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Thus Spake Zarathustra: A Book for All and None (version 2) (includes annotations)

Friedrich Nietzsche
The modern British philosopher, Anthony M. Ludovici, said that this text “is unquestionably Nietzsche’s opus magnum.” However, he warns the reader that since “the book with the most mysterious, startling, or suggestive title, will always stand the best chance of being purchased by those who have no other criteria to guide them in their choice than the aspect of a title-page … ‘Thus Spake Zarathustra’ is almost always the first and often the only one of Nietzsche’s books that falls into the hands of the uninitiated.” He therefore recommends reading this text alongside some scholarly annotations, which Ludovici gratefully supplies in the volume read here. To keep Ludovici’s intention, in this version of ‘Zarathustra’ the reader includes these annotations (where available) immediately after the reading. Summary by jvanstan
Thus Spake Zarathustra: A Book for All and None

Nietzsche, Friedrich
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844–1900) was a nineteenth-century German philosopher. He wrote critical texts on religion, morality, contemporary culture, philosophy and science, using a distinctive German language style and displaying a fondness for aphorism. Nietzsche's influence remains substantial within and beyond philosophy, notably in existentialism and postmodernism.
Thus Spake Zarathustra (Also sprach Zarathustra), is a work composed in four parts between 1883 and 1885. Much of the work deals with ideas such as the "eternal recurrence of the same", the parable on the "death of God", and the "prophecy" of the Overman, which were first introduced in The Gay Science. Described by Nietzsche himself as "the deepest ever written", the book is a dense and esoteric treatise on philosophy and morality, featuring as protagonist a fictionalized Zarathustra. A central irony of the text is that the style of the Bible is used by Nietzsche to present ideas of his which fundamentally oppose Judaeo-Christian morality and tradition.
Jungle Book, The (Version 2)

Kipling, Rudyard
This is the classic story of Mowgli, the young boy raised by wolves in India: his escapades and adventures with his dear friends Bagheera the panther and Baloo the bear, his capture by the Monkey-People, his attempt at reintegration into human society, and his ultimate triumph over his avowed enemy the tiger Shere Khan. Included in the book is the story of the brave white seal, Kotick, and the tenacious young mongoose, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi who battled through the night to protect his human family from a pair of sly and viscous cobras. Packed with adventure and Jungle Law wisdom, this book has pervaded popular culture as the basis of many film and stage adaptations, including the popular Disney movie.
Jungle Book, The

Kipling, Rudyard
This classic children's book by Rudyard Kipling tells the story of Mowgli, a young boy raised by wolves: his escapades and adventures with his dear friends Bagheera the panther and Baloo the bear, his capture by the Monkey-People, his attempt at reintegration into human society, and his ultimate triumph over the lame tiger Shere Khan. The account of Mowgli's adventures is followed by several short stories, including the tales of the brave white seal, Kotick, and the tenacious mongoose, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. Packed with adventure and Jungle Law wisdom, this book has pervaded popular culture as the basis of many film and stage adaptations, including the popular Disney movie, and through its adoption as a motivational book by the Cub Scouts.
Hunting-Song of the Seeonee Pack

Rudyard Kipling
Volunteers bring you 8 recordings of the Hunting-Song of the Seeonee Pack, from The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. This was the weekly poem for the week of November 30, 2014.
Jungle Book (Version 3)

Rudyard Kipling
A story of a boy who raised by Indian wolves becomes lord of the jungle.
Sense and Sensibility (version 3)

Austen, Jane
Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen's first published novel, focuses on the lives and loves of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood. The sensible Elinor and the sensitive Marianne both fall for men whose affections are otherwise engaged. The novel includes a wonderful cast of colorful supporting characters, as well as Austen's trademark dry wit and ironic narration.
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Sense and Sensibility (version 2)

Austen, Jane
Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen's first published novel, focuses on the lives and loves of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood. The sensible Elinor and the sensitive Marianne both fall for men whose affections are otherwise engaged. The novel includes a wonderful cast of colorful supporting characters, as well as Austen's trademark dry wit and ironic narration.
Sense and Sensibility

Austen, Jane
The two eldest Dashwood sisters, Elinor and Marianne, one of whom (Elinor) embraces practicality and restraint while the other (Marianne) gives her whole heart to every endeavor. When the Dashwoods - mother Mrs. Dashwood, Elinor, Marianne, and youngest sister Margaret - are sent, almost impoverished, to a small cottage in Devonshire after the death of their father and the machinations of their brother's wife, they accept their new circumstances with as much cheer as they can muster even though their brother and his wife have taken over the family estate and fortune. Marianne finds herself falling in love with the dashing Willoughby, who ends up being not all that he appears. Elinor, the more sensible of the two, falls for Edward Ferrars, a match that seems much more suitable. All of these pleasant connections are, however, soon disrupted. Willoughby leaves and ignores Marianne. Elinor finds out an unexpected secret about Ferrars that puts her on her caution in pursuing their relationship. As these complications develop, Marianne soon finds herself distraught despite having attracted another suitor, the reliable, but older, Colonel Brandon. Elinor steps into the breach to try to help her sister regain her equilibrium. Both learn what a broken heart can feel like and adjust in their own separate ways. Since this is an Austen novel and a romance, be assured that all comes right in the end.
Sense and Sensibility (version 4)

Austen, Jane
When Mr Henry Dashwood dies, with his estate entailed to his son and grandson, his wife and three daughters are left in reduced circumstances. In their new home at Barton Cottage, the two older sisters, Elinor and Marianne, experience both romance and heartache. Will they find true love?
Sense and Sensibility (dramatic reading)

Austen, Jane
The story is about Elinor and Marianne, two daughters of Mr Dashwood by his second wife. They have a younger sister, Margaret, and an older half-brother named John. When their father dies, the family estate passes to John, and the Dashwood women are left in reduced circumstances. The novel follows the Dashwood sisters to their new home, a cottage on a distant relative's property, where they experience both romance and heartbreak. The contrast between the sisters' characters is eventually resolved as they each find love and lasting happiness. Through the events in the novel, Elinor and Marianne encounter the sense and sensibility of life and love. In this dramatic reading, Volunteers lend their voices to bring Jane Austen's classic story to life.
War of the Worlds (Version 4)

H. G. Wells
The War of the Worlds is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells, first serialized in 1897 by Pearson's Magazine in the UK and by Cosmopolitan magazine in the US. The novel's first appearance in hardcover was in 1898 from publisher William Heinemann of London. Written between 1895 and 1897, it is one of the earliest stories to detail a conflict between mankind and an extraterrestrial race. The novel is the first-person narrative of both an unnamed protagonist in Surrey and of his younger brother in London as southern England is invaded by Martians. The novel is one of the most commented-on works in the science fiction canon.
Study in Scarlet (Version 7 Dramatic Reading)

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle’s novel A Study in Scarlet marked the first appearance of fictional private detective Sherlock Holmes and his assistant, Dr. Watson. Doyle wrote this novel in less than three weeks when he was 27 years old. Originally called A Tangled Skein, the novel was rejected by several publishers before it was accepted for publication as A Study in Scarlet in the November 1887 issue of Beeton’s Christmas Annual, an obscure British magazine remembered for little other than its inauguration of Sherlock Holmes. The novel was first published as a book the following year, but it was not until Doyle’s publication of the Sherlock Holmes short story “A Scandal in Bohemia” in The Strand Magazine in 1891 that the character of Sherlock Holmes received widespread acclaim. Since then, A Study in Scarlet has been published in many editions both in English and in translation, and allusions to the novel have frequently appeared in the works of other authors. A Study in Scarlet has occasionally generated controversy relating to the negative depiction of early Mormons in the chapters that take place in Utah. When visiting Utah for the first time in 1923, Doyle was asked to apologize for this depiction, but he defended the relevant content in the novel as historical. Like other installments in the Sherlock Holmes franchise, A Study in Scarlet has been adapted many times for a variety of media, including comics, radio, television, film, and the stage. The first two film adaptations, one British and one American, were released in 1914 and both are now considered lost films; in 2010, the British Film Institute named the British film one of the 75 most wanted films for their National Archive. The novel’s enduring legacy is also discernable in the widespread use of magnifying glasses in detective fiction, a trope initiated by A Study in Scarlet.
Study in Scarlet, A (version 3)

Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir
A Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, introducing his new character of Sherlock Holmes, who later became one of the most famous literary detective characters. He wrote the story in 1886, and it was published the next year. The book's title derives from a speech given by Holmes to his sidekick Doctor Watson on the nature of his work, in which he describes the story's murder investigation as his "study in scarlet": "There’s the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it." Although Conan Doyle wrote 56 short stories featuring Holmes, A Study in Scarlet is one of only four full-length novels in the original canon. The novel was followed by The Sign of Four, published in 1890. A Study in Scarlet was the first work of fiction to incorporate the magnifying glass as an investigative tool.
Study in Scarlet, A (version 2)

Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir
A Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which was first published in 1887. It is the first story to feature the character of Sherlock Holmes, who would later become one of the most famous literary detective characters, with long-lasting interest and appeal. The book's title derives from a speech given by Holmes to his companion Doctor Watson on the nature of his work, in which he describes the story's murder investigation as his "study in scarlet": "There’s the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it."
Study in Scarlet, A

Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir
A Study in Scarlet, a short novel published in 1887, was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's first Sherlock Holmes story. At the beginning of the book, Dr. Watson meets the detective for the first time and we ride along with them to the scene of a murder. The crime baffles the Scotland Yard detectives, but of course Holmes solves it easily. In the second half of the story, the scene shifts to Utah as we learn the murderer's history. The action returns to London in the last two chapters. In his first adventure, Holmes demonstrates many of the traits for which he later became well known: meticulous study of a crime scene, brilliant deductive reasoning, aptitude for chemistry and music, and the somewhat annoying habit of withholding crucial facts from Watson (and consequently the reader) until the conclusion of the case.
Study In Scarlet (version 5)

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
"A Study in Scarlet" is the first ever Sherlock Holmes story split into two quite distinctive parts. The first part is told from the viewpoint of Dr. John Watson and recounts his first experiences of meeting the illustrious Sherlock Holmes and their subsequent co-habitation and crime-solving partnership. The second is told in a third person narrative and is set in the USA, setting an elaborate back-story to the eventual motive of the murderer, before returning to the UK towards the end of part two, the narration, once again, being picked up by Dr. John Watson.
Study In Scarlet (Version 6)

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
A Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, introducing his new characters, "consulting detective" Sherlock Holmes and his friend and chronicler, Dr. John Watson, who later became two of the most famous characters in literature.

Conan Doyle wrote the story in 1886, and it was published the following year. The book's title derives from a speech given by Holmes to Doctor Watson on the nature of his work, in which he describes the story's murder investigation as his "study in scarlet": "There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it." (A "study" is a preliminary drawing, sketch or painting done in preparation for a finished piece.)
Bible (KJV) 18: Job (version 3)

King James Version (KJV)
The Book of Job, memorably conceived of by C G Jung as the story of one man's struggle to make conscious the undifferentiated contents of the unconscious, is in its own terms an intensive study of the age old problem of undeserved suffering at the hands of an all-wise, aii-good, all-powerful God. Seen by some as a prefiguration of the crucifixion and ultimate resurrection of Jesus Christ, it is for all of us the intensely poetic story of a soul in pain, reaching out for its final redemption.
Bible (KJV) 28-39: Minor Prophets (Hosea through Malachi)

King James Version (KJV)
A minor prophet is one of the writings in the Twelve Prophets section of the Hebrew Bible, also known to Christians as the Minor Prophets of the Old Testament. In the Hebrew Bible the writings of the minor prophets are counted as a single book, in Christian Bibles as twelve individual books. The "Twelve" are listed here in order of their appearance in Hebrew and most Protestant and Catholic Christian Bibles: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
Bible (KJV) NT 23: 1 John

King James Version (KJV)
The First Epistle of John, often referred to as First John and written 1 John, is a book of the New Testament. This fourth catholic or "general" epistle is attributed to John the Evangelist, traditionally thought to be the author of the Gospel of John and the other two Epistles of John. This Epistle was written in Ephesus between the years 95–110. The work was written to counter docetism, the heresy that Jesus did not come "in the flesh," but only as a spirit. It also defined how Christians are to discern true teachers: by their ethics, their proclamation of Jesus in the flesh, and by their love.
Simple Sabotage Field Manual

United States Office of Strategic Services
Formed during World War II, the United States Office of Strategic Services (OSS), was organized for special operations and intelligence gatheringand analysis. Included in its mission was the implementation of, and training of foreign forces in, propaganda, espionage, subversion, and sabotage. After the war, OSS functions were transferred to the newly formed Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

This "Simple Sabotage Field Manual" was used by OSS agents in training "citizen-saboteurs" in methods for inciting and executing simple sabotage to thwart industry and other vital functions in Axis-occupied areas.
Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, The

Franklin, Benjamin
Franklin wrote his autobiography in the form of an extended letter to his son. While recording the events of his life, he adds instructions for good living which makes this work America’s first “How to Succeed” book.
12 Creepy Tales

Poe, Edgar Allan
This is a collection of 12 creepy stories by that master of creepiness, Poe. The Black Cat; The Fall of the House of Usher, The Raven; The Tell Tale Heart, The Masque of the Red Death, the Premature Burial and six others that are a shuddering delight to read and listen to. Turn off the lights, settle down and hear these stories read to you as only readers can perform them.
Works of Edgar Allan Poe, The, Raven Edition, Volume 2

Poe, Edgar Allan
Monday, January 19, 2009 marked Edgar Allan Poe's 200th birthday. Though these tales need no introduction, the rationale for starting with volume two is threefold: many of the best-loved (and best) tales are included, the vast majority run from 15 to 30 minutes, and the other volumes can then be recorded without repetition, if there is interest in doing so.
Uncle Tom's Cabin

Stowe, Harriet Beecher
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is a novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe which treats slavery as a central theme. Stowe was a Connecticut-born teacher at the Hartford Female Academy and an active abolitionist. The novel is believed to have had a profound effect on the North's view of slavery. First published on March 20, 1852, the story focuses on the tale of Uncle Tom, a long-suffering black slave, the central character around whose life the other characters—both fellow slaves and slave owners—revolve. The novel depicts the harsh reality of slavery while also showing that Christian love and faith can overcome even something as evil as enslavement of fellow human beings.
Carmilla (Version 3)

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
Carmilla is an 1872 Gothic novella by Irish author Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, originally published as a serial in the London-based literary magazine The Dark Blue. It is one of the early works of vampire fiction, predating Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897) by 26 years. The story is narrated by a young woman who falls under the spell of the mysterious Carmilla. The story is often anthologized and has been adapted many times in film, theatre, radio, and television.
(description adapted from Wikipedia by Louise J. Belle)
Carmilla (Version 2)

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
Laura grew up on a castle in the Austrian mountains with her father, slightly lonely as there are no potential companions around. Her loneliness is at an end when a carriage accindent close by their castle brings a mysterious visitor: Carmilla was injured in the accident, and remains at the castle to heal. But there is something dark about Carmilla. Is Laura in danger?
Carmilla

Le Fanu, Joseph Sheridan
Carmilla is a Gothic novella by Joseph Sheridan le Fanu. First published in 1872, it tells the story of a young woman's susceptibility to the attentions of a female vampire named Carmilla. Carmilla predates Bram Stoker's Dracula by over twenty years, had a strong influence on Stoker's famous novel.
Essays book 1

Montaigne, Michel Eyquem de
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne is one of the most influential writers of the French Renaissance, known for popularising the essay as a literary genre and is popularly thought of as the father of Modern Skepticism. He became famous for his effortless ability to merge serious intellectual speculation with casual anecdotes and autobiography—and his massive volume Essais (translated literally as "Attempts") contains, to this day, some of the most widely influential essays ever written.
Essays book 2

Montaigne, Michel Eyquem de
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne is one of the most influential writers of the French Renaissance, known for popularising the essay as a literary genre. He is also known as the father of Modern Skepticism. His pieces became famous for his apparent effortless ability to merge serious intellectual speculation with casual anecdotes and autobiography. His main work, Essais (translated literally as "Attempts" but traditionally as "Essays"), contains some of the still most widely influential essays ever written. This is the second volume of that important work.
Happy Prince and Other Tales, The

Wilde, Oscar
Collection of children’s stories written in 1888, dealing primarily with love and selfishness. These stories are generally sad, with a moralistic message. The collection includes: The Happy Prince, The Nightingale and the Rose, The Selfish Giant, The Devoted Friend, and The Remarkable Rocket.
Happy Prince and Other Tales, Version 2

Oscar Wilde
The Happy Prince and Other Tales (also sometimes called The Happy Prince and Other Stories) is an 1888 collection of stories for children by Oscar Wilde. It is most famous for The Happy Prince, the short tale of a metal statue who befriends a migratory bird. Together, they bring happiness to others, in life as well as in death.
The stories included in this collection are:
The Happy Prince
The Nightingale and the Rose
The Selfish Giant
The Devoted Friend
The Remarkable Rocket
The stories convey an appreciation for the exotic, the sensual and for masculine beauty.
Gulliver's Travels

Swift, Jonathan
Gulliver's Travels (1726, amended 1735), officially Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, is a novel by Jonathan Swift that is both a satire on human nature and a parody of the "travelers' tales" literary sub-genre. It is widely considered Swift's magnum opus and is his most celebrated work, as well as one of the indisputable classics of English literature.
Call of the Wild, The (Version 2)

London, Jack
This is the story of Buck, dog napped from sunny California to snowy Arctic during the Alaska gold rush. This deservedly famous book has been already recorded by LibriVox and downloaded more than 100,000 times. Why, then, would anyone suggest another recording? Because this will be a Solo recording.
One of the joys of LibriVox is also a source of frustration for some listeners. That is, getting used to a narrator just in time for it to change! So, with apologies to Gordon, Kristin, Jean, and Miette, I am doing a solo.
Call of the Wild, The (Version 3)

London, Jack
Buck is living a happy life in California until he is sold to pay a gambling debt. Taken to the Klondike to become a sled dog, Buck must toughen up and learn the harsher rules of survival in the North. One of the first of these is how to deal with being harnessed in the same team as a dog that wants to kill him.
Large, strong and smart, Buck toughens to his new life. But even the toughest dog can be worn down by constant work, and after 3,000 miles of pulling sleds, Buck nears the end of his rope.
Cast away as no longer useful, Buck is acquired by greenhorns whose inexperience nearly kills him, but after being saved by John Thornton, he at last finds a man he can love.
Then on a remote gold-hunting expedition, Buck hears a call emanating from the woods and speaking to the wild heart of his distant ancestors. The lure of it almost balances the great love he bears for Thornton, but events take him away from his old life... and into legend.
Call of the Wild, The

London, Jack
In this novel (often mistakingly classified a children’s book) the main protagonist Buck, a St. Bernard/Collie mix, is abducted and sold to a trainer of sled dogs in Alaska. He adapts to the brutal conditions and is finally acquired by a loving man. When this new owner is killed, Buck follows the ‘call of the wild’ and joins a pack of wolves.
Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The

Irving, Washington
The quiet Dutch community of Sleepy Hollow lay in the Adirondack mountains on the western shore of the mighty Hudson River in America’s colonial period. The solitude of the woods was breathtaking, and not even a schoolmaster was immune from the eerie miasma which everyone knew permeated the dense forest. Written in 1820, Washington Irving’s The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow has become a classic of American literature, and has been retold in many different ways. Here is the original, from Irving’s own hand.
Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The Version 2

Irving, Washington
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story by Washington Irving contained in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., written while he was living in Birmingham, England, and first published in 1820. It was based on a German folktale set in the Dutch culture of Post-Revolutionary War in New York State. With Irving's companion piece "Rip Van Winkle", it is among the earliest examples of American fiction still read today.
Legend of Sleepy Hollow (version 3)

Washington Irving
Everyone knows the story of the Headless Horseman but perhaps you, like me, did not remember what a marvelous story teller Washington Irving was. He observed human nature closely and like any good humorist, lets us laugh at our own silly and superstitious sides through the joy of having strangers be the ones to display them. If you, like me, have only vague and muddy memories of this story, you owe it to yourself to listen and laugh along with the rest of the world. My High School English teacher who could never interest me in 'literature', would be proud.
Notes From The Underground (version 2)

Dostoyevsky, Fyodor
Notes from Underground is an 1864 novella by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Notes is considered by many to be the first existentialist novel. It presents itself as an excerpt from the rambling memoirs of a bitter, isolated, unnamed narrator (generally referred to by critics as the Underground Man) who is a retired civil servant living in St. Petersburg. The first part of the story is told in monologue form, or the underground man's diary, and attacks emerging Western philosophy, especially Nikolay Chernyshevsky's What Is to Be Done?. The second part of the book is called "Àpropos of the Wet Snow," and describes certain events that, it seems, are destroying and sometimes renewing the underground man, who acts as a first person, unreliable narrator.
Notes from the Underground

Dostoyevsky, Fyodor
Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s short masterpiece about a ranting, slightly mad civil servant. The stylistic inventiveness, and the insights into the absurdities and weakness of humans seem so fresh and incisive today that if published now (a century and a half later) Notes would be considered an avant-garde post-modernist triumph. In some ways this is a heavy text, laden with conversational philosophizing; but the vividness of the narrator make it a wonderful read, and funny.
Awakening, The

Chopin, Kate
Owing to its highly personal content focused on feminine sexuality, this edition was recorded by eight female readers. To give you an idea of the subject matter, Project Gutenburg catalogues The Awakening under "Adultery -- Fiction -- Women -- Louisiana -- New Orleans -- Social conditions.
Awakening, The (version 2)

Chopin, Kate
Kate Chopin's 1899 novella The Awakening is about the personal, sexual, and artistic awakening of a young wife and mother, Edna Pontellier. While on vacation at Grand Isle, an island in the Gulf of Mexico, Edna befriends the talented pianist Mlle. Reisz and the sympathetic Robert Lebrun, both of whom will influence her startling life choices. Chopin's novel created a scandal upon its original publication and effectively destroyed her writing career. Now, however, it is considered one of the finest American novels of the 19th century.
Around the World in Eighty Days

Verne, Jules
Around the World in Eighty Days (French: Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is a classic adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in 1873. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly-employed French valet Passepartout attempt to circumnavigate the world in 80 days on a £20,000 wager set by his friends at the Reform Club.
Around the World in Eighty Days (version 3)

Verne, Jules
Enigmatic Phileas Fogg accepts a wager about whether it's possible to circumnavigate the globe in 80 days or under. The book charts his adventures on the way.
Oliver Twist (version 4)

Charles Dickens
Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress is the second novel by Charles Dickens. The story is about an orphan Oliver Twist, who endures a miserable existence in a workhouse and then is placed with an undertaker. He escapes and travels to London where he meets the Artful Dodger, leader of a gang of juvenile pickpockets. Oliver is led to the lair of their elderly criminal trainer Fagin, naively unaware of their unlawful activities. Packed with a host of unforgettable characters this story will have you laughing and crying in turn(but mostly laughing). A must for any book lover.
Oliver Twist (version 6)

Charles Dickens
"Please sir, I want some more," the famous line spoken by Oliver Twist at age nine, becomes the tipping point of a huge change in Oliver's life. He is soon captured into the service of Fagin and his gang of pick-pocketing boys. But, Mr. Brownlow saves him from arrest, and for the first time in his young life Oliver finds comfort and caring. Unfortunately, he is recaptured into the seedy and disgusting world he had escaped, and meets with Bill Sykes, a dangerous criminal. There are numerous delightful or wicked characters that carry the story along, such as the Artful Dodger-- a boy of the streets under Fagin, Mr. Bumble the Beadle, looking for ways to get rid of Oliver, Nancy who makes a fateful betrayal, and the Maylies, whose affection Oliver craves. The author's descriptions of the back street life in London, bring us full force into the crushing poverty and the terrible way in which poor people were treated during that time. Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist as a serial in 1837, and it is considered one of the most popular in English literature.
Call of the Wild (version 4)

Jack London
The Call of the Wild is a novel by Jack London published in 1903. The story is set in the Yukon during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush—a period in which strong sled dogs were in high demand. The novel's central character is a dog named Buck, a domesticated dog living at a ranch in the Santa Clara Valley of California as the story opens. Stolen from his home and sold into service as sled dog in Alaska, he reverts to a wild state. Buck is forced to fight in order to dominate other dogs in a harsh climate. Eventually he sheds the veneer of civilization, relying on primordial instincts and learned experience to emerge as a leader in the wild. The terrible, never relenting work of pulling sleds in sub-freezing temperatures combined with little food and rest quickly killed any dog not extremely tough. It almost kills Buck but his fierce determination to survive finally brings him through. London lived for most of a year in the Yukon collecting material for the book.
Call of the Wild (Version 5)

Jack London
Buck, a magnificent mix of St. Bernard and Scotch shepherd dog, rules contentedly at Judge Miller’s place in California’s Santa Clara Valley. But 1897 brings the Klondike Gold Rush, and Buck is the perfect kind of dog to service sleds—so he is stolen and spirited away to the Northland. There he learns a hard life at the hands of tough men and competing sled dogs, which sharpen his instincts and survival skills. Thousands of miles of grueling sled travel and toil nearly wear Buck out, until chance in the form of John Thornton saves him. This “ideal master” proves the only man worthy of Buck’s unconditional love. Despite his newfound companionship, however, the growing lure of Buck’s primitive ancestral heritage, the “song of a younger world” awakened by the wild harsh beauty of his environment, vies for that love. Only chance once again resolves the tension between love and nature… and allows Buck to fulfill his glorious, bittersweet destiny.

A personal note from the reader: I think that my characterization of this book follows the way I found myself reading it. For best listening experience, use headphones. (Not earbuds, unless they are of high quality!)
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