Random Audiobook Podcasts

The nineteenth century was marked by intense colonization by countries like Britain, France, Portugal, Spain and the Netherlands. Initially, the pioneering efforts were made by men who battled unfamiliar terrain to create territories that they marked out as their own, while their wives, mothers, sisters and daughters kept the home and hearth in their native land. However, with travel becoming more common and family life assuming more importance, the women too began to travel to the four corners of the earth. There are many accounts by Victorian women of their travels to the colonies and these are valuable insights into the social history and fabric of the colonies. Many of these accounts were however, quite superficial and concentrated more on the scenery and landscape—two of the most important things that interested women of the period. A Lady’s Life on a Farm in Manitoba by Mrs. Cecil Hall was published in 1884. The book consists of a series of letters written by the author to her family in England and as she says in the preface, were never meant to be published. However, she later felt they provide useful tips for those intending to make the journey and settle in a far off land. Her brother had migrated to Manitoba in 1881. In 1882, Mrs. Hall and her sister traveled to Canada via New York and Chicago. En route, the letters describe their meeting with President Chester Allen, the newly appointed head of state who took over as President after the assassination of President James Garfield. In Chicago, the letters describe a city that’s limping back to normalcy after the Great Chicago Fire. Their journey by train across the vast plains of Canada, their arrival on the farm managed by her brother and two others who have purchased 13,000 acres and their experiences in the New World are chronicled in these letters. The sisters spend three months on the farm where they soon roll up their sleeves and pitch in, abandoning their fine lady’s ways! Cooking, cleaning, helping on the land, ruining their soft hands and learning a different way of life are well described. The ladies then move to Colorado, where they visit friends who are here to try their luck in gold mining. The book closes with a letter from their brother who updates them on the progress he and his friends have made on the Manitoba farm. As an account of the difficult and hostile conditions that pioneers faced in America and Canada, A Lady’s Life… is indeed an interesting and valuable work that modern day readers will certainly enjoy.

Categories: Arts, Society & Culture

Tags: A Lady's Life on a Farm in Manitoba, audio books, audiobook, Biography, ebooks, free audio books, History, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Mrs. Cecil Hall, Non-fiction, travel

An eleven year old who remains eleven for more than half a century! As a literary creation, Richmal Crompton’s scalawag schoolboy has few peers. Along with his notorious gang of Outlaws, William Brown wreaks havoc not just on his family but also across the entire village. His long suffering family, the local shopkeepers and a host of unforgettable characters make the William series of 21 books a delightful and most amusing read. More William is the second in the long series written by Richmal Crompton Lamburn. She was a dedicated school teacher who began writing full time after she was crippled by polio at the age of 33. A life long sufferer of illnesses of various kinds, including cancer, Crompton’s William stories never reveal the darker side of life or despair. Instead, they celebrate youth, high spirits, mischief and the joy of childhood pranks. The William series met with instant success and to her own surprise, great financial rewards as well. She had written a short story entitled The Outlaws in 1917 but it came out only after another story entitled Rice Mould Pudding was published in the Home Magazine in 1919. It was in these stories that William first made his debut. In 1922, she published a collection entitled Just William featuring a cast of characters that went on to captivate generations of children and adults. She is less known for her considerable body of work in writing for adults, though she published more than 40 novels dealing with Edwardian themes. In fact, William himself was not aimed specifically at children. His misadventures and shenanigans hold much more appeal for grownups rather than younger readers through their humorous writing style. In More William, the young hero features in fourteen independent short stories. Some of them are truly hilarious like The Ghost in which William creates a “psychic” encounter for his cousin Mildred. Other tales like Knight at Arms have him and bosom pal Ginger rescuing a damsel in “distress” a la the Knight of La Mancha! Unable to bear the perceived atrocities of his family, William runs away from home in The Revenge. The collection also features Rice Mould Pudding which was the first published William story. Other stories feature William’s martyred family and their ineffectual efforts in coping with the head of the Outlaws. William’s eternal conflict with authority, his exuberance, his maverick take on life and his heroic ideals all form the backdrop to this truly engaging and enjoyable book.

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, ebooks, free audio books, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, More William, Richmal Crompton

The following work offers in book form the series of studies on the question of the historicity of Jesus, presented from time to time before the Independent Religious Society in Orchestra Hall, Chicago, 1909. No effort has been made to change the manner of the spoken, into the more regular form of the written, word.

Categories: Arts, Religion & Spirituality, Society & Culture

Tags: audio books, audiobook, ebooks, free audio books, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, M. M. Mangasarian, Non-fiction, Philosophy, religion, The Truth About Jesus. Is He a Myth?

First published in Blackwood’s magazine as a three part serial in 1899 and published in 1902, Heart of Darkness centers on the experiences of protagonist Charles Marlow as he is assigned the duty to transport ivory down the Congo River. Conrad cleverly uses foreshadowing as a technique to convey the novella’s themes of hypocritical imperialism, the contradictory views on civilized as opposed to barbaric societies, racism, and the conflict between reality and darkness. Set in the second half of the nineteenth century, the story begins with the introduction of protagonist Charles Marlow, who is on board a boat harbored in the River Thames. Marlow proceeds to recount his exciting tale about his voyage into the depths of Africa to his fellow companions, therefore beginning the novella’s frame narrative style. Marlow gives details of the events that led to his appointment as a river boat captain working for a Belgian ivory trading company, referred to simply as The Company. During his passage on several ships, Marlow witnesses gruesome sights of the natives who are ill-treated and exposed to the harshest forms of brutality. He records starvation, exploitation and enslavement as some of the injustices forcefully applied by the Company’s agents. When the protagonist arrives at the Outer Station he meets the chief accountant, who first mentions Mr. Kurtz and regards him as a first-class agent. Subsequently, Marlow finds his way to the Central Station, where his allocated steamboat awaits him, but unfortunately the boat is wrecked and he must wait until it is repaired. Left no choice other than to wait, Marlow becomes more intrigued by the mysterious Mr. Kurtz, as he learns the valuable position he holds within the community. The story continues with its gripping development that in turn destroy Marlow’s initial dreamy outlook on life and instead exhibits the true extent of man’s cruelty and selfishness. Interestingly, Conrad partly based the novella on his personal experience while he spent some time travelling in Africa, and even served as a captain on a steam boat, where he encountered some of the issues prevalent in the novella. A classic proven to stimulate the mind, Heart of Darkness enthralls with its unrestricted possibility of individual interpretation, and the overwhelming questions about human nature that the book incites.

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, ebooks, free audio books, Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com

In seventeenth century Venice, a wealthy and debauched man discovers that the woman he is infatuated with is secretly married to a Moorish general in the Venetian army. He shares his grief and rage with a lowly ensign in the army who also has reason to hate the general for promoting a younger man above him. The villainous ensign now plots to destroy the noble general in a diabolical scheme of jealousy, paranoia and murder, set against the backdrop of the bloody Turkish-Venetian wars. This timeless tale, Othello The Moor of Venice was one of the ten famous tragedies that William Shakespeare wrote. It is also one of his plays that has the best documented performance history. First staged on 1st November, 1604 at Whitehall Palace, it was regularly performed at the playwright’s own Globe Theater and the Blackfriars Theater in London besides touring the country as part of the repertoire of the King’s Men which was the theatrical company that Shakespeare belonged to for most of his career. Such is the power and appeal of the play that it has remained completely unchanged or unrevised over the centuries, while many other Shakespearean plays were adapted, rewritten or trimmed during the Restoration and the eighteenth century. The doomed figure of the lovely Desdemona who is murdered so cruelly by the ill-fated Othello based on a tragic misunderstanding continues to haunt playgoers and readers the world over even today. Modern performances have explored the race and class aspects of the play. Famous actors like Laurence Olivier have given legendary performances, while opera, ballet, television, film, stage, graphic novels and animation versions have kept the magnificent story alive today for audiences all over the world. Shakespeare was probably inspired by the sixteenth Italian writer Cinthio’s story titled A Moorish Captain. Many scholars have deemed this to be based on a true incident that happened in Venice in around 1508. However, only the mere skeleton of the story has been used by Shakespeare and most of the characters and sub-plots are his own dazzling creations. He may have also been influenced by the delegations from Morocco to Elizabethan England in 1600. For other details like location and manners, he probably used Venetian history books and contemporary sources. Whatever the history and inspiration of the play, it remains one of the most powerful, compelling and towering works in English literature. This tale of deception, heroism, love, hatred and the demonic obsession called jealousy sparkles with brilliant lines that have entered the English language and become immortal. A majestic work by a supreme artist – Prepare to be overwhelmed!

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Othello, play, tragedy, William Shakespeare

Right from its famous opening scene which begins, “Thunder and lightning. Enter Three Witches” The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare holds the reader fast in a stirring, monumental experience that plumbs the depths of the human soul and reveals its most morbid secrets. The play is set in medieval Scotland. It is based partly on historical facts and recounts the tale of Macbeth, who was a king in Scotland, according to The Holinshead Chronicles, a book published in 1577. This book was extensively used by contemporary playwrights like Shakespeare and Marlowe as inspiration for their themes, characters and events. Though Shakespeare did use some of the material found in Holinshead, the final product is entirely his own and he fleshed-out and created most of the principal characters himself in a play that is considered his darkest, most ominous and most powerful tragedy. The Tragedy of Macbeth is also one that explores the nature of the supernatural in our lives. The play begins with Macbeth and Banquo, two army generals in the employ of their king, Duncan, returning victorious from two different wars. As they cross a dark and lonely heath, they encounter three women who predict that Macbeth will be named Thane of Cawdor and one day reign as King of Scotland and that Banquo will beget an illustrious line of noble descendants who will one day rule the land, though Banquo himself will never reign. The two men are skeptical, but their disbelief begins to vanish when messengers arrive with the news that Macbeth has been elevated to the rank of Thane of Cawdor! This sets off a train of devastating events. Macbeth’s ambitious and evil wife, Lady Macbeth, is willing to go to any lengths to achieve her ends. Plots, treason, murder, ghosts, war and suicide follow, in a terrible mélange. Macbeth is Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy. It deals with issues that are relevant even today. The overarching greed for power at any cost, the breakdown of morality, corruption and unbridled ambition, cruelty and its effect on the soul, omens and portents, superstitions and violence are some of the dark themes explored. Since it was first performed in the 1600s, Macbeth has remained one of the most widely enacted plays in the world, been translated into hundreds of world languages, given contemporary twists, adapted for film, television, studied in schools and universities and been the subject of psychological, sociological and political research. Ultimately, it remains one of the most remarkable portrayals of the shadowy and unlit spaces of the human heart. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, play, The Tragedy of Macbeth, tragedy, William Shakespeare

Regarded as the one of the earliest examples of feminist philosophy, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is written as a direct response to Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, a French politician who delivered a report to the French National Assembly suggesting that women should only receive domestic education and additionally encourages women to stay clear of political affairs. In her treatise, Wollstonecraft avidly criticizes this inadequate perception of women as an inferior sex and attacks social inequality, while also arguing for women’s rights in the hope of redefining their position both in society and in marriage. Exploring themes of oppression, feminism, social reforms, education, sensibility, reason, and marriage, Wollstonecraft successfully sets the foundation for liberal feminism which had later inspired many to express their support. Published in 1792, the piece begins with Wollstonecraft’s argument that the power of reason is what places humans above all other forms of natural life, and this position is further reinforced by virtue and morality, and finally secured with the accumulation of knowledge. So, she believes that the key to happiness lies in the degree of reason, virtue, and knowledge exercised within society. Furthermore, this allows Wollstonecraft to express the notion that women are not naturally inferior to men, but instead this invalid perception is a direct outcome triggered by society’s failure to employ reason and properly educate women. Subsequently, she illustrates the ways in which women’s position in society is obstructed from early on in life, as they are encouraged to care for superficial attributes, surrender themselves to sensibility, and tend to their husband’s every need. Consequently, they are prevented from developing the ability to become autonomous members of society. In addition she expresses her belief that women should be equal in marriage and viewed as companions through life, rather than serve the sole purpose of pleasing their husbands and serving as decorative ornaments in society. Needless to say, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is an influential and highly valuable piece in the history of feminist theory and activism, as it vividly portrays the political and social scene of the 18th century and marks the first step to the emancipation of women.

Categories: Arts, Society & Culture

Tags: A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, audio books, audiobook, ebooks, free audio books, History, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Mary Wollstonecraft, Non-fiction, Philosophy, science

All David Flinch ever wanted was a normal life. But when you’re a member of the Flinch family, normal has never been easy. For hundreds of years, the eldest male Flinch has been servant and guardian to the Lord Underwood. While the Flinches have changed through the generations, Underwood, a vampire, has been eternal. David had hoped to be spared the horror of serving his family’s lord and master, but when he is summoned to the Flinch home in Spain by his dying older brother, he knows his luck has run out. Underwood must be resurrected from the grave in a ritual of human sacrifice, and David must be the man to do it. Because if he doesn’t, an even greater evil than Underwood will rise: the evil that is David’s sister. Underwood and Flinch is an epic horror-thriller that spans the centuries. From the teeming slums of 17th Century London to an ex-pat community in modern-day Spain, this is the new novel from Mike Bennett, author of ‘One Among the Sleepless’ and ‘Hall of Mirrors’. – One of the best podcasts ever – Walt Kolenda, Examiner.com

The conclusion to Underwood and Flinch.

Categories: Arts

Tags: and, audiobook, Flinch, free, horror, novel, thriller, Undead, Underwood, vampire

Regarded as the pride and joy of American literature, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a picturesque novel depicting Huck’s epic journey from boyhood to manhood and the struggles he must face living in a corrupt society. The novel serves as a sequel to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, another famous work by Mark Twain. The plot unfolds in several locations sometime before the Civil War. The book opens with a description of Huck’s new life as he undergoes a process of “civilization” while living with the Widow Douglas and her sister Miss Watson. Although he dislikes the strict regime of education, manners, church and rigid clothing, which are a necessity to fit into society, Huck prefers anything to his previous life with his drunkard father Pap. However, just as things begin to stabilize, Pap returns to the picture and demands Huck give him the money that he had previously attained during an adventure with his best friend Tom Sawyer. Huck’s refusal to do so only infuriates Pap. Just when things are improving for Huck, he is kidnapped and mistreated by his no-good father. After faking his own death and on the run, he meets Jim who is a runaway slave with a bounty to his name. Huck must decide whether to trust his gut feeling and help an innocent flee slavery, or view the poor man simply as property. Caught up between ethics and legality, Huck must make a decision. The two set out together on a raft, both in search of freedom and experience many challenges on the way whilst at the same time an emotional bond is developed. Twain’s vibrant description of the places and people along the Mississippi River is one of the jewels of the novel, as well as the use of vernacular language and the presence of dialects. Moral and ethics, racism and slavery, and hypocritical society are just some of the targeted issues presented in the novel. Celebrated throughout generations, the slanted tale of adventure does not seize to spark appreciation although simultaneously stirring controversy.

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, ebooks, free audio books, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

The home of free audio fiction, podcasts, music, and other goodies from Phil Rossi

Categories: Arts

Tags: audiobook, boo, fiction, horror, hutchins, jc, Literature, matthew, Morris, novel, phil, Podcast, rossi, science, scott, selznick, sigler, Space, tee, Wayne, writing

Wilkie Collins’s The Woman in White tells the story of two half-sisters, Laura Fairlie and Marian Halcombe who were embroiled in the sinister plot of Sir Percival Glyde and Count Fosco to take over their family’s wealth. It’s considered to be one of the first “sensation novels” to be published. Like most novels that fall into this category, the protagonists here are pushed to their limits by the villains before they finally got the justice they deserved. The story begins with Walter Hartright helping a woman dressed in white who turned out to have escaped from a mental asylum. A day later, he travelled to Cumberland to be a drawing master to the half-sisters Laura Fairlie and Marian Halcombe. While he was in their house he discovered that the woman dressed in white whom he helped was also Laura’s sister. Walter and Laura eventually became very close to each other and had a relationship, but Laura was already set to marry Sir Percival Glyde. Marian advised Walter to forget his love for Laura and live their place, a painful advice which he followed. Laura eventually married Glyde and this is when things started to turn for the worse for the main characters in the novel. Glyde and his friend Count Fosco were masters of deception and they’d do everything they can to get the things they want. In the story, Glyde was already in financial difficulties when he married Laura who was from a rich family. In order to get her family’s riches he’s willing to resort to desperate means. Glyde is portrayed here as an archetypical villain which every reader of this book will surely hate. When it was first published in 1859, The Woman in White quickly became a best-seller because of its theme and storyline. More than a hundred years since its first publication, readers can still relate to its characters and empathize with the protagonists in the story. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts

Tags: art, audio books, audiobook, ebooks, Epistolary fiction, fiction, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, MYSTERY, romance, The Woman in White, Wilkie Collins

If you haven’t come across the 200-book series about Tom Swift Jr, this book would be an interesting one to start with. The series is aimed at the young adult readership, probably male, and the young adolescent hero, Tom Swift Jr is the son of Tom Swift Sr. The books portray the perennially 18-year-old Tom, a tall and angular youngster, possessed of a very high intelligence and presence of mind. Regular characters include his parents, younger sister Sandy, best buddy Bud Barclay, his regular date Phyllis Newton, and the comic roly-poly Chow Winkler. This star cast features in almost all the novels. Tom Swift and The Visitor from Planet X is an exciting sci-fi tale, in which the inventive and scientifically inclined Tom and friends have set up Swift Enterprises, a vast four-mile facility where inventions are conceived and built. They have established contact with intelligent beings on a distant planet and make preparations to welcome the first visitor from there. However, they’re unexpectedly drawn into a deadly internecine battle between diabolical forces on the distant planet which aim to sabotage the visit and destroy Earth. Tom’s quick thinking and inventiveness come to the fore as he develops a devastating weapon to counter the evil forces. This exciting tale certainly keeps you interested and engaged. The Tom Swift series is the product of a writing syndicate called the Stratemeyer Syndicate which published a range of packaged children’s literature in the 1950s. Other series include the famous Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books, all of which were penned by a host of writers employed by this syndicate. In fact the syndicate employed three PhDs in science and technology to ensure scientific authenticity. The series is still running and the last set was published between 2006-7.

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: Adventure, art, audio books, audiobook, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Kids, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, science-fiction, Teen/Young adult, Tom Swift and the Visitor From Planet X, Victor Appleton

Further Chronicles of Avonlea is a collection of short stories by L.M. Montgomery and is a sequel to Chronicles of Avonlea. Published in 1920, it includes a number of stories relating to the inhabitants of the fictional Canadian village of Avonlea and its region, located on Prince Edward Island. The book was published without the permission of L.M. Montgomery, and was formed from stories she had decided not to publish in the earlier Chronicles of Avonlea. Montgomery sued her publishers, L.C. Page & Co, and won $18,000 in damages after a legal battle lasting nearly nine years. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Further Chronicles of Avonlea, Kids, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Short stories

In October, 2016 I looked death right in the eyeballs and the truth of the universe/ life/ love/ God/ infinity cracked open before me. Truth is the best news in the world (YOU CAN END YOUR SUFFERING RIGHT NOW!!!) (if your human rights aren’t being violated), and this book is my best effort to sing its sweet melody from the rooftops. ******************************************** During my journey, I ended my marriage (amicably). I explored my sexuality (enthusiastically). And I carried on my shoulder an enormous, colorful sugar skull named Maestro—which I’ll explain later. I lived transiently (voluntarily) for the better part of a year, which got me asking A LOT of big questions about private property and human rights and legal versus spiritual freedom. And yet, from the heart of the storm that was my new life, I was finally at peace. I was finally in balance. I was finally… a homeless divorcee with no marketable skills?******************************************** Marshall’s Promise is the first of a three-book series. Each podcast episode is a chapter read aloud, and I recommend you start with the introduction and listen through chronologically. Questions? Find me @evywallace across all social media platforms or send me an email.

Categories: Health & Fitness, Religion & Spirituality, Society & Culture

Tags: 2021, audiobook, Best New Podcasts, cancer, dating, divorce, eat pray love, fifty shades of gray, finding yourself, free audiobook, sexuality, spiritual awakening

Tales from the Witcher showcases serialized, original short stories set in the Witcher universe. Part audiobook and part Actual Play Report, these tales are written and narrated by Jacob Gerstel—and are based on the adventures of his Witcher tabletop roleplaying group. We’ll follow the exploits of a stoic Bear School witcher, an alcoholic elven sorcerer, a resourceful craftsman, a lively bard, and others as they try to stay alive during the Third Northern War. There’s action and adventure, magic and the mundane, scheming and politics, elves and dwarves, war and peace, and—because it’s the Witcher—a touch of philosophy. New episodes every Wednesday.

Categories: Arts, Fiction, Leisure

Tags: audiobook, fiction, roleplaying, rpg, short story, tabletop, The Witcher, Witcher

The story of a plucky, optimistic newsboy, Michael O’Halloran, who has been orphaned from a young age and asks nothing of the world but to “Be Square!” This is a warm and joyous story of how Michael makes life sunnier for those around him, bringing joy to all who know him.

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: audio books, audiobook, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Gene Stratton-Porter, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Michael O'Halloran, nature, romance, Teen/Young adult

William Shakespeare’s most well-known play is more than most people realize. While it is the story of star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, it is also the story of two families in the middle of a bitter feud. Many people avoid the story because they believe it will be too difficult to read, but this is not true at all. Within a few paragraphs, the play captures your imagination and attention. Juliet is 13 years old and is love with the son of her father’s enemy. Her father has promised that she will marry another boy when it is time, but she refuses to accept the suit. One night, Romeo sneaks into a ball in Juliet’s home (in hopes of seeing a girl he is in love with) when he overhears Juliet speaking of her love for him. He steps out of the shadows and they decide to marry. They are married the next day in secret. It is discovered that Romeo snuck into the ball and Juliet’s cousin is angry and challenges him to a duel. When Romeo refuses to fight, a man is killed and Romeo is banished from the country. Juliet is thrown into a depression and her father decides she needs to get married right away. However, the Friar who helped Juliet marry Romeo comes up with a plan to get Romeo back and to unite the families. The plan unravels quickly, though. The story of Romeo and Juliet has everything that a reader could want. Like many of Shakespeare’s works, it has comedy and tragedy, but it also has love, family, duals, good and evil. Do not pick up the book assuming that knowing about the tragedy will ruin the story. The tale of how both families got to this point is one that will not soon be forgotten. The lessons of love and forgiveness are ones that are just as important more than 400 years after the play was written.

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, play, romance, Romeo and Juliet, tragedy, William Shakespeare

A story about a boy who befriends a cat and then sets off on an adventure to rescue a dragon. Illustrations from the original book can be seen at the e-text link. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: animals, audio books, audiobook, ebooks, fantasy, fiction, free audio books, Kids, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, My Father's Dragon, Ruth Stiles Gannett