
Benny Ramírez and the Nearly Departed
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $16.20
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Gary Tiedemann
About this listen
Benny Ramírez can see dead people . . . Well, one dead person, anyway. A hilarious and heartwarming story about a boy who can suddenly see the ghost of his famous musician grandfather!
After moving cross-country into his late grandfather’s Miami mansion, Benny discovers that the ghost of his famous trumpet-playing abuelo, the great Ignacio Ramírez, is still there . . . and isn’t too thrilled about it. He’s been barred from the afterlife, and no one can see him except his grandson. But Benny’s got problems of his own. He’s enrolled in a performing arts school with his siblings, despite having no obvious talent.
Luckily, Abuelo believes they can help each other. Abuelo has until New Year’s Eve to do some good in the world and thinks that teaching Benny how to play the trumpet and become a school celebrity might be the key to earning his wings. Having no better ideas, Benny finds himself taking Abuelo's advice—to disastrous and hilarious results.
Benny and Abuelo will find that there’s more than one way to be great in this unforgettable, laugh-out-loud tale of family, music, and self-discovery.
©2024 José Pablo Iriarte (P)2024 Listening LibraryCritic reviews
“Hilarious and heartfelt. . . . A musical, food-filled party for the artist in everyone!”—Carlos Hernandez, Pura Belpré Award-winning author of Sal and Gabi Break the Universe
“A fun and lyrical exploration of what it means to find your true talent while keeping your priorities straight. . . . A stunning debut by a rising talent.”—David Bowles, Pura Belpré Honor-winning author of They Call Me Güero
“A funny and heartwarming story about family, friendship, and discovering your talents that resonates like a beautiful song.”—Christina Diaz Gonzalez, Edgar Award-winning author of Concealed
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Peril at Price Manor
- By: Laura Parnum
- Narrated by: Caitlin Kelly
- Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Halle dreams of becoming a scream queen. She practices her loudest scream every day and has learned a lot from studying the horror movies of her favorite director, Maximus Price. Maximus lives just outside town, and when the chance to go to his home arises, Halle grabs it with both hands. She doesn’t realize that real life horrors await her at Price Manor.
By: Laura Parnum
-
Always, Clementine
- By: Carlie Sorosiak
- Narrated by: Taylor Meskimen
- Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Clementine is different from other mice: she can calculate the speed of light and she dreams in Latin. The scientists say she’s a genius and put her through test after test. Clementine is proud of being a good lab mouse, but she’s lonely. Her only snatches of friendship occur during her late-night visits with a chimpanzee named Rosie. When a compassionate lab technician frees Clementine, the mouse discovers an outside world full of wonders: brussels sprouts, games of speed chess, television fame, and a chance for a real home. But for Clementine, it’s not enough to be free.
-
-
Story of friendship
- By Kris S on 09-27-24
By: Carlie Sorosiak
-
The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry
- By: Chad Morris, Shelly Brown
- Narrated by: Stephanie Willing
- Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Eleven-year-old Juniper Berry lives in a cabin with her family deep in the wild woods. Living off the grid is usually exciting, like the time she chased off three growling raccoons with a tree branch and some acorns, or when she thought she glimpsed the legendary Bigfoot. But her happy life in the wild ends abruptly when her younger brother gets sick, and the family moves to the city to be closer to the hospital. Juniper and her older sister are sent to live with cousins they hardly know and attend a public school for the first time, which is harder to navigate than the wild woods ever were.
-
-
Fascinating, thoughtful perspective.
- By W. Swore on 03-25-24
By: Chad Morris, and others
-
The Mystery of Locked Rooms
- By: Lindsay Currie
- Narrated by: Eleanor McCormick
- Length: 5 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twelve-year-old Sarah Greene wants nothing more from her seventh-grade year than to beat the hardest escape room left in her town with her best friends, West, and Hannah. But when a foreclosure notice shows up on Sarah's front door, everything changes. Since her father became ill two years ago, things have been bad, but not lose your house bad . . . until now.
-
-
if you loved Goonies
- By Robert A. Magee on 01-24-25
By: Lindsay Currie
-
Battle for the Park
- Futureland, Book 1
- By: H.D. Hunter
- Narrated by: Ron Butler, Fred Berman, Jeanette Illidge, and others
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone wants a ticket to Futureland, where you can literally live out your wildest dreams. Want to step inside your favorite video game? Go pro in a sports arena? Perform at a real live concert? Grab your ticket and come right in.
-
-
LOVED IT!!!
- By Garland Family on 02-04-24
By: H.D. Hunter
-
Trex
- By: Christyne Morrell
- Narrated by: Jacob Mcnatt, Erin Ruth Walker, Maria Marquis
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Trex’s experimental brain implant saved his life—but it also made his life a lot harder. Now he shocks everything he touches. When his overprotective mother finally agrees to send him to a real school for sixth grade, Trex is determined to fit in.
-
Peril at Price Manor
- By: Laura Parnum
- Narrated by: Caitlin Kelly
- Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Halle dreams of becoming a scream queen. She practices her loudest scream every day and has learned a lot from studying the horror movies of her favorite director, Maximus Price. Maximus lives just outside town, and when the chance to go to his home arises, Halle grabs it with both hands. She doesn’t realize that real life horrors await her at Price Manor.
By: Laura Parnum
-
Always, Clementine
- By: Carlie Sorosiak
- Narrated by: Taylor Meskimen
- Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Clementine is different from other mice: she can calculate the speed of light and she dreams in Latin. The scientists say she’s a genius and put her through test after test. Clementine is proud of being a good lab mouse, but she’s lonely. Her only snatches of friendship occur during her late-night visits with a chimpanzee named Rosie. When a compassionate lab technician frees Clementine, the mouse discovers an outside world full of wonders: brussels sprouts, games of speed chess, television fame, and a chance for a real home. But for Clementine, it’s not enough to be free.
-
-
Story of friendship
- By Kris S on 09-27-24
By: Carlie Sorosiak
-
The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry
- By: Chad Morris, Shelly Brown
- Narrated by: Stephanie Willing
- Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Eleven-year-old Juniper Berry lives in a cabin with her family deep in the wild woods. Living off the grid is usually exciting, like the time she chased off three growling raccoons with a tree branch and some acorns, or when she thought she glimpsed the legendary Bigfoot. But her happy life in the wild ends abruptly when her younger brother gets sick, and the family moves to the city to be closer to the hospital. Juniper and her older sister are sent to live with cousins they hardly know and attend a public school for the first time, which is harder to navigate than the wild woods ever were.
-
-
Fascinating, thoughtful perspective.
- By W. Swore on 03-25-24
By: Chad Morris, and others
-
The Mystery of Locked Rooms
- By: Lindsay Currie
- Narrated by: Eleanor McCormick
- Length: 5 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twelve-year-old Sarah Greene wants nothing more from her seventh-grade year than to beat the hardest escape room left in her town with her best friends, West, and Hannah. But when a foreclosure notice shows up on Sarah's front door, everything changes. Since her father became ill two years ago, things have been bad, but not lose your house bad . . . until now.
-
-
if you loved Goonies
- By Robert A. Magee on 01-24-25
By: Lindsay Currie
-
Battle for the Park
- Futureland, Book 1
- By: H.D. Hunter
- Narrated by: Ron Butler, Fred Berman, Jeanette Illidge, and others
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone wants a ticket to Futureland, where you can literally live out your wildest dreams. Want to step inside your favorite video game? Go pro in a sports arena? Perform at a real live concert? Grab your ticket and come right in.
-
-
LOVED IT!!!
- By Garland Family on 02-04-24
By: H.D. Hunter
-
Trex
- By: Christyne Morrell
- Narrated by: Jacob Mcnatt, Erin Ruth Walker, Maria Marquis
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Trex’s experimental brain implant saved his life—but it also made his life a lot harder. Now he shocks everything he touches. When his overprotective mother finally agrees to send him to a real school for sixth grade, Trex is determined to fit in.
-
The Guardian Test (Legends of Lotus Island #1)
- By: Christina Soontornvat, Kevin Hong
- Narrated by: Sura Siu
- Length: 2 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Young Plum is shocked to discover that she's been accepted to the Guardian Academy on Lotus Island, an elite school where kids learn how to transform into Guardians, magical creatures who are sworn to protect the natural world. The Guardian masters teach Plum and her friends how to communicate with animals and how to use meditation to strengthen their minds and bodies. All the kids also learn to fight, so they can protect the defenseless if needed.
-
-
Wow
- By Manolo on 11-13-24
By: Christina Soontornvat, and others
-
The Lost Library
- By: Rebecca Stead, Wendy Mass
- Narrated by: Christopher Gebauer, Jennifer Blom, Rob Dircks
- Length: 4 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight in the small town of Martinville, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two weathered books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change. Evan and his best friend Rafe quickly discover a link between one of the old books and a long-ago event that none of the grown-ups want to talk about. The two boys start asking questions whose answers will transform not only their own futures, but the town itself.
-
-
I might not be the intended audience
- By James M. Orlando on 03-07-24
By: Rebecca Stead, and others
-
Simon Sort of Says
- By: Erin Bow
- Narrated by: Will Collyer
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Simon O'Keeffe's biggest claim to fame should be the time his dad accidentally gave a squirrel a holy sacrament. Or maybe the alpaca disaster that went viral on YouTube. But the story the whole world wants to tell about Simon is the one he'd do anything to forget: the story in which he's the only kid in his class who survived a school shooting. Two years after the infamous event, twelve-year-old Simon and his family move to the National Quiet Zone—the only place in America where the internet is banned.
-
-
Todays issues
- By Celeste on 01-26-25
By: Erin Bow
-
Skyriders
- By: Polly Holyoke
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Thirteen-year-old Kiesandra's best friend isn't human, but that doesn't stop her from sharing jokes and secrets with her winged horse, N'Rah. She, like every other person with a skysteed, can communicate with N'Rah through her mind. Their bond is critical when one day, monsters from long ago reemerge to ravage a nearby village. No one knows how to fight the fearsome chimerae except Kie's uncle . . . and now Kie. Injured in the battle, Uncle Dug makes her promise to bring his attack plan and weapons to the capital. Kie reluctantly agrees.
-
-
Amazing Fantasy
- By Karen Reeder on 09-07-24
By: Polly Holyoke
-
Mid-Air
- By: Alicia D. Williams
- Narrated by: Landon Woodson
- Length: 4 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s the last few months of eighth grade, and Isaiah feels lost. He thought his summer was going to be him and his boys Drew and Darius, hanging out, doing wheelies, watching martial arts movies, and breaking tons of Guinness World Records before high school. But now, more and more, Drew seems to be fading from their friendship, and though he won’t admit it, Isaiah knows exactly why. Because Darius is…gone.
-
Control Freaks
- By: J.E. Thomas
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii, Marc Anthony Samuel, Maxwell Glick, and others
- Length: 6 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Benjamin Banneker STEM Academy is the top middle school in Denver. Let’s just say the kids are . . . competitive. When Principal Yee announces the start of an epic Team Competition for the school, Frederick Douglass Zezzmer knows that trophy’s got his name on it. That’ll show his sports-obsessed Dad that he’s worthy, right? Only problem is, it’s a TEAM competition … and Doug isn’t so great working in a team environment (except with his best friend Huey, of course).
-
-
Different voices for characters
- By Amazon Customer on 02-22-25
By: J.E. Thomas
-
Confessions of a Class Clown
- By: Arianne Costner
- Narrated by: Jacob Mcnatt
- Length: 6 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet Jack Reynolds. Making people laugh is his life's work. Jack's wacky MyTube channel is really starting to take off. The only problem is, for the truly epic posts, he needs a collaborator. And, well, he doesn't exactly have any friends. So Jack has to swallow his pride and join the new afterschool club, Speed Friendshipping. But who would make the best partner in comedy?
-
-
Hilarious and heartfelt
- By jesp on 03-17-22
By: Arianne Costner
-
The Fire, the Water, and Maudie McGinn
- By: Sally J. Pla
- Narrated by: Gail Shalan
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Maudie always looks forward to the summers she spends in California with her dad. But this year, she must keep a troubling secret about her home life—one that her mom warned her never to tell. Maudie wants to confide in her dad about her stepdad's anger, but she’s scared. When a wildfire strikes, Maudie and her dad are forced to evacuate to the beach town where he grew up. It’s another turbulent wave of change. But now, every morning, from their camper, Maudie can see surfers bobbing in the water. She desperately wants to learn, but could she ever be brave enough?
-
-
Wonderful Listen
- By Regina on 10-07-24
By: Sally J. Pla
-
The First State of Being
- By: Erin Entrada Kelly
- Narrated by: Ramon de Ocampo
- Length: 5 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's August 1999. For twelve-year-old Michael Rosario, life at Fox Run Apartments in Red Knot, Delaware, is as ordinary as ever—except for the looming Y2K crisis and his overwhelming crush on his sixteen-year-old babysitter, Gibby. But when a disoriented teenage boy named Ridge appears out of nowhere, Michael discovers there is more to life than stockpiling supplies and pining over Gibby.
-
-
Great, diverse, very different plot!
- By pamela miller on 04-16-24
-
Fowl Play
- By: Kristin O'Donnell Tubb
- Narrated by: Jeanne Syquia
- Length: 7 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chloe Alvarez has never been to the reading of a last will and testament before, but she hopes it is just like the movies. Lies! Intrigue! The reading of her Uncle Will’s will is standard, until he announces his gift for Chloe: his African grey parrot, Charlie. Uncle Will was Chloe’s best friend. Without him, she’s left with only her memories of them together—which come to her in snapshots—and her new friend, Charlie. The parrot has a vast vocabulary, and soon Chloe hears her say something odd: It was murder, followed by homicide and cyanide.
-
Orris and Timble
- The Beginning
- By: Kate DiCamillo
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Orris the rat lives alone in an old barn surrounded by his treasures, until the day his solitude is disrupted by a sudden flutter of wings and a loud screech. A small owl has gotten caught in a trap in the barn. Can Orris “make the good and noble choice” (as the king on his prized sardine can might recommend) and rescue the owl, despite the fact that owls and rats are natural enemies? And if he does, will he be ready for the consequences?
-
-
Perfect little story for adults too!
- By Kindle Customer on 12-25-24
By: Kate DiCamillo
-
Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl
- By: Julie Kagawa
- Narrated by: Stephen Fu
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Shinji Takahashi is just an ordinary kid. An ordinary homeschooled smart-alecky orphan kid being raised by his globe-trotting aunt, Yui. But when a magical guardian decides to use him as a conduit to awaken its power, Shinji's life takes a turn for the anything-but-ordinary. Captured by the menacing Hightower Corporation, which is bent on using the guardian's magic for its own nefarious purposes, Shinji must team up with a brilliant young tech whiz named Lucy and her robot mouse, Tinker, in order to escape.
-
-
Good first book in series
- By jda on 08-07-22
By: Julie Kagawa