Showing results by narrator "Elaine Claxton" in All Categories

What does Jane Austen mean when she writes approvingly of a character's 'gentility' and ‘delicacy’, or critically of another's 'indolence' and 'impertinence’? What are her characters doing when they take the measure of a person's 'air' and 'address'? These questions and more are answered in this Janeite treasure trove, which examines the distinctive language woven through Austen’s signature stories. Maria Frawley takes 50 of those words - words that are integral to the fabric of Austen's fiction - and explores them in short, accessible and lively entries.

Looking out from Moon Cottage, Susan Hill records the sights and smells, the people, gardens, animals, births, festivals and deaths that mark the changing seasons in the small Oxfordshire community.

An exciting new animal series for children, set in the magical Blossom Wood... Join the Unicorns of Blossom Wood on their many adventures!

Isabelle, Lei and Cora are back in Blossom Wood – just in time for a magical festival. All of the animals are there, except for one. Lizzie the bunny is lost in Echo Mountains! Can the Unicorns of Blossom Wood use their magic to find her?

When cousins Cora, Isabelle and Lei discover magical hoof prints in the ground, they're whisked away to an amazing land where they're no longer girls … they're unicorns! But the animals in Blossom Wood don't believe in unicorns! Can the three cousins change their minds – with the help of a little magic?

It's bitingly cold but Little Grey Rabbit, Hare and Squirrel wrap themselves up in warm clothes and make their way to the frozen pond. There they join the many animals having fun on the ice.

Lei's fed up – she still hasn't found out what her unicorn magic is. But when Lei, Cora and Isabelle arrive back in Blossom Wood, there's a bigger problem. A summer storm is pouring down and everywhere is being flooded! Will it ever stop raining – and will Lei find out her magical power?

Loulou the squirrel is organizing a talent show in Blossom Wood, and Cora, Lei and Isabelle can't wait. From tightrope-walking bears and a breakdancing beaver to hula-hooping bunnies and caterpillar jugglers, the woodlanders are busy practising. But why isn't Loulou performing anything herself? Can the Unicorns of Blossom Wood find out the real problem, and make Loulou truly happy?

Little Grey Rabbit is returning to the little house on the edge of a wood with Hare and Squirrel's Christmas present: a beautiful scarlet sledge. With great excitement they all take it to their favourite hill. But later that night careless, adventurous Hare takes the sledge for a moonlight ride and loses it... until Rat comes to the rescue!

It is Fuzzypeg the Hedgehog's birthday, and he is given many special gifts. His mother tells him that now he is bigger and braver he is allowed out on his own, but he must be careful because there are dangers about. When Fuzzypeg doesn't return home that night, the animals know that he must be in trouble, and they all gather together in a big effort to save him.

Little Grey Rabbit once gave her tail away to Wise Owl in exchange for some of his knowledge. With the help of kind Moldy Warp the Mole, Grey Rabbit is able to offer Wise Owl a very special gift.

Little Grey Rabbit, Squirrel and Hare live in a cosy little house on the edge of a wood. Grey Rabbit is kept very busy gathering food for her friends and learning how to grow her own vegetables. But when a fierce weasel comes to live in the woods, life becomes very dangerous for all the animals. Grey Rabbit will need all of her quick thinking and bravery if she is to save her friends.

The third story in the charming Little Grey Rabbit series, in which Hare visits the famous Toad, is fooled by a very clever fox and makes a daring escape through Fox's kitchen window.

DSI Billie Wilde’s romantic relationship is intense—but it’s nothing compared to the pressure of her latest case, especially since the new chief of police is gunning for her squad. If they don’t get a handle on a series of deaths—which seem to have a connection to Alice in Wonderland—they could wind up being demoted. And the identity of one of the victims has made things devastatingly personal for Billie.

With the possible exception of Mozart, Verdi is the most popular opera composer who ever lived. Quite early in his career his tunes were being cranked out by barrel organs throughout Europe and were well known to many who may never even have heard his name. But the complex man behind them remains elusive and puzzling. In this portrait-in-sound, Jeremy Siepmann and a group of distinguished actors take an in-depth look behind the popular image of a man who was, and perhaps remains, the most enduring national hero in Italian history and a colossus in the history of music itself.

Frédéric Chopin is the pianist-composer par excellence. Regarded as one of the most mesmerizing performers of his day, he lives on in his music – his waltzes, mazurkas, études, preludes, nocturnes, three piano sonatas, two piano concertos, and much more. Here, his life, from his birth in Poland, his famous affair with the French writer George Sand, to his death at the age of 39 in Paris, is told with his music featuring prominently. We think of Chopin as a "frail, sheltered genius" but this forthright portrait demonstrates he was far more boisterous than that.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the most astonishing child prodigy in the history of music, is felt by many people to be the greatest composer who ever lived. Dominated and shaped by a highly intelligent but frustrated and ambitious father, his story sees the development of a unique genius, from precocious and often endearing childhood to liberated fulfillment, unexpected poverty, and a tragically early death. Generously illustrated by Mozart’s music, from his fifth to his final year, this portrait-in-sound reveals a fascinating yet elusive character, drawing richly on the words of the composer himself and those who knew him.

The life of Franz Liszt was as daring and spectacular as his music. Famed throughout Europe as the greatest pianist of the nineteenth century, he was one of the most original and prophetic composers who ever lived. Beautiful in youth, glowering in age, his high-profile love affairs were the talk of the town wherever he went and his generosity to young musicians was legendary. In this account of his epic life, actors’ readings combine with plentiful musical excerpts to paint a living portrait of a highly complex man.

Six stories starring Alison Uttley's best-known character, Little Grey Rabbit. Since their first publication over 80 years ago, Alison Uttley's Little Grey Rabbit stories have become classics of children's literature. Enjoy the following adventures on this special audio collection: The Squirrel, The Hare and the Little Grey Rabbit, How Little Grey Rabbit Got Back Her Tail, The Story of Fuzzypeg the Hedgehog, The Great Adventure of Hare.

Guests are arriving to celebrate Christmas at Lady Holly's ball, and at the top of each guest's wish list is a last chance to find true love before the new year. Amid the sumptuous delicacies, glittering decorations, and swell of the orchestra, every duchess and debutante, lord and lackey has a hopeful heart.