Podcast Directory
Librivox: Songs of Innocence and Experience by Blake, WilliamJoin Now to Follow
William Blake’s volume of poetry entitled Songs of Innocence and Experience is the embodiment of his belief that innocence and experience were “the two contrary states of the human soul,” and that true innocence was impossible without experience. Songs of Innocence contains poems either written from the perspective of children or written about them. Many of the poems appearing in Songs of Innocence have a counterpart in Songs of Experience, with quite a different perspective of the world. The disastrous end of the French Revolution caused Blake to lose faith in the goodness of mankind, explaining much of the despair found in Songs of Experience. Blake also believed that children lost their innocence through exploitation and from a religious community which put dogma before mercy. He did not, however, believe that children should be kept from becoming experienced entirely. In truth, he believed that children should indeed become experienced but through their own discoveries, which is reflected in a number of these poems. (Summary adapted from Wikipedia by Annie Coleman)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Fishing with a Worm by Perry, BlissJoin Now to Follow
Fishing with a Worm by Bliss Perry includes the poignant and philisophical observations of a fly fisherman lured by the worm. Bliss Perry was a professor of literature at Princeton and Harvard Universities and spent time in Vermont writing and fly fishing. (Summary written by Sadie, Betsie, and Wikipedia)
By LibriVox
Librivox: On the Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery by Lister, JosephJoin Now to Follow
Joseph Lister was born near London in 1827. He studied medicine at the University of London and pursued a career as a surgeon in Scotland. He became professor of Surgery in Glasgow and later (1877) at Kings College Hospital, in London. Lister’s contribution to the advancement of surgery cannot be overestimated. Before his work on antisepsis, wounds were often left open to heal, leading to long recoveries, unsightly scarring, and not infrequently amputation or death due to infection. Lister’s work enabled more wounds to be closed primarily with sutures, drastically reducing healing time, scarring, amputations, and deaths due to infection. Lister retired in 1896 but was called back to assist in the operation on King Edward VII for appendicitis just days before the King’s coronation. The King later credited Lister for his survival and quick recovery. Lister died in 1912. (Summary by Martin Clifton)
By LibriVox
Librivox: More Goops and How Not to Be Them by Burgess, GelettJoin Now to Follow
Deep in the heart of every parent is the wish, the desire, to have other adults tell us, in an unsolicited way, just how very polite one’s child is! This perhaps was even more the case in 1903, when Gelett Burgess produced his second book on the Goops. With entertaining cartoons - cariacatures of misbehaving children - he described many different breaches of tact and good manners. Burgess wrote several books of poetry on the Goops, each poem describing some significant way in which an unthoughtful or unkind child could offend polite society and often offering the hope that the listener would never behave that way. Ahem! Well, perhaps very few people have succeeded in not acting Goop-like at some point in their lives, but read along with Burgess as he attempts to define, in a humorous fashion, exactly what the differences between “Good” and “Goop” are! (Summary by Mark F. Smith)
By LibriVox
Librivox: O Captain! My Captain! by Whitman, WaltJoin Now to Follow
In honor of President’s Day, LibriVox brings you thirteen versions of O Captain! My Captain! by Walt Whitman. This classic poem was written by Whitman following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. It appears in Leaves of Grass , Whitman’s masterpiece of a poetry collection and is considered by many to be one of his greatest poems. This was the LibriVox Weekly Poetry Project for the week of February 19th, 2006. (Summary by Annie Coleman)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Secret Garden, The by Burnett, Frances HodgsonJoin Now to Follow
Mary Lennox is a spoiled, middle-class, self-centred child who has been recently orphaned. She is accepted into the quiet and remote country house of an uncle, who has almost completely withdrawn into himself after the death of his wife. Mary gradually becomes drawn into the hidden side of the house: why does she hear the crying of a unseen child? Why is there an overgrown, walled garden, its door long locked? (Summary by Peter)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Aesop's Fables, Volume 03 (Fables 51-75) by AesopJoin Now to Follow
Dating back to the 6th century BC, Aesop's Fables tell universal truths through the use of simple allegories that are easily understood. Though almost nothing is known of Aesop himself, and some scholars question whether he existed at all, these stories stand as timeless classics known in almost every culture in the world. This is volume 3 of 12. (Summary by Chip)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Aesop's Fables, Volume 04 (Fables 76-100) by AesopJoin Now to Follow
Dating back to the 6th century BC, Aesop's Fables tell universal truths through the use of simple allegories that are easily understood. Though almost nothing is known of Aesop himself, and some scholars question whether he existed at all, these stories stand as timeless classics known in almost every culture in the world. This is volume 4 of 12. (Summary by Chip)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Poet To His Love by Bodenheim, MaxwellJoin Now to Follow
Librivox volunteers bring you thirteen different readings of Poet To His Love, by Maxwell Bodenheim. This weekly poetry project was selected to celebrate Valentine’s Day. (Summary by Annie Coleman)
By LibriVox
Librivox: Song My Paddle Sings, The by Johnson, E. PaulineJoin Now to Follow
Librivox’s weekly poetry project for the week of February 5, 2006 offers fourteen versions of "The Song My Paddle Sings" from the collection Flint and Feather by E. Pauline Johnson. E. Pauline Johnson, also known as Tekahionwake, was born to the Mohawk Chief G.H.M. Johnson (Onwanonsyshon), and his wife, Emily S. Howells, a lady of pure English parentage. Pauline, born and raised in Canada, was a great reader and began writing poetry as a child. She died in 1913 after having poetry published in periodicals in several countires and collections of her work published in book form. (Summary adapted from the "Biographical Sketch" included in Flint and Feather )
By LibriVox
