Arts Podcasts
Librivox: Scaramouche by Sabatini, RafaelJoin Now to Follow
Scaramouche is a romantic adventure and tells the story of a young aristocrat during the French Revolution. His successive endeavors as a lawyer, politician, actor, lover, and buffoon lead his enemies to call him "Scaramouche" (also called Scaramuccia, a roguish character in the commedia dell'arte), but he impresses many with his elegant orations and precision swordsmanship. The later film version includes one of the longest, and many believe, best swashbuckling sword-fighting scenes ever filmed. The novel has a memorable start (Book I: The Robe, Chapter I, 'The Republican'): "He was born with the gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad. And that was all his patrimony. His very paternity was obscure, although the village of Gavrillacs had long since dispelled the cloud of mystery that hung about it." (Summary by Gord)
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Librivox: Star Surgeon by Nourse, Alan EdwardJoin Now to Follow
Dal Timgar had always wanted to be a doctor. As a Garvian and the first non-human to study medicine on Hospital Earth, he must face enormous adversity from classmates, professors, and some of the highest ranking physicians on all of Earth. Will his efforts be enough to earn him the Silver Star of a Star Surgeon? (Summary by Scott D. Farquhar)
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Librivox: Elixiere des Teufels, Die by Hoffmann, E.T.A.Join Now to Follow
Der Bruder Medardus ist ein hoch angesehenes, für seine feurigen Predigten bekanntes Mitglied der Klostergemeinde. Als ihm die Aufsicht über die Reliquienkammer übertragen wird, beginnt jedoch sein Niedergang. Unter den Schätzen befindet sich auch eine Flasche der Elixiere des Teufels, mit denen der Satan vor Jahrhunderten den heiligen Antonius verführen wollte. Ein Schluck aus der Flasche besiegelt seinen Abstieg. Obgleich seine Predigten feuriger denn je werden, verliert er sich in Selbstverliebtheit und entsagt so dem Göttlichen. In der Hoffnung, Medardus Seele zu retten schickt ihn der Prior des Klosters auf die Reise nach Rom. Einmal frei von den Mauern des Klosters, beginnt Medardus Kampf gegen den den Verführer. Seine Reise ist gegprägt von Lügen, Diebstahl und Mord. Immer wieder begegnet er Personen, die ihm erstaunlich ähnlich sind. In diesen findet er all seine Schwächen wieder, er schlüpft in ihre Rollen, versucht ihr Leben und findet letztlich doch wieder zu sich selbst zurück.
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Librivox: Spurgeon's Sermons May 1858 by Spurgeon, CharlesJoin Now to Follow
Charles Spurgeon was a popular Baptist minister in London in mid-Victorian times; his ministry was highly influential and had a significant effect on many families in London and further afield. It was difficult to find a hall large enough to accommodate the crowd who wished to hear him. At times the Royal Surrey Gardens' Music Hall was hired to accomodate the Sunday congregation; this could seat 10,000 but large numbers were unable to gain admittance. His world-wide heritage is very much with us today through the many chuches built, missionary work begun, children's charity founded and theological colleges established as a result of his ministry. The sermons in this collection were preached buring May 1898 and published immediately at one penny (1d.) each. These were widely circulated and remain one of the all-time best-selling series of writings. (Summary by Alan Chant)
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Librivox: Lectures on Landscape by Ruskin, JohnJoin Now to Follow
A series of lectures on landscape painting delivered at Oxford in 1871, by artist, critic, and social commentator, John Ruskin.
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Librivox: History of the United States, Vol. I by Beard, Charles AustinJoin Now to Follow
Charles Austin Beard was the most influential American historian of the early 20th century. He published hundreds of monographs, textbooks and interpretive studies in both history and political science. He graduated from DePauw University in 1898, where he met and eventually married Mary Ritter Beard, one of the founders of the first greek-letter society for women, Kappa Alpha Theta. Many of his books were written in collaboration with his wife, whose own interests lay in feminism and the labor union movement (Woman as a Force in History, 1946). In 1921, Charles and Mary Beard published their History of the United States. A contemporaneous review stated: The authors… assume enough maturity in high school students to justify a topical rather than a chronological treatment. They have dealt with movements, have sketched large backgrounds, have traced causes, and have discussed the interrelation of social and economic forces and politics. All this has been directed to the large purpose of helping the student to understand American today in all its national characteristics and as part of world civilization as well…The literary style is exceptionally clear and crisp, and the whole approach…is thought producing. As a textbook or handbook for the average citizen it ranks with very best.
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Librivox: Dot and the Kangaroo by Pedley, Ethel C.Join Now to Follow
Dot and the Kangaroo, written in 1899, is a children's book by Ethel C. Pedley about a little girl named Dot who gets lost in the Australian outback and is eventually befriended by a kangaroo and several other marsupials. (Summary from Wikipedia)
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Librivox: Day Boy and the Night Girl, The by MacDonald, GeorgeJoin Now to Follow
A boy named Photogen, who has never seen the moon, meets a girl named Nycteris, who has never seen the sun. The two of them must escape from the witch Watho. As usual with George MacDonald, this fairy tale has layers of meaning that go deeper than the story on the surface. (summary by L.A. Walden)
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Librivox: Favourite Chapters Collection 001 by VariousJoin Now to Follow
A collection of LibriVox volunteers’ favourite chapters. Some were chosen for being the key chapter in a great novel, others for the wonderful clarity with which great ideas are expressed, and still others because the reader did a wonderful job. Whatever the reason they were chosen, we hope they will give you as much pleasure as they did us. (Summary by David Barnes).
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