“Jack and Molly were twins, and this was their ninth birthday. Such a happy, exciting day it had been; it felt like a birthday all day long, so you can guess how jolly it was, and how special it made Jack and Molly feel. Little did they guess what a weird and mysterious end to the day was now approaching!.... “Had Aunt Phœbe known when she bought ‘this useful little thing’ what it Really Was—could she have foreseen any of the mysterious happenings that were to follow the arrival of her birthday ...
Jan 21, 2024•6 min•Ep. 1
Arthur Scott Bailey (1877 - 1949) Betsy Butterfly has an exciting time in the meadow. Some dangers of course but lots of fun and productive work. Join her as she flutters from adventure to adventure. Genre(s): Animals & Nature Language: English
Feb 01, 2022•1 hr 34 min
The Black Cat (1895-1922) was a monthly literary magazine, publishing original short stories, often about uncanny or fantastical topics. Many writers were largely unknown, but some famous authors also wrote original material for this magazine. This is the eighth issue of volume 2 with the following five short stories: "The Passing of the Polly Ann", by Collins Shackelford: the survivor of a drifting ship testifies to a startling revelation "The Obsequies of Ole Miss Jug", by Jean Ross Irvine: th...
Feb 01, 2022•1 hr 46 min
Hugh Walpole (1884 - 1941) Hjalmar Johanson (novel, 1926) is a boyish unworldly Swedish body builder come to Walpole’s fictional cathedral town of Polchester. His name is “simplified” by the townsfolk to Harmer John. He is attracted to Polchester by the cathedral. He has a vision of transforming the town and its populace to a healthier and more beautiful state. He establishes a business, essentially a gymnasium, to help people become healthier. He envisions tearing down the slums along the river...
Feb 01, 2022•14 hr 20 min
Tatian (c120 - c180) Translated by Hope W. Hogg (1863 - 1912) The Diatessaron is such an impersonal work that we do not need to know very much about its compiler. It will suffice here to say that he tells us himself that he was born "in the land of the Assyrians," and brought up a heathen. After travelling in search of knowledge, he settled at Rome, where he became a pupil of Justin Martyr, professed Christianity, and wrote in Greek his Address to the Greeks, translated in vol. iii. of the Ante-...
Feb 01, 2022•6 hr 31 min
Dorothy Parker (1893 - 1967) Dorothy Parker was an American poet, writer, critic, and satirist based in New York. She was best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. This poem is taken from her book "Enough Rope" (1926), freshly out of US copyright. Genre(s): Multi-version (Weekly and Fortnightly poetry)
Feb 01, 2022•18 min
Henry Lawson (1867 - 1922) 01. That Pretty Girl in the Army The Salvation Army is having a hard time of things in the rough Outback town of Bourke. That is, until Sister Hannah arrives...
Feb 01, 2022•1 hr 33 min
François Coppée (1842 - 1908) Translated by George Curzon (1859 - 1925) The poem was written in Paris during the Siege, November 1870 and celebrates caring nurses (specifically, nuns) who work with difficult patients. François Coppée was a French poet and novelist. He was famed as le poète des humbles (the poet of the humble). His verse and prose focus on plain expressions of emotion, patriotism, the joy of young love, and the pitifulness of the poor. Genre(s): Multi-version (Weekly and Fortnigh...
Jan 31, 2022•31 min
Jack London (1876 - 1916) Ten short stories on various themes and subjects, all more or less bizarre. The Night-Born is about a woman who draws inspiration to change her life from an article she chanced to read. In The Benefit of the Doubt , a crooked judge gets a lesson in justice. When The World Was Young is the story of Primitive Man and Civilized Man sharing the same body. And so on. Each story is unique and thought-provoking. Genre(s): Single Author Collections...
Jan 31, 2022•5 hr 28 min
"From vocalists you may learn much, but do not believe all that they say." Robert Schumann's Advice to Young Musicians is replete with good counsel. How, what, and from whom we learn is thematic to many of these 20 nonfiction selections, chosen by their readers. We learn from the lives of valorous persons (Simón Bolívar; José de San Martín; Booker T. Washington; Ishi, the last Yana Indian); from literature (Political Naturalism in England; Editorial Prejudice Against the Occult; Barbara Frietchi...
Jan 31, 2022•6 hr 6 min
G. K. Chesterton (1874 - 1936) Originality and humor characterize the plots of these clever detective stories. The mysteries are solved by the detective priest, Father Brown. His application of shrewd, common sense to the unraveling of a succession of strange crimes and happenings rob them of the supernatural element attributed to them by the credulous. This is the third collection of similar stories. Genre(s): Detective Fiction
Jan 31, 2022•7 hr 5 min
A. A. Milne (1882 - 1956) A charming collection of 10 relaxing tales, come along into the Forest as Winnie-the-Pooh tries to get some honey, the search is on for Eeyore's tail, some new visitors arrive in the form of Kanga and Baby Roo and an 'Expotition' is held to discover the North Pole! A classic for over 95 years and one that everyone young and old will surely adore. Genre(s): Animals & Nature, Family
Jan 31, 2022•2 hr 21 min
Arthur Gray Butler (1831 - 1909) This is a novel that describes the life of three friends while they are attending Rugby School. The work illustrates for the reader many of the boys' pranks, challenges, sorrows, and victories and, as well, gives a good sense of school life in the middle of the 19th Century. Anyone who looks back with fondness on his or her younger days of schooling will enjoy this work. Genre(s): Published 1900 onward
Jan 31, 2022•3 hr 14 min
Peter Coffey (1876 - 1943) The book is an introduction to metaphysics and Thomistic Ontology. Genre(s): Modern
Jan 31, 2022•20 hr 25 min
William Makepeace Thackeray (1811 - 1863) The Newcomes: Memoirs of a Most Respectable Family was written in serial form in 1854- 1855 by the author of such works as Vanity Fair, The Book Of Snobs. It tells the story of a few generations of the Newcome family: their rise to respectability, marriages, love, and the culture in which they lived. The novel teaches the reader what it was like to live in Victorian England Genre(s): Fictional Biographies & Memoirs Language: English...
Jan 28, 2022•41 hr 35 min
Anita Loos (1888 - 1981) In this comic novel written by American author Anita Loos, we follow the adventures of the fictional character Lorelei Lee who is a young blonde flapper. This story takes place in the hedonistic Jazz Age and is written in the form of a diary from Lorelei's viewpoint as she shares stories of the men she entertains in New York City and Europe. “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” was an instant bestseller and has been declared as “the great American novel” by Edith Wharton. Genre(s)...
Jan 28, 2022•3 hr 34 min
Arthur Wing Pinero (1855 - 1934) Left a widow 5 years ago at age 21, Iris Bellamy is shackled by terms of her husband's will that would leave her penniless if she remarries. Of course, "if she married a rich man, her interest in her late husband's estate would be no longer indispensible to her." But "rich men generally have some odious quality to counterbalance their wealth. The men one would marry are as poor as mice." So what do you think is likely to happen? Genre(s): Drama Language: English...
Jan 28, 2022•4 hr 10 min
Julia Darrow Cowles (1862 - 1919) In preparing this book the author has sought to awaken a keener perception and a higher appreciation of the artistic and ethical value of story-telling; to simplify some of its problems; to emphasize the true delight which the story-teller may share with her hearers; and to present fresh material which answers to the test of being good in substance as well as in literary form. Genre(s): Anthologies, Performing Arts Language: English...
Jan 28, 2022•5 hr 29 min
General Foods Corporation Published by the General Foods Corporation, featuring Calumet Baking baking powder, these recipes cover a variety of baked goods from biscuits, cakes, cookies, pies, rolls & bread, frostings & sauces, muffins, waffles & griddle cakes. Genre(s): Cooking Language: English
Jan 28, 2022•1 hr 59 min
Mother Stories from the Old Testament is a book of the best stories from the Old Testament that mothers can tell their children. Genre(s): Religion Language: English
Jan 28, 2022•1 hr 43 min
Rudyard Kipling (1868 - 1936) Barrack-Room Ballads is a collection of poems by Rudyard Kipling which describe life in the British Army, particularly in India, in his time. The poems are written in the voice and language of soldiers of that time. The collection includes some of his best known poems. Genre(s): Single author Language: English
Jan 28, 2022•2 hr 13 min
“The device on his shield was a young oak tree pulled up by the roots, with the Spanish word Desdichado, signifying Disinherited.” The novel opens with Mrs. Murray walking with two of her grandchildren along the banks of Loch Arroch in the Scottish border country. They appear to be well-to-do and distinguished, but all is not well within the family and sacrifices are necessary. Genre(s): Published 1800 -1900 Margaret O. Oliphant (1828 - 1897)
Jan 26, 2022•8 hr 13 min
Frederick Adams Woods (1873 - 1939) and Alexander Baltzly A study In the prevalence of war in Europe from 1400 to the present day. This small book summarises historical periods of peace compared to periods of war, as concluded by consultation with other historians, and seeks to answer the question as to if the incidence and duration of periods of national conflict were becoming more intense or not, and how the periods of war may correlate to other social trends. Genre(s): War & Military, His...
Jan 26, 2022•2 hr 58 min
B. M. Bower (1871 - 1940) This is an action-packed tale of the old west with richly drawn characters including the notorious Butch Cassidy, most of them upstanding but some decidedly not. A cashier is murdered during a bank robbery. The loot and the thieves are sought with dark concerns about who may be guilty. Family ties, ranch life, humor, and romance are interwoven throughout. B. M. Bower was one of the first women to write novels and short stories about the American Old West, of which more ...
Jan 26, 2022•6 hr 28 min
Jack London (1876 - 1916) This is a political play which is set in Washington DC. Howard Knox is a congressman and believes that there are corrupt practices going on at the firm of a very wealthy industrialist. Knox is being helped by the industrialists daughter who is helping him to locate documents that will support his claims. Genre(s): Suspense, Espionage, Political & Thrillers, Drama Language: English
Jan 25, 2022•3 hr 56 min
Lucian of Samosata (c. 125 - c. 180) Dialogues of the Dead are 30 miniature dialogues mocking the Homeric conception of the Greek gods, originally written in Attic Greek by Syrian author Lucian of Samosata. Almost 1900 years old, these dialogues still retain a lot of their original humor and wit.
Jan 25, 2022•2 hr 43 min
Frances Anne "Fanny" Kemble (1809 - 1893) These are 28 recordings of Faith by Fanny Kemble. ----- Fanny Kemble was a British actress who also found time to be a popular author of poetry, plays, travelogues, eleven volumes of memoirs, and more. She was an abolitionist after having been married for 14 years to a wealthy American plantation owner. This poem expresses the desire for trust over cynicism. Genre(s): Multi-version (Weekly and Fortnightly poetry)...
Jan 25, 2022•20 min
Christopher Morley (1890 - 1957) The great Canadian journalist and humorist ruminates and reflects upon his life and calling in this 1924 little gem. Genre(s): Essays & Short Works, Memoirs
Jan 25, 2022•1 hr 2 min
H. Rider Haggard (1856 - 1925) Rachel Dove is a British missionary's daughter in the wilds of Africa. Her life is turned around when fellow teenager Richard Darrien rescues her from a flash flood; their common initials alone may clue the reader in that these two are another pair of Haggard's predestined lovers. Some years later, after not having seen Richard in the meantime, Rachel runs afoul of one of the author's patented lustful villains, Ishmael, a renegade Englishman who plots with the Zulu...
Jan 25, 2022•14 hr 8 min
Arthur Young (1741 - 1820) Arthur Young, an English agriculturist, set out to write a travelogue on the state of agriculture in France and found himself in the midst of the French Revolution. His report on life in the capital and in the countryside in the years 1787, 1788, and 1789, replete with droll traveler's mishaps, becomes an eyewitness account of a society on the brink of catastrophe. From the court scene at Versailles to backroads villages comes this astonishing record of unfolding event...
Jan 25, 2022•14 hr 44 min
