Audio Books Podcasts
Librivox: Waterbiography, A by Leslie, Robert C.Join Now to Follow
Robert C. Leslie (1826-1901) was an artist and writer who, at an early age fell in love with the sea, the sea of Sail, not of Steam. He describes the progression of this love from wave to wave and boat to boat. Leslie sailed during the Great Age of Sail before Industrialism had taken possession of Britain. Leslie comments on the early days of singlehanded small boat sailing: "When I first began boating in the early forties[1840s], what is now called single-handed cruising was almost unknown among amateurs....people had a vague dread of it. Much of this has passed away, and hundreds of amateur boatmen, and even ladies, are now as much at home and really safer in a sailing-boat than they would be on the back of a hunter or bicycle." Leslie writes of one of his favorite cruising grounds about 1850: "No railway in my time came within fifteen miles of Sidmouth, and the few enterprising visitors who reached there by coach from Exeter called it dull. It was certainly not a gay place, but most of those who resided there in that happy valley did so rather with a view to quiet, and among them it was rare to find any one disposed to tamper with the grave routine of country life there." A Waterbiography captures a Lost Age. (Summary by Peter Kelleher)
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Librivox: Bible (ASV) 28: Hosea by American Standard VersionJoin Now to Follow
Hosea was the son of Beeri and a prophet in Israel in the 8th century BCE. He is one of the Twelve Prophets of the Jewish Hebrew Bible, also known as the Minor Prophets of the Christian Old Testament. We know practically nothing about the life or social status of Hosea. According to the Book of Hosea, he married the prostitute Gomer, the daughter of Diblatayim, at God's command. He lived in the Northern Kingdom in the period 740–725 BCE. In Hosea 5:8 ff., there is a reference to the wars which led to the capture of the kingdom by the Assyrians (ca. 734–732 BCE). It is not certain if he has also experienced the destruction of Samaria, which is foreseen in Hosea 14:1. Hosea's family life reflected the "adulterous" relationship which Israel had built with polytheistic gods. His children's names made them like walking prophecies of the fall of the ruling dynasty and the severed covenant with God — much like the prophet Isaiah a generation later. Hosea is often seen as a "prophet of doom", but underneath his message of destruction is a promise of restoration." (From Wikipedia)
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Librivox: Nase, Die by Gogol, Nikolai VasilievichJoin Now to Follow
The story tells of a St. Petersburg official whose nose leaves his face and develops a life of its own. (Summary by Wikipedia)
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Librivox: Bible (ASV) 01: Genesis by American Standard VersionJoin Now to Follow
"Genesis (Greek: "birth", "origin") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible, and the first of five books of the Pentateuch or Torah. It recounts the world from creation to the descent of the children of Israel into Egypt, and contains some of the best-known accounts of the Old Testament, including Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah's Ark, the Tower of Babel, and the biblical Patriarchs." (From Wikipedia, modified by Sam Stinson)
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Librivox: Lāčplēsis by Pumpurs, AndrejsJoin Now to Follow
Lāčplēsis is an epic poem by Andrejs Pumpurs, a Latvian poet, who wrote it between 1872-1887 based on local legends. Lāčplēsis is regarded as the Latvian national epic. The poem recounts the life of the legendary hero Lāčplēsis, chosen by the gods to become a hero of his people. His name means "Bear-slayer”. At the castle of Lord Aizkrauklis, he spies on the activities of the witch Spīdola(Spīdala), who is under the control of the Devil, and the holy man Kangars, who is in reality a traitor plotting to replace the old gods with Christianity. Lāčplēsis meets and falls in love with the maiden Laimdota and becomes friends with another hero, Koknesis ("Wood-bearer"). Further adventures seperate the lovers and bring Laimdota to Germany, but Lāčplēsis becomes lost in the Northern Sea, where he is welcomed by the daughter of the North Wind. In his dangerous journey home from the Northern Sea, he fights monsters and is reunited with Laimdota. They return home and celebrate wedding, but the heroes soon set off to fight the German crusaders. Kangars finds out the secret of Lāčplēsis' strength and treacherously reveals it to the Germans. In a seemingly friendly tournament Lāčplēsis is overpowered by the Black Knight, they both fall into Daugava river and disappear. (Summary adapted from Wikipedia by Kristine Bekere)
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Librivox: Warble for Lilac-Time by Whitman, WaltJoin Now to Follow
LibriVox volunteers bring you 6 different recordings of Warble for Lilac-Time by Walt Whitman.
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Librivox: Undine by Fouqué, Friedrich de la MotteJoin Now to Follow
Undine is a novel by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué concerning Undine, a water spirit who marries a Knight named Huldebrand in order to gain a soul. It is an early German romance, which has been translated into English and other languages. The novel served as inspiration for two operas in the romantic style by Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann and Albert Lortzing, respectively, and two ballets: the nineteenth century Ondine and the twentieth century Undine. An edition of the book was illustrated by Arthur Rackham. In The Fantastic Imagination, George MacDonald writes, "Were I asked, what is a fairytale? I should reply, Read Undine: that is a fairytale ... of all fairytales I know, I think Undine the most beautiful." (Summary from Wikipedia)
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Librivox: Bible (ASV) 31: Obadiah by American Standard VersionJoin Now to Follow
"The Book of Obadiah is found in both the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, where it is the shortest book, only one chapter long. Its authorship is generally attributed to a person named Obadiah, which means “servant (or worshipper) of the Lord”. Obadiah is classified as a "minor prophet" in the Christian Bible due to the brevity of the writing (only 21 verses) and the content (prophetic material). An Old Testament prophet was (professedly) not only a person who was given divine insight into future events, but a person whom the Lord used to declare his word. The first nine verses in the book foretell total destruction in the land of Edom at the hand of the Lord. Obadiah writes that this destruction will be so complete that it will be even worse than a thief who comes at night, for not even a thief would destroy everything. The Lord will allow all allies of Edom to turn away and help chase Edom out of its land. What is the reason for such a harsh punishment? Verses ten through fourteen explain that when Israel (the Lord’s chosen people) was attacked, Edom refused to help them, thus acting like an enemy. What is even worse is that Edom and Israel share a common blood line through their founders who were brothers, Jacob and Esau. Because of this gross neglect of a relative, Edom will be covered with shame and destroyed forever. The final verses, fifteen through twenty-one, depict the restoration of Israel and the wiping out of the Edomites. Verse eighteen says that there will be no survivors from the house of Esau once the destruction is complete. Israel will become a holy place and its people will return from exile and inhabit the land once inhabited by the Edomites. The final verse of the prophecy places the Lord as King who will rule over all the mountains of Edom." (Summary from Wikipedia)
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Librivox: Englishwoman in America, The by Bird, Isabella L.Join Now to Follow
Isabella Bird travels abroad in Canada and the United States in the 1850s. As an Englishwoman and a lone female, she travels as far as Chicago, Prince Edward Island, and Cincinatti. Her observations on the trials and tribulations of the journeys are astute, if formed by her place and time in history. Adventures with pickpockets, omnibuses, cholera, and rat invested hotels deter her not. (Sibella Denton)
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Librivox: Bible (ASV) 29: Joel by American Standard VersionJoin Now to Follow
"The Book of Joel is part of the Jewish Tanakh, and also the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. Joel is part of a group of twelve prophetic books known as the Minor Prophets or simply as The Twelve; the distinction 'minor' indicates the short length of the text in relation to the larger prophetic texts by the "Major Prophets" known as the Nevi'im." (Summary by Wikipedia)
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