While most of the reading we do in our family is the turning the page kind, we occasionally like to listen to stories as well. Sometimes we listen in our car while driving to a destination far away. Sometimes we gather in our family room. It’s fun to laugh together at funny lines and discuss what we heard afterward. So I’m happy to discover a new series of audio stories available on the Web from the Hazardous Players. The stories are based on the adventures of Sirs Cottington and Bratwurst in the magical kingdom of Udenland.

Here’s a little more information about the episodes from the Hazardous Players’ website:

“The Hazardous Players will introduce you to some of the eccentric inhabitants of Udenland society, who our two moderately brave and occasionally noble knights often encounter on their continuing travels. Plus we will take you to the far corners of Udenland: deep in the Ragstag Mountains, across the Tempest Sea, to new and distant lands where undiscovered and extraordinary creatures can be found.  Creatures that even the extensive Henchwoods Guide to Magical Creatures has not catalogued.”

I’ve listened to a few of the episodes now, and I found them to be well produced, highly imaginative and funny. They’re appropriate for younger kids, even though they won’t get all the humor. This nuanced storytelling is what helps the episodes appeal to adults as well as children.

To find out more, check out the Hazardous Players’ website. You can listen to past episodes by accessing the archives, and you can sign up to receive notices when new episodes are uploaded. You can also click on pages that will show you drawings of all the characters and call up a guide to the magical creatures talked about in Udenland.

If you’d like to know more about this creative group and its origins, here’s an excellent interview at the young adult book site, Finding Neverland.