Talking Books

Audiobook Inventor Dr. Robert B Irwin

and a New Way to Read

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Atheneum Books for Young Readers

(Simon & Schuster)

(pub. 2.24.2026)

32 pages

Ages 4 - 8

Author: Jenny Lacika

   Illustrator: Ashanti Fortson

Character: Robert B. Irwin

Overview:

"Robert Benjamin Irwin loves to learn and explore. But when he’s five, his eyes grow red and painful from fever, and he loses his sight. Since he can no longer see, Robert focuses instead on what he can do: discovering new ways to learn and experience the world through sound.

As he grows up, Robert learns to read books written in Braille, a system of raised dots that can be read with fingers. But as much as he loves stories, he finds finger-reading Braille slow and difficult. He wishes he could listen to a story like he listens to the birds. So, with a team of audio engineers, Robert sets out to make it happen—and revolutionizes reading for people around the world."

Tantalizing taste:

" But when Robert was five, his eyes grew red and painful and his body burned with fever.

Soon his entire world went dark.

Robert couldn't look for something new now, but that didn't stop him from finding new things to discover.

He could hear the splash of the surf on the shore,

the squirrels skittering in circles around the trees,

and the crunch of leaves beneath his feet,

and ... the birds.

Now, rather than peeking inside nests, Robert listened and learned to discern the sounds and songs of different birds."

And something more: The author, Jenny Lacika, shares in the Author's Note: "I was born with strabismus, and audiobooks were a way for me to read even when my eyes were tired and couldn't stay focused on the text....Robert's disability led him to create something that he otherwise wouldn't have because his experiences gave him new perspective and knowledge."