Farshore adopts 'total audio' strategy

Farshore has adopted a "total audio" strategy which will see the imprint publish an audiobook for every narrative book published in print. 

The publisher pointed to the increasing number of children listening to audio, citing data from Nielsen's Understanding the UK Children's Book Consumer 2020 report, showing a five percentage point increase in children aged five to 10 using audio at least weekly. 

Rebecca Fortuin, senior audio editor, said: "At Farshore, we are dedicated to making every child a proud reader through a broad and diverse portfolio. Our Total Audio policy allows us to increase the accessibility of our authors’ and licensors’ brilliant books, delivering them to the widest audience possible. We are proud to be working with the very best existing and upcoming talent, ensuring every child not only sees themselves on the page but also hears themselves in the audio."

Highlights in the upcoming audio programme include the release of a collection of the Thomas the Tank Engine Railway Classic stories, Minecraft: The Woodsword Chronicles, with narration by Keylor Leigh ("Good Girls") and The Very Merry Murder Club winter mystery anthology, co-edited by Robin Stevens and Serena Patel, which will be voiced by 13 narrators to reflect the diversity of the collection. Julia Donaldson’s bestselling Spinderella will also be available in audio for the first time, alongside new recordings for Follow the Swallow, The Wrong Kind of Bark and The Quick Brown Fox Cub.

The launch follows a successful year for Farshore’s audio list, including a spot in the finals of the prestigious New York Festivals Radio awards for Tomos Robert’ "The Great Realisation". The poem was brought to life by author and performer Roberts, with an original score from composer Katie Phillips.

The audio team have also published British Book Award-winner and YA author Holly Jackson’s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder trilogy complete with full cast and original sound design, as well as releasing a World Book Day special for Kill Joy. Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me series, which was a 2021 TikTok hit, has also been made available to UK listeners for the first time, narrated by Kate Simses.

The imprint said its audio audio team "go far and wide to secure the very best voice talent to enchant every reader" signing up award-winning actress Ambreen Razia ("Black Mirror") as the narrator for Anabelle Sami and Allen Fatimaharan’s Waterstones Children’s Book Prize-shortlisted Llama Out Loud series and leading voice actor Nigel Pilkington, voice of Thomas the Tank Engine’s Percy, for the new middle-grade series Monster Hunting for Beginners by debut author Ian Mark.