Podcast Directory
Librivox: Fighting the Whales by Ballantyne, R.M.Join Now to Follow
A fatherless boy joins the crew of a whaling ship in order to earn a living for himself and his mother. Beyond being a fascinating depiction of a now-alien time, occupation, and culture, it's also a rousing adventure story. One is left with the impression that hunting and catching a whale in a sailing ship was akin to you or me being stalked, ambushed, and killed by a shoebox full of mice. (Summary by the reader.)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Bible (WEB) NT 10: Ephesians by World English BibleJoin Now to Follow
Paul writes to the church at Ephesus, beginning with a praise to God for the forgiveness of their sins and for choosing them in His grace. Paul prays for the spiritual well-being of the Ephesians and reminds them how sinful they were before they turned to Christ. He then speaks of his revelation, by which he was selected to preach to the Gentiles, for they can also be saved. Among other things, he urges the Ephesians to be humble, to avoid sexual immorality and foul speech, and to be united in Christ even though they are diverse in spiritual talents. He also gives advice to husbands and wives, children and fathers, and servants and masters. The letter concludes with an extended metaphor of the Christian as spiritual warrior. (Summary by Leon Mire)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Gulliver's Travels by Swift, JonathanJoin Now to Follow
Gulliver's Travels (1726, amended 1735), officially Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, is a novel by Jonathan Swift that is both a satire on human nature and a parody of the "travelers' tales" literary sub-genre. It is widely considered Swift's magnum opus and is his most celebrated work, as well as one of the indisputable classics of English literature. (Summary from Wikipedia)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Anthem by Rand, AynJoin Now to Follow
Anthem is a dystopic science fiction story taking place at some unspecified future date. Mankind has entered another dark age as a result of what Rand saw as the weaknesses of socialistic thinking and economics. Technological advancement is now carefully planned (when it is allowed to occur, if at all) and the concept of individuality has been eliminated (for example, the word "I" has disappeared from the language). As is common in her work, Rand draws a clear distinction between the "socialist/communal" values of equality and brotherhood and the "productive/capitalist" values of achievement and individuality. The story also parallels Stalinist Russia, which was currently going on at the time as the story was published. (Summary from Wikipedia)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Stalky & Co. by Kipling, RudyardJoin Now to Follow
Rudyard Kipling published Stalky & Co. in 1899. Set at an English boarding school in a seaside town on the North Devon coast. (The town, Westward Ho!, is not only unusual in having an exclamation mark, but also in being itself named after a novel, by Charles Kingsley.) The book is a collection of linked short stories, with some information about the eponymous Stalky's later life. Beetle, one of the main trio, is said to be based on Kipling himself, while Stalky may be based on Lionel Dunsterville. The stories have elements of the macabre (dead cats), bullying and violence, and hints about sex, making them far from the childish or idealised world of the typical school story. Edmund Wilson, critic, in The Wound and the Bow, was both shocked and uncomprehending. Adapted by Tim Bulkeley from the Wikipedia entry.
By LibriVox
Librivox: Boy's Will, A by Frost, RobertJoin Now to Follow
A Boy's Will is Robert Frost's first full volume of poetry. Issued when Frost was approaching forty, it established his reputation and created a revolution in American poetry. With this publication, Frost became an established poet. He later became the major American poet of the twentieth century. A Boy's Will is characteristic of Frost's ability to conjure photographically clear physical images while ruminating on the complexities of the human condition, its frailties and strengths, and its temporal state, like that of his beloved New England landscape. (Summary by Becky Miller)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Foreign Lands by Stevenson, Robert LouisJoin Now to Follow
LibriVox volunteers bring you 17 different recordings of Foreign Lands by Robert Louis Stevenson. This was the weekly poetry project for the week of April 22nd, 2007.
By LibriVox
Librivox: Current Superstitions by Bergen, Fanny DickersonJoin Now to Follow
No matter how enlightened, chances are you've been raised around superstitious lore of one kind or another. Fanny Dickerson Bergen was one of the original researchers of North American oral traditions relating to such key life events and experiences as babyhood and childhood, marriage, wishes and dreams, luck, warts and cures, death omens and mortuary customs, and "such truck," as Huck Finn would say. You'll be surprised at how many of these old saws you'll know. Here's a quote from Chapter One, Babyhood: Monday’s child is fair of face, Tuesday’s child is full of grace, Wednesday’s child is sour and sad, Thursday’s child is merry and glad, Friday’s child is loving and giving, Saturday’s child must work for a living; But the child that is born on the Sabbath day Is blithe and bonny, good and gay. --Baldwinsville, N. Y. All of these readings are as short as 5 minutes and no longer than 15 minutes, with plenty of pithy one-liners in the form of proverbs, always given with the locale they came from in Canada or the United States (with clear influences in British tradition). (summary by Denny Sayers)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Alexander's Bridge by Cather, Willa SibertJoin Now to Follow
Bartley Alexander is a construction engineer and world-renowned builder of bridges going through what's known today (but not in 1912) as a mid-life crisis. Although married to his wife Winifred, Bartley resumes his acquaintance with a former lover, Hilda Burgoyne, in London. The affair proves to gnaw at Bartley's sense of propriety and honor. (Summary from Wikipedia)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Long Poems Collection 004 by VariousJoin Now to Follow
Librivox’s Long Poems Collection 004: a collection of 9 public-domain poems longer than 5 minutes in length.
By LibriVox
