Showing results by publisher "Spoken Realms" in All Categories

Guy de Maupassant is widely regarded as the father of the modern short story. As his 13 volumes of short stories attest, he was a prolific writer of this form. He had a simple, efficient style of writing and, like Anton Chekhov, found inspiration for his stories in the day-to-day lives of characters, in which their hidden natures are often revealed. Many of his works also centered on the Franco-Prussian War, in which he served.

The narrator walks the streets of St. Petersburg at night, contemplating how ridiculous his life is.

Miss Julie is probably the most famous play by the Swedish playwright August Strindberg, one of the founding fathers of naturalistic theater. In this claustrophobic drama, the interplay between social order and individual identity is explored in great detail. At the end the aristocratic Julie, goaded by her manipulative manservant, John, is faced with the ultimate decision: independence or annihilation.

One of Hemingway's most acclaimed novels, "A Farewell to Arms," narrated by Mike Vendetti. Set during World War I, this poignant love story draws upon Hemingway's own experiences as an ambulance driver. Within the backdrop of war's brutality, the narrative balances moments of humor with the profound horrors of battle. Hemingway, a master of literary expression, skillfully captures the complex emotions of love, fear, and the occasional levity that can emerge even in the darkest of circumstances, offering listeners a deeply immersive experience.

As Blandings Castle slumbers in the sunshine, secret passions are astir: Lord Emsworth's niece, Millicent, wants to marry impecunious secretary, Hugo Carmody; and his nephew, Ronnie Fish, wants to marry chorus girl Sue Brown.

R. Austin Freeman presents eight cases for his ingenious Edwardian "scientific investigator", Dr. John Thorndyke, including: a classic locked-room murder mystery; a race to find a disappeared child; a dead woman discovered on a train; the story of the vengeful ghost of a murdered Chinese mandarin; and the enigmatic Moabite Cypher. As ever, Dr. Thorndyke meticulously collects the evidence of footprints, dust, hairs, and fibres, and even a single blue sequin, to unravel the mystery and see that justice is done.

When Mike Jackson's father suffers a serious financial setback, all Mike's hopes of "Varsity Blue" and a career playing his beloved cricket are dashed. Instead, he must go out and earn his living - in the alien world of the New Asiatic Bank, under the management of his nemesis Mr. John Bickersdyke. At first, all seems black; but then Mike finds that he has an ally, in the immaculate form of the irrepressible Psmith, who is likewise sentenced to a career in commerce. And Psmith has plans for the reform of Mr Bickersdyke....

North and South follows the young Margaret Hale as she is caught in the middle of the brutal world between employers and local workers following the Industrial Revolution. She finds herself at odds from the very start with John Thornton, a local factory owner and self-made man, as she believes him to be unfeeling and callous about the poverty and suffering of the workers while John sees Margaret as haughty and entitled. Further conflicts arise when the workers strike and Margaret feels compelled to intervene with no regard for her own safety.

War and Peace is rightly considered to be one of the most important books ever written. Leo Tolstoy's epic novel chronicles the Napoleonic Wars from the viewpoint of five noble Russian families: Rostov, Bolkonsky, Bezukhov, Drubetskoy and Kuragin. The main story begins in 1805 with Napoleon's impending invasion of Austria, and ends with his disastrous retreat from Moscow in 1813, moving deftly between geopolitics, military strategy, family alliances, religion and philosophy as the men and women of these families try to survive and get ahead.

Oedipus the King is the story of a man whose life is destroyed by his own good intentions. When a terrible secret from his past is brought to the light of day, the consequences are chilling - and ineluctable.

The explosive, definitive account of Michael Jackson’s fall from grace has now been updated with four new fascinating chapters. Award-winning journalist Diane Dimond, who first broke the story of the King of Pop’s battles against child molestation charges from 1993 to 2005, takes you behind the scenes and into the courtroom of one of the most controversial cases of the decade. This audio version gives listeners a dramatic glimpse of one reporter’s vigilance and unending quest to uncover the truth.

Jay Gatsby is a millionaire who throws extravagant parties that attract famous celebrities, but no one really knows him - no one except for his neighbor, Nick Carraway. Often touted as a Great American Novel, The Great Gatsby is Nick's account of one summer spent with his wealthy friend and Nick's front-row seat to Gatsby's wealth, his dreams, and his impossible quest for love with the enigmatic Daisy Buchanan.

The Speckled Band: one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic Sherlock Holmes adventures, published in 1892. Doyle considered this tale to be his best Holmes story - a "locked door" mystery. It has been adapted for stage, film, radio, and TV and is now available in audiobook format, where Phillip J. Mather's masterful delivery transports the listener back over 100 years to Victorian England.

James Allen (1864-1912) was a philosopher and pioneer of the New Thought movement. A prolific author, his works have become a fundamental source for many of the concepts used today in motivational and self-help programs. The Mastery of Destiny is Allen's treatise on the apparent conflict between fate and free will. He states that there is a method by which these opposing forces can be reconciled.

Imagine waking up one morning and finding that you are a giant insect, a cockroach, still perceiving your surroundings and family as they are, but unable to comminicate. This is what happens to Gregor Samsa. Yesterday he was a traveling salesman, and today he finds himself a repulsive vermin.

Upon finding a mysterious note at the scene of an accident, spunky Ann Beddingfeld throws caution to the wind and sets sail for an adventure to South Africa. She gets more thrills than she bargained for when she finds herself embroiled in a crooked diamond scheme, a murder, and in the clutches of the mysterious “Colonel".

In The Red Thumb Mark, the doctor works to clear young Reuben Hornby of stealing a parcel of diamonds from his uncle's safe, despite the apparently damning evidence. Then, in The Eye of Osiris, an amateur Egyptologist abruptly goes missing, leaving behind a strangely vexatious will. In The Mystery of 31 New Inn, Thorndyke's long-time collaborator Dr. Jervis consults his mentor regarding a mystery who may be being slowly poisoned. And in A Silent Witness, someone is making very determined attempts to murder inoffensive newly-qualified Doctor Humphrey Jardine.

The melodramatic romance by Goethe The Sorrows of the Young Werther, the story of a troubled aesthete who kills himself for love, was first published in 1774 and has since become one of the staples of German literature. Such extravagant productions lend themselves readily to parody and naturally attracted the attention of skilled satirists like Thomas Love Peacock.

Join Peter Pan, Wendy, John, and Michael Darling along with the forever young Lost Boys of Neverland in their fight against Captain James Hook and his dastardly pirate crew! Will the children defeat Hook or will that pesky tick tocking of the crocodile catch up with him first? Making this full cast production unique is including children in appropriate roles which only adds to the authenticity of this beloved classic tale about the Boy Who Refused to Grow Up.

It's the Philippines in the 1800s. The Filipino gentleman Crisostomo Ibarra returns from his studies abroad and finds the city of Manila changed, especially after he learns of his father's mysterious death. After a violent encounter with a monk, Ibarra is excommunicated. Maria Clara has to choose between being a dutiful daughter and the love of her life. Poor Sisa searches for her children, while municipal guards try to capture her for the alleged gold coins that have gone missing from the church. Elias wrestles with a mysterious crocodile in the dark waters of the Pasig.