Paulus which is Latin for Paul is out sharing about the love and sacrifice of an unknown God to them, Christus which is Latin for Christ. As the worlds of war and forgiveness collide, Beric is faced to examine himself and his beliefs.

It still amazes me the range of emotions that this time period brings to me as I read about it. You can only imagine the emotions that emerge as you not only read what happened but hear it come to life with shouting crowds, roaring lions, fierce gladiator fights, and brave Christian men and women willing to die for their beliefs. I found the hairs on the back of my neck standing up! Although, this story is fiction it is based on the true historical times of this period.

We also received access to special bonuses as well as the CDs. We received a Study Guide and discussion, a mp3 soundtrack, 2 mp3 files of the audio drama, Beric the Briton ebook, a behind-the-scenes video, and a couple of posters including this beautiful poster. 

 

What I love most about Beric The Briton is its portability factor. Our resources arrived just as we were heading to Alaska for vacation. I transferred the mp3 files to my tablet and I was all set. Let me just tell you that these audio adventures are the perfect resource for passing the long hours on a plane. I only wish I had brought the other ones along to listen to again. With about 8 hours of flight time one way, we were all able to enjoy this great story. The drama lasts approximately 2 1/2 hours in total. Our entire family loved this audio drama!

The study guide has always been a favorite for us when we are home. We did not use it this time however I did look over it and was very pleased with what it had to offer. First of all, it is in color making it very pleasing to the eye. Each track is clearly defined including the time stamp. Each track has its own set of questions broken down into 3 sets - The Listening Well questions, The Thinking Further questions, and The Defining Words. On some tracks were additional activities that students could do to enhance their studies further such as recipes, additional resource links, pictures of the historical period, and more. I really loved the background the questions were included on.

Our entire family loved this audio drama and would highly recommend any of the audio dramas produced so far! I remember hating history when I was in school. Oh, how I wish these were around then! I am so glad they are available for my children to help them love history. You can also see our reviews of With Lee In Virginia, In Freedom's Cause, and Under Drake's Flag from Heirloom Audio Productions. Be sure to visit the Facebook page for Beric the Briton too.

Visit Heirloom Audio Productions on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Review of With Lee In Virginia Audio Adventure

Our family was first introduced to Heirloom Audio Productions last September when we had the opportunity to review Under Drake's Flag and again in February when they produced In Freedom's Cause. This time around they have captured one of America's most historical moments of Civil War times With Lee in Virginia.

We received the two CD set with over 2 1/2 hours of audio adventure adapted from G.A. Henty's Book, With Lee In Virginia and a downloadable study guide. The first CD contains 12 tracks and the second has 14 tracks. The study guide gives you discussion questions to aid in the comprehension of the lessons learned. It also has thinking deeper questions and vocabulary words as well.

If you are thinking audio book here, this is nothing to me like an audio book which can sometimes be very dry and boring. This is definitely an audio adventure and you can tell in the character's voices just how much passion they present through their characters. Watch this fun video to see a short excerpt of the cast in action. I want to know how I can sign up to be a cast member because it looks like so much fun!

In this historical fiction audio adventure, you will follow along with 15 year old, Vincent Wingfield, as he joins the cavalry and fights along side Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee. He watches their dedication to God and grows up before your eyes as he struggles with his own beliefs especially those regarding slavery.


We cannot say enough about these and the other audio adventures from Heirloom Audio Productions! They absolutely bring history to life and have you sitting on the edge of your seat to see what will happen next. The advanced sound effects place you right back in history and make you feel like you are riding right on the back of a horse fighting along. 

Canons blasting, gunshots blazing, battle cries, horse neighs, and prayers of some of the strongest men in battle are heard all throughout With Lee in Virginia. Victories, defeats, friendship, character, love, strength, duty to country, and devotion to God are just some of the many characteristics found in the characters of With Lee in Virginia. Heirloom Audio Productions takes great care in immersing their reader in the story.

Here is a lineup of some of the all star cast involved in making this historical audio adventure come to life!

We usually listen to the audio stories during our school time, but for the summer we were able to take the adventures on the road with us. My mom had double bypass surgery so we spent a week driving back and forth with an hour and a half drive each way. What a blessing this was to be able to hear and enjoy during such a scary time in our life. It also gave us a new perspective on the Civil War and what an ending! I'll have to leave you hanging on that one. 

 
There are several sets available for you to purchase and you can see those here. This adventure is recommended for ages 6 and up. Some of the additional options available include a MP3 download, ebook, printable poster with Lee's famous quote (see below), and more.

From the words of Robert E. Lee in a letter to his son, "Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less."

That sums up the overall theme of With Lee in Virginia.

Find out more by visiting Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Review of In Freedom's Cause Single Package

Heirloom Audio Productions has once again produced an exciting and thrilling audio drama titled In Freedom's Cause.

We received In Freedom's Cause Single Package which includes the following products:

• 2 CD Set with over 2 1/2 hours of adventure
• Digital download of a full color study guide
• MP3 download of the soundtrack
• Digital Download of The Prayer Of William Wallace in full color

In Freedom's Cause was recorded in London with a cast of well known voices that you just may recognize. It captivates audiences as the true tales of William Wallace and Robert the Bruce of Scotland unfold.  It is based on G.A. Henty's novel, In Freedom's Cause.

With lively sound affects and a passionate cast, In Freedom's Cause sheds light on how the world can be changed through leaders with remarkable faith in God.  The audio drama took our emotions on a full roller coaster ride as it felt like we were standing right beside these courageous heroes as they fought and battled for their freedom.  

Let the battle begin!

William Wallace was well known for his courage and sword skills, but his true strength is clearly shown to come from his faith in God.  He carried his psalter which contained the Psalms of David with him everywhere he went even to his death.

This is the kind of hero I want my children to learn about and 

Heirloom Audio Productions truly brings the Christian heroes of our history to life.  

Use In Our Homeschool

Don't miss the one on the floor!

We listened to the CD's as a family just before starting our regular school day as that seems to be the best time for us to accomplish family studies before everyone goes their own way.  So, that would include a 11th grade boy, 8th grade boy, 6th grade girl, and me.  Having both genders listen to the story, I can tell you that in our instance both loved it equally. Everyone would find their favorite spot and listen as the adventures unfolded.  Sometimes, we all would get a little confused as to what was going on while listening so we would need to listen closely.  

At the end of our listening time, we would review the questions on the study guide which would usually answer any confusion that we may have had.  The study guide includes questions on comprehension and how well we listened.  Usually someone could fill in the blanks for the one who may have been confused.  Using the study guide really helped me to assess what was retained and what was not. The study guide contained vocabulary words to discuss and often included ones that we were unfamiliar with.  Our favorite part was the thinking further section that helped to stir up conversation and allowed my children to express their own thoughts because they could not simply answer with yes or no.

At the end of the study guide were 3 Bible studies on fear, vengeance and forgiveness, and freedom.

You can find out more about In Freedom's Cause at these places as well:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InFreedomsCause
Twitter: https://twitter.com/InFreedomsCause
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/112701427096792421838/112701427096792421838/posts
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/jointhecause