Random Dramatic Works Podcasts

The Symposium (Ancient Greek: Συμπόσιον) is a philosophical book written by Plato sometime after 385 BCE. On one level the book deals with the genealogy, nature and purpose of love, on another level the book deals with the topic of knowledge, specifically how does one know what one knows. The topic of love is taken up in the form of a group of speeches, given by a group of men at a symposium or a wine drinking party at the house of the tragedian Agathon at Athens. Plato constructed the Symposium as a story within a story within a story. This architecture creates the space for Plato to build his philosophy of knowledge. The speech of Socrates points out that the highest purpose of Love is to become a Philosopher, or Lover of Wisdom. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts, Education, Society & Culture

Tags: Ancient Texts, audio books, audiobook, Classics (antiquity), Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Languages, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Non-fiction, Philosophy, Plato, The Symposium

This story opens at a fashionable dinner party in Sir Robert Chiltern’s home in the heart of London’s stylish Grosvenor Square. One of Lady Chiltern’s old school-friends, Mrs. Cheveley, a woman with a dubious past, accosts Sir Robert and threatens to expose a financial crime that he had once participated in, unless he agrees to finance a fraudulent construction project that she’s promoting. Lady Chiltern is astounded when her husband who had been the severest critic of this project suddenly begins to speak in its favor. Yet she has secrets of her own, which she desperately needs to hide. Behind the lives of this fashionable set who inhabit the higher echelons of political life in England lie some very unsavory truths. An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde was wildly popular when it was first staged on January 3, 1895 and has remained one of his most performed and studied works ever since. Critics and audiences alike thoroughly enjoyed this tale of blackmail, mystery and high level political corruption. Garnished with Wilde’s inimitable witty one liners, the play combines an airy lightness with a solid underpinning of thought provoking ideas. The concept of public and private honor, the place of a woman in her husband’s life, society, marriage, femininity and feminism and what Mrs. Cheveley calls the “fine art of living” are some of the important themes explored in this play which takes place over just twenty-four hours in the lives of the characters. The play clocked more than a hundred performances in its first outing itself and has continued to delight viewers and readers ever since. It has been filmed at least four times, with the latest screen adaptation being in 1999, starring Julianne Moore and Cate Blanchett. Several television, audio and radio adaptations have been made. Some of the memorable quotes from the play include “To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance!” “When the Gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers” “Even you are not rich enough Sir Robert, to buy back your past. No man is.” An Ideal Husband is relevant, especially today, more than a hundred years after it was first written, in this age of extreme media focus on the private lives of celebrities. It also takes a long hard look at the crumbling facade of Victorian upper class life in the closing years of the nineteenth century. For enthusiasts of Wilde’s delightful wit, almost endless banter between characters, mannered comedies and the subtle portrayal of the underlying tragedy of life, An Ideal Husband is indeed a great story to read!

Categories: Arts, Comedy

Tags: An Ideal Husband, audio books, audiobook, Comedy, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Oscar Wilde, play

A collection of short stories first published in 1912, the book focuses on events occurring in the popular fictional village of Avonlea, which is notorious as the hometown of Anne Shirley. Comprised of 12 short stories, the Chronicles of Avonlea present a different view of the town, with the introduction of many new gripping characters, which prove to be just as endearing as their most renowned resident. Tales of everyday snippets of life proving to be humorous, identifiable, and heartwarming, the collection is an effective reinvigoration to the classic setting. Montgomery’s short stories are loosely related to the Anne of Green Gables series, incorporating the charming Anne as a minor role in one of the stories and briefly mentioning her in others. It also features some other familiar characters, although the plots are independent of the series and are based on the experiences on other Avonlea locals. One of the most gripping stories in the collection, which holds the power to enchant, is “Each in His Own Tongue” where Montgomery portrays the sacred nature of art and its hidden value. The tale involves a young boy who has a love and gift for the violin, but his passion is frowned upon by his grandfather who is a reverend, and frowns upon the idea of the boy becoming a musician. However, the boy’s talents are well known and appreciated by various residents, and although he is forbidden he still continues to play the violin. Much to the dismay of the minister, the captivating tune does in fact have the ability to serve a higher purpose and is even able to match the foundations of his own capacity as a church member. Nevertheless, each story portrays its own unique plot guaranteed to entertain with its colorful variety. Focusing on universal themes about mankind, the book conveys the flaws of critical behavior that is sure to leave a poignant mark later in life. In addition it deals with compassion, taking risks, and absolute dedication in order to attain one’s hopes and dreams, while serving as a reminder to not allow pride the luxury to govern one’s choices.

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Chronicles of Avonlea, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Kids, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Lucy Maud Montgomery, romance, Teen/Young adult

Villette was Charlotte Bronte’s last published novel. It came out in 1853, just two years before her death in 1855. It is a poignant, strangely lonely and sad work, steeped in conflict between society’s demands and personal desires. Set in the fictional town of Villette in France, it is the story of the young and intelligent Lucy Snowe, the narrator in the book. She is described by another character in the book as having “no beauty…no attractive accomplishments…” and strangely seems to lack a personal history or living relatives. Her godmother Mrs. Bretton looks after the orphaned Lucy, who suddenly leaves the house for a reason that is not made clear to readers. She finds employment as a companion to an elderly widow, Mrs. Marchmont. When her employer dies, Lucy is left without a job or prospects. Impulsively, she decides to travel to Europe and en route, meets the young and spoiled heiress, Ginevra Fanshaw, a student of a girls’ school in Villette. Lucy then travels to Villette to work first as a nanny to the principal’s children and later as a teacher. Here she encounters two men who will play a great role in her life. The young and handsome Dr. John Bretton, her godmother’s grandson, and the arrogant, bad tempered Professor Paul Emmanuel, a fellow lodger at her boarding house who gradually begins to thaw towards Lucy. The rest of the story follows Lucy’s life in Villette. Lucy Snowe is not a very lovable heroine. She is passive, secretive and yet she excites the reader’s interest and compassion and one is compellingly drawn into her story. Villette is also a novel with deep psychological underpinnings. Many have dubbed it even greater than Jane Eyre. It is also one of Bronte’s most autobiographical works. The story harks back to the time when Charlotte and Emily Bronte traveled to Brussels to work in a small pensionnat run by M. Constantin Heger and his wife. Charlotte is reputed to have fallen deeply and hopelessly in love with M. Heger. Paul Emmanuel is said to be based on Heger, while John Bretton is a fictional portrayal of George Murray Smith, her publisher who had once courter her. Villette was written at a time when Bronte was deeply depressed following the deaths of three of her siblings. It was also criticized by contemporary reviewers for its depiction of a woman’s passions and desires, something which Victorian audiences were a little shocked by. For modern day readers, Villette presents a great writer, working at the peak of her powers, overcoming personal tragedy to bring her art to the world.

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Charlotte Brontë, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, romance, Villette

Considered to be one of Shakespeare’s greatest plays, the tragedy King Lear portrays some of the darkest aspects of human nature that can be found in literature. The helplessness of the human condition, as we fall prey to our destinies, the injustice and random cruelties practiced by people, suffering and humiliation, the lust for power and the greed for wealth are all depicted in this magnificent play. And through it all, runs the golden thread of love and sacrifice, daughterly affection and the true nature of our relationship with our parents. Little is known about the writing of the play. It is thought to have been drafted some time in 1603 but the authorship of Shakespeare was finally attributed to it only in the 1623 First Folio. Early 17th century audiences disliked the gloomy aspects of the play and it was given a happy ending. However, in the 19th century, the original was brought back and with it, Shakespeare’s unerring grasp of human nature, love and family values. The almost fairytale quality of the opening scene can beguile the reader into a sense of familiarity. However, this is literally the lull before the storm! King Lear of Britain is aging and he wishes to divide his inheritance and the kingdom among his three daughters. However, he devises a strange test for each, based on which he will give the largest share to the winner. The daughters have to describe how much they love him. The elder two, Goneril and Regan heap praise on their father, layering their speech with fulsome compliments designed to please and flatter the old man. However the youngest, his favorite daughter, Cordelia remains silent, saying she has no words to express her love. Enraged and disappointed, the old king disinherits Cordelia and gives her share to her two sisters. Her lover, the Duke of Kent, objects, but he is banished. Lear then declares that he will spend the rest of his life with his two faithful elder daughters and here begins the kernel of the play. Said to be based on a legendary ruler of ancient Britain, Shakespeare’s brilliance turns the bland myth into a towering narrative, filled with wonderful quotations and dramatic elements, creating an immortal portrait of the human condition. Lear’s descent into madness and the final tragic aspects of the play make it an unforgettable read. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, King Lear, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Myths/Legends, play, tragedy, William Shakespeare

A secret shared by four convicts and two prison guards, a daughter in search of her missing father, a strange gift of a single pearl received every year, a fabulous treasure buried in the ancient Agra Fort in India, an eccentric detective being consulted to solve a deadly puzzle. All these events are set against the turbulent backdrop of the Great Indian Mutiny of 1857 in the second Sherlock Holmes novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Sign of the Four. Mary Morstan, a lovely young woman, comes to the Baker Street lodgings shared by Holmes and Dr Watson. Her mother died when she was very little and her father, an army Captain stationed in India, sent the child back to England to live in a boarding house. She had never seen her father, but ten years earlier, when she was seventeen she received a letter from him saying he had retired, was on his way home and asking her to meet him at the Langham Hotel in London. However, at the Langham, she discovers that her father stepped out the previous evening and never returned. Since then, every year, on her birthday she has been receiving a present from an anonymous giver. It is a very expensive, lustrous, single pearl. And now, she has received a mysterious letter asking her to come to the Lyceum Theater at seven in the evening, bringing two friends with her. For Sherlock Holmes, this is an enigma that’s simply crying out to be solved! Added to this are masterly touches that provide more insights into Holmes’ unconventional persona. His uncanny ways of tracking through sight, sound and smell, his knowledge of diverse subjects and his fondness for obscure quotations in foreign languages are all aspects that went into the creation of the immortal detective. Following the publication of The Sign of the Four, Doyle began concentrating on the short story format featuring Holmes and Watson. This met with immediate success and led to a revived interest in the novels and the rest, as they say, became literary history. The Sign of the Four has been adapted extensively on stage, screen, TV and radio. In fact, more than eighteen different film versions have been made since 1913-2013, marking a century of perennial interest in the maverick sleuth and his faithful assistant!

Categories: Arts

Tags: Adventure, audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, MYSTERY, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Sign of the Four

If you’ve read and loved Anne of Green Gables, you’d definitely like to add Rainbow Valley by Lucy Maud Montgomery to your collection. Published in 1919, it is the seventh book in the series and follows the further life and adventures of Anne Shirley. At Ingleside, Anne is now happily married to her childhood friend the devoted Gilbert Blythe and have now been together blissfully for fifteen years. They have six children. The book opens with the return of Anne and Gilbert (who is now a brilliant doctor) from a sojourn in London, where they had gone to attend a big medical congress. They find a new minister ensconced in the old mansion. He is a widower with four wild, mischievous and unruly children who are always embroiled in one scrape or the other. However, they are at heart good and kind and they soon become friends with Anne’s children. The entire group plays in a quiet maple grove which they have named Rainbow Valley because of its beauty and atmosphere. They form a Good Conduct Club headed by Jem Blythe, the eldest. A cheeky, runaway orphan girl called Mary Vance joins them in Rainbow Valley. However, the rules of the club prove too severe for some of the younger children. The Green Gables series consists of eight books published between 1908-21. They trace Anne Shirley/Blythe’s life from the time we encounter Anne Shirley, a young 11 year old orphan who is sent to live with an elderly couple on a farm on Prince Edward Island. By the eighth book, Anne is a middle aged woman of fifty-two and the stories concern her children and their lives. The family is also mentioned in some other books written by Montgomery. Rainbow Valley is exciting, interesting and a fun read. It has some very engaging side plots about the minister, John Meredith and how he finds romance with the lovely Rosemary West. It also provides a dark foreshadowing of the terrible war years that were to dawn in the near future. The note on the dedication page of Rainbow Valley is a tribute to three of Montgomery’s friends who died in WWI. The last book in the Anne series Rilla of Ingleside is set against the backdrop of the war. For enthusiasts of the series, Rainbow Valley is indeed a delightful glimpse into the continuing saga of this bestselling series of books that have provided so much entertainment to generations of children. All books in this series:1 Anne of Green Gables2 Anne of Avonlea3 Anne of the Island5 Anne’s House of Dreams7 Rainbow Valley8 Rilla of Ingleside

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family, Society & Culture

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Historical Fiction, History, Kids, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Rainbow Valley, Teen/Young adult, War stories

This unique tale is narrated by a lovely, gentle horse named Black Beauty and has remained a children’s classic since it was first published in 1877. It earned eternal name and fame for its author Anna Sewell, an invalid who died within a few months of publication. According to current estimates, it has sold more than fifty million copies world wide, been translated into many languages and delighted generations of children. The original title page reads: Black Beauty: Translated from the original Equine by Anna Sewell and this gives the reader an instant glimpse into what the book will be about. As an autobiography written by a horse and told from his point of view, it was indeed an original and unique concept for the time. Strangely enough, Anna Sewell never intended the book to be exclusively read by children. She meant it to be a manual for those who worked with horses so that they would develop more compassion and kindness when dealing with these mute beasts. While it apparently talks about animals, the book is a great source of education for human beings too and teaches them how to treat each other with respect, dignity and kindness. The famous opening lines, “The first place I can well remember was a large pleasant meadow….” set the tone for the rest of the book. It traces the journey of the beautiful and noble horse, born in privileged circumstances whose life takes a turn for the tragic when her wealthy owner falls on hard times. Sold into a fashionable household, Beauty is ill-treated and uncared for till his health is finally broken. He is sold to a London cabbie and has to earn his keep pulling heavy carriages in all kinds of weather. The treatment of animals, their welfare and the conditions in which they’re kept, the often inhuman and cruel attitude of people and animal rights are some of the topics touched upon. It is a book that can be read on several levels. For child readers, it is a delightful tale told by an animal. Adults would recognize the essential humanitarian appeal made by the author. In fact, such was the impact of the book that it led to several landmark legislations regarding animal welfare in Britain and America. Filled with memorable characters, vivid descriptions and poignant scenes, Black Beauty is indeed a fabulous book to settle in with for a pleasant read.

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: animals, Anna Sewell, audio books, audiobook, Black Beauty, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Kids, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Teen/Young adult

Oedipus the King (often known by the Latin title Oedipus Rex) is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed c. 429 BC. It was the second of Sophocles’s three Theban plays to be produced, but it comes first in the internal chronology, followed by Oedipus at Colonus and then Antigone. Over the centuries, it has come to be regarded by many as the Greek tragedy par excellence. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Myths/Legends, Oedipus Rex, play, poetry, Sophocles

Eleven year old Rebecca Rowena Randall travels to Riverboro, Maine, to live with her spinster aunts, Jane and Miranda Sawyer. Her father has been dead for three years and her mother is unable to cope with her brood of seven growing children. Rebecca is being sent to her aunts’ farm to try to improve her prospects in life and also ease the family’s burden. The aunts had actually wanted her older and more placid sister, Hannah, who is more handy round the house to be sent, but Rebecca’s mother sends the dreamy, more imaginative Rebecca instead. Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin was published in 1903. The fictional town of Riverboro is based on Hollis, Maine, where the author herself spent her childhood. Kate Douglas Wiggin’s life took a monumental turn with a chance encounter – her unexpected meeting with Charles Dickens on a train when she was 11 years old. She engaged the famous author in a lively chat that she later described in a memoir A Child’s Journey with Dickens published in 1912. She began writing to supplement the family income and achieved great success with many of her books and stories. She wrote for both children and adults and some of her works included scholarly non-fiction on education and child rearing. However, she is best known for her classic children’s books like Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Mother Carey’s Chickens and Rose o’ the River. She was also a talented musician and is credited with several melodious compositions. This book has much in common with another book written two years later, one which is equally famous and loved by children the world over – Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Though Anne’s story continued over eleven more books, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm was followed by just one sequel written by Wiggin, The New Chronicles of Rebecca. A distant cousin of her husband’s, Eric Wiggin, wrote a few more Rebecca books in the 1990’s and also updated the original. Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm traces the heroine’s growth and maturity from an impulsive, carefree child into a responsible, mature young woman, who is able to use her imaginative gifts wisely and profitably. The book was adapted for the stage by the author herself in 1909 and filmed several times. The most popular film version has Shirley Temple playing Rebecca. More than a hundred years after it first came out, the book remains a firm favorite with children and adults the world over. A great addition to your collection of classic children’s books!

Categories: Arts, Education, Kids & Family

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, instruction, Kate Douglas Wiggin, Kids, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Teen/Young adult

Banished from his own lands by a usurping brother, Prospero and his daughter Miranda have been living on a deserted island for years, until fate brings the brother within the range of Prospero’s powers. Will he seek revenge, or reconcilement? More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts, Comedy

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Comedy, Dramatic Works, ebooks, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, play, The Tempest, William Shakespeare

An atypical piece of writing by Mark Twain, the short bawdy skit documents a conversion between Queen Elizabeth and several notable writers of the time, including Sir Walter Raleigh, Francis Beaumont, Ben Jonson, and William Shakespeare. Despite first being published in 1880, the piece remained anonymous for a period of time, until it was later acknowledged by Twain in 1901 as his own. Comprised of humor, descriptive imagery, ribald connotations, and vulgar language, the faux conversation is simultaneously humorous and repulsing, but nonetheless a wonder for its satirical precision. Written as a fictitious dialogue between Queen Elizabeth and her guest luminaries at court, the short story is accounted in a diary entry by one of her disgusted cup-bearers who observe the scandalous conversation of scatological nature. The conversation is instigated by a thunderous and foul reeking fart as the group begins to discuss its features and origin. Each individual subsequently comments on the issue and their experiences with flatulence. The conversation then takes a different direction as the topic of sex is introduced, and the individuals discuss various customs and rumors they have heard, including sexual appetite, physical features, and shocking sexual exploits. Furthermore, the issue of poetry and religion are put forward, with Shakespeare beginning to read poetry, hence prompting the characters to discuss poets, their work and ingenuity. The narrator continues to effectively record each shocking assertion as the conversation heatedly progresses. The short piece allows the audience to witness a completely different side to Mark Twain, as he criticizes literary figures and their works through his fantastic instance of potty humor. Entertaining and humorous throughout its short but rich content, the piece is a jewel considering its characters, historical context and the lewd imperceptible style employed by the great Mark Twain. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts, Comedy

Tags: 1601: Conversation, as it was by the Social Fireside, audio books, audiobook, Comedy, Dramatic Works, ebooks, Erotica, fiction, free audio books, Historical Fiction, History, humor, in the Time of the Tudors, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Mark Twain, Politics, satire

His name has become a metaphor for one who will never grow old. Peter Pan by JM Barrie is the story of a boy who remains a boy while the world around him changes. Sir James Mathew Barrie was a Scottish playwright and novelist whose works were received with great critical and commercial success in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He discovered the main inspiration for his creative genius in his friendship (and later guardianship) with the children of Arthur and Sylvia Llewellyn-Davies. The Llewellyn-Davies boys, five in number and related to the famous Du Maurier family, featured in many of Barrie’s stories and plays and some of these works were written specifically for them. Peter Pan was first introduced as a character in one of Barrie’s stories, The Little White Bird in 1901. Consequently, he appeared in a few other stories and plays and finally in 1904 made his debut in a full length play, Peter Pan or The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up. Following the phenomenal success of the play, Barrie transformed it into a novel in 1911 entitled Peter and Wendy. Peter Pan is pure and delightful fantasy. Peter’s character is far from a “perfect child.” He is selfish, foolish, thoughtless and ignorant and this is where the real appeal of the book lies. Readers are preconditioned to believe that childhood and children must always be portrayed as good and innocent. However, Barrie portrays Peter in all his authentic humanity and that’s what makes him so endearing because we truly see ourselves in Peter Pan. The descriptions are fascinating in their detail and intricacy, the dialog and conversations are absolutely spot on and Neverland is a brilliant example of the Utopia we all seek in its perfection and completeness. Captain Hook is a truly evil villain, while Tinkerbell shines in all her haughty magic. For readers who have only seen the saccharine sweet Disney version, the original Peter Pan may come as a surprise! Peter Pan cajoles Wendy Darling and two more boys to fly with him to Neverland to become the surrogate family of the Lost Boys there. A series of adventures follows, including scary encounters with Captain Hook and the vicious Tiger Lily. In fact, many readers have found the tale to be quite a disturbing Victorian fantasy about motherhood and emotional immaturity. Whatever the interpretation, Peter Pan remains one of the most brilliant and definitive portrayals of childhood and children.

Categories: Arts, Kids & Family

Tags: Adventure, audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fantasy, fiction, free audio books, J. M. Barrie, Kids, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Peter Pan, Teen/Young adult

Though it’s titled The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, the man himself appears only in five scenes in the entire play! However, such is his impact on the events that surrounded him that he still remains the central figure in this psychological drama that combines politics, honor, assassination, betrayal, the lust for power, patriotism and friendship. Set in 44 BC in ancient Rome, it is one of William Shakespeare’s early Tragedies. First thought to have been performed in September 1599, William Shakespeare’s original text or script have long vanished. What we have today is taken from a prompt script that must have been used by stage managers in Elizabethan times. Shakespeare probably used the historical facts found in Thomas North’s translation of Plutarch’s Life of Brutus and Life of Caesar. Whatever the source, the play remains a deeply moving, engrossing slice of history. The play opens with a street scene in which two Roman tribunes are depicted arrogantly dealing with the common people of the city. This sets the tone for what is to come—the huge public antipathy to a once celebrated war hero who now nurses ambitions beyond his status. Later scenes depict the agony of Marcus Brutus, the beloved friend of Caesar, who is also a supreme patriot above all the calls of friendship and love. The sinister warning of the soothsayer, the conspiracy scene, the brutal assassination and the events that follow are well known. Mark Antony’s famous speech “Friends, Romans, Countrymen….” and Brutus’ inflexible idealism and his far too measured tribute to the man whom he honored so greatly are the highlights of the play. Scholars have concluded that the inspiration for writing this play must have been the overwhelming anxiety felt in Elizabethan England regarding the royal succession. There were fears that the elderly Queen would die without naming a successor, leading to the outbreak of civil war, which is depicted in the play after the death of Caesar. Caesar himself is a charismatic, powerful and intuitive leader, who holds the empire together by sheer dint of his leadership qualities. He has strong premonitions of his own death. Though the crime is committed in full public view, it is sought to be justified as a political necessity. The play is also famous for not having either a real hero or a villain. Julius Caesar has been adapted extensively for stage, screen and television. Many notable actors have played the roles of Brutus, Mark Antony and Caesar with exceptional brilliance. The play is full of wonderful lines that have entered the realms of English literature over the centuries. Indeed a riveting read for young and old!

Categories: Arts, Society & Culture

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Historical Fiction, Julius Caesar, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, play, William Shakespeare

The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. Set in the Kingdom of Denmark, the play dramatizes the revenge Prince Hamlet exacts on his uncle Claudius for murdering King Hamlet, Claudius’s brother and Prince Hamlet’s father, and then succeeding to the throne and taking as his wife Gertrude, the old king’s widow and Prince Hamlet’s mother. The play vividly portrays both true and feigned madness – from overwhelming grief to seething rage – and explores themes of treachery, revenge, incest, and moral corruption. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Myths/Legends, play, The Tragedy of Hamlet, tragedy, William Shakespeare

King Henry IV, Part 1 is the second of Shakespeare’s eight Wars of the Roses history plays, with events following those of King Richard II. As the play opens, King Henry IV (formerly Henry Bolingbroke) and Henry Percy (Hotspur) argue over the disposition of prisoners from the Battle of Holmedon. The King’s attitude toward Mortimer and the Percy family prompts them to plot rebellion. In the meantime, his son Prince Hal is living the low life in the company of Sir John Falstaff. As the time of battle nears, Prince Hal joins his father and is given a high command. The play’s climax is the Battle of Shrewsbury, in which Prince Hal and Hotspur meet and fight, with Prince Hal and the forces of the King prevailing. The action continues in King Henry IV, Part 2. From the start this has been an extremely popular play both with the public and with critics.

Categories: Arts, Society & Culture

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Historical Fiction, King Henry IV, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, play, William Shakespeare

Two sisters, one practical and full of commonsense, the other a passionate and emotional creature, an uncaring brother and his avaricious wife, a handsome rake and a faithful gentleman – these are some of the unforgettable characters who make Jane Austen’s first published novel, Sense and Sensibility such a delightful, witty and timeless classic. The novel was published under the pseudonym “A Lady” by its shy and retiring nineteen-year-old author, Jane Austen, in 1811. She was the daughter of a country rector and lived all her life in the circle of her large and loving family in a little village in Hampshire, England. There is very little autobiographical material available about her, as her well-meaning relatives burned and destroyed most of her diaries and letters after her death. Sense and Sensibility is a charming story of two sisters who see life from two very different viewpoints. When their father suddenly dies, leaving his entire estate to their half-brother John, the sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, their mother and youngest sister Margaret are thrown at the financial mercy of John and his mean-minded wife, Fanny. Mrs Dashwood and her daughters soon realize that they are not welcome at their former home Norland Hall. Fanny’s brother Edward Ferrars, who is quite different from his greedy and graceless sister, arrives and begins to form an attachment to Elinor, which is violently opposed by Fanny. Mrs Dashwood is hurt and bewildered, but finally realizes that they have no option but to leave. They move to Devonshire, where Mrs Dashwood’s cousin, Sir John Middleton welcomes them and helps them to find suitable lodgings. While out walking one rainy evening, Marianne suffers a small accident and is rescued by the suave and dashing John Willoughby. She falls passionately in love with him. The story takes several interesting twists and turns, driven by the opposing natures of the two sisters. More than two hundred years after publication, this delightful tale still manages to capture the reader’s imagination as it echoes universal truths of passion, love, social status and ethics. Sense and Sensibility is a coming of age novel, marked by Jane Austen’s deliciously ironic and sharp wit and famously under-stated style that will certainly appeal to modern-day readers. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

Categories: Arts, Society & Culture

Tags: audio books, audiobook, Dramatic Works, ebooks, fiction, free audio books, Historical Fiction, jane austen, Literature, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, play, romance, Sense and Sensibility

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