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This website contains a treasure trove of wonderful, educational, classic audio books. Unfortunately, technology has come a long way since my children and I built this site in 2009, and keeping it up to date is no longer feasible for me. We no longer charge for a subscription and have unblocked all the content so that it can be accessed without logging in. We have kept it running at our own expense, unwilling to let this library of sorts go the way of the dinosaur. Some links are broken but most of the content is still good. If the content is a Libravox book, I recommend streaming it through their app. There is an ad free version that is very inexpensive, as well as an ad-supported app, both available in the app store.

Robert Burns poetry

Penleigh_Boyd_-_Hawkesbury_River,_1922
Robert Bruce’s March to Bannockburn (text and audio reading)

Green Grow the Rashes

Green Grow the Rushes (modernized version, Celtic Woman)

Flow Gently Sweet Afton by Robert Burns (You Tube video, including lyrics)

To a Louse by Robert Burns (eText and You Tube video)

To a Mouse by Robert Burns (You Tube video with embedded text)

Auld Lang Syne (You tube video with embedded text)

My Love is like a Red, Red Rose (song and e-Text)

Editing Burns for the 21st century has updated audio renditions of several Burns poems

Under Drake’s Flag by G. A. Henty

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Summary:?An exciting tale set on the high seas, in a period ruled by exploration, with the ever-present dangers of nature and the weather, together with pirates of the famed Spanish Main. – (Summary by Lynne Thompson for Librivox)

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Running Time:10:41

The Wreck On The Devon Coast

Friends And Foes

On The Spanish Main

An Unsuccessful Attack Part 1

An Unsuccessful Attack Part 2

Cast Ashore

In The Woods

An Attack In Force

The Forest Fastness

Baffled

Southward Ho!

The Marvel Of Fire

Across A Continent

Through The Cordilleras

On The Pacific Coast

The Prison Of The Inquisition

The Rescue

The Golden Hind

San Francisco Bay

South Sea Idols

A Portuguese Settlement

Wholesale Conversion

Home

Wulf the Saxon by G. A. Henty

Wulf_the_Saxon_1302

Summary: Wulf the Saxon is a classic George Henty tale of nobility, loyalty and courage set in 11th century Britain. It relates the adventures of Wulf, a young, but extremely capable Saxon Thane. Wulf with his friends and servitors devote their lives to the service of Harold Godwinson, both before and after he becomes king of England. They are directly involved in capturing castles, rescuing shipwreck survivors, foiling assassination attempts and entering the terrible battles at Stamford Bridge and Senlac field by Hastings. The background of the novel is set in the stormy period prior to the Norman conquest of Britain and the story centers around real people and events, even offering a historically correct and lucid insight to the intrigues surrounding the religious and political alliances which led to the events of 1066; an absolute turning point in England’s history. (courtesy of Librivox)

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Running time: 12:12

Preface

A Quarrel

Country Life

At Court

A Storm

Rouen

Release of The Earl

The Oath

Trouble With Wales

In the Welsh Valleys

Porthwyn

The Secret Passage

Edith

Harold The King

Wulf’s Suspicions

A Meeting by The River

A Voyage North

An Attempt at Assassination

The Northern Invasion

Stamford Bridge

The Landing of The Foe

Hastings

The Lord of Bramber

With Clive in India by G. A. Henty

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Summary:?With Clive in India gives a vivid picture of the wonderful events of the ten years, which at their commencement saw Madras in the hands of the French–Calcutta at the mercy of the Nabob of Bengal–and English influence apparently at the point of extinction in India–and which ended in the final triumph of the English, both in Bengal and Madras. There were yet great battles to be fought, great efforts to be made, before the vast Empire of India fell altogether into British hands; but these were but the sequel of the events described. (Summary by G. A. Henty).

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Running time: 13:33

Preface

Leaving Home

The Young Writer

A Brush with Privateers

The Pirates of the Pacific

Madras

The Arrival of Clive

The Siege of Arcot

The Grand Assault

The Battle of Kavaripak

The Fall of Seringam

The Fall of Seringam

An Important Mission

A Murderous Attempt

An Attempt at Murder

The Siege of Ambur

The Pirates’ Hold

A Tiger Hunt

The Capture of Gheriah

The The “Black Hole” of Calcutta

A Daring Escape

The Rescue of the White Captive

The Battle Outside Calcutta

Plassey

Plassey

Mounted Infantry

Besieged in A Pagoda

The Siege Of Madras

Masulipatam

The Defeat Of Lally

The Siege Of Pondicherry

Home

The Young Carthaginian by G. A. Henty

young_carthaginian_1402

Summary:?Typically, Henty’s heroes are boys of pluck in troubled times, and this is no different. Detailed research is embellished with a vivid imagination, especially in this novel set in the Punic wars, about which knowledge is limited: “…certainly we had but a hazy idea as to the merits of the struggle and knew but little of its events, for the Latin and Greek authors, which serve as the ordinary textbooks in schools, do not treat of the Punic wars. That it was a struggle for empire at first, and latterly one for existence on the part of Carthage, that Hannibal was a great and skilful general, that he defeated the Romans at Trebia, Lake Trasimenus, and Cannae, and all but took Rome, and that the Romans behaved with bad faith and great cruelty at the capture of Carthage, represents, I think, pretty nearly the sum total of our knowledge. ” (from the preface)

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?

Preface

A Camp In The Desert

A Night Attack

Carthage

A Popular Rising

The Conspiracy

A Campaign In Spain

A Wolf Hunt

A Plot Frustrated

The Siege Of Saguntum

Beset

The Passage Of The Rhone

Among The Passes

The Battle Of The Trebia

The Battle Of Lake Trasimene

A Mountain Tribe

In The Dungeons Of Carthage

The Escape

Cannae

In The Mines

The Sardinian Forest

The Gaulish Slave

The Lion

The Curse of Carne’s Hold by G. A. Henty

Curse_Carnes_Hold_1307

 

Summary: When Ronald Mervyn from Devonshire is falsely accused of murder he emigrates to South Africa. He takes part in the Kaffir war and during this time he rescues a family from death. The family then return to England and try to establish Ronald’s innocence. (Summary by Michele Eaton for Librivox)

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Running time: 11:26

How The Curse Began

Margaret Carne

Two Quarrels

A Terrible Discovery

The Inquest

Ruth Powlett

The Verdict

Enlisted

The Outbreak

A Successful Defence

A Successful Defence

In The Amatolas

The Rescue

Ronald Is Offered A Commision

A Parting

Searching For A Clue

Ruth Powlett Confesses

George Forester’s Death

The Fire At Carne’s Hold

Cleared At Last

True Stories of Wonderful Deeds by anonymous

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Summary:?These one page Stories of (mostly) Wonderful Deeds were written for Little Folk to teach them about famous incidents in their history. Bonnie Prince Charlie, Nelson and Hardy, Bruce and the Spider, David Livingston, Canute, Sir Philip Sydney, and Elizabeth and Raleigh are just some of the well known people and incidents covered in short stories. (Summary by Phil Chenevert for Librivox)

01 – The Royal Oak

02 – Bonnie Prince Charlie

03 – Nelson and Hardy

04 – Watt and the Kettle

05 – Queen Victoria and her Soldiers

06 – The Relief of Lucknow

07 – Grace Darling

08 – David Livingstone

09 – The Battle of Waterloo

10 – The Charge of the Light Brigade

11 – The Coronation of King Edward VII

12 – War

13 – A Boy’s Heroic Deeds

13 – A Boy’s Heroic Deeds

15 – A Brave Queen, Boadacea

16 – King Alfred and the Cakes

17 – Not Angles, but Angels

18 – Hereward the Wake

19 – Canute

20 – The Brave Men of Calais

21 – Wat Tyler

22 – Bruce and the Spider

23 – Richard and Blondel

24 – The White Ship

25 – Joan of Arc

26 – Afloat With A Tiger

27 – Queen Margaret and the Robbers

28 – William Caxton

29 – Sir Philip Sidney

30 – The “Revenge”

31 – The Pilgrim Fathers

32 – Guy Fawkes

33 – Cromwell and his Ironsides

34 – The Spanish Armada

35 – The Defence of Lathom House

36 – The Outlawed Archers

37 – Elizabeth and Raleigh

Historic Boyhoods by Rupert S. Holland

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Most boys grow up to be honest, maybe even good, men, but do not stand out from the crowd. Occasionally, along comes a boy who is destined, either by character or circumstance, to make his mark on the world. In this work are included 21 biographical sketches of boys who became famous in the arts, affairs of state or exploration and discovery. Historical fact is blended with surmise and imagination to bring these boyhoods alive. – Summary by Lynne Thompson for Librivox

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Run time: 6:57

Christopher Columbus The Boy of Genoa: 1446(?)-1506

Michael Angelo The Boy of the Medici Gardens: 1475-1564

Walter Raleigh The Boy of Devon: 1552-1618

Peter the Great The Boy of the Kremlin: 1672-1725

Frederick the Great The Boy of Potsdam: 1712-1788

George Washington The Boy of the Old Dominion: 1732-1799

Daniel Boone The Boy of the Frontier: 1735-1820

John Paul Jones The Boy of the Atlantic: 1747-1792

Mozart The Boy of Salzburg: 1756-1791

Lafayette The Boy of Versailles: 1757-1834

Horatio Nelson The Boy of the Channel Fleet: 1758-1805

Robert Fulton The Boy of the Conestoga: 1765-1815

Andrew Jackson The Boy of the Carolinas: 1767-1845

Napoleon Bonaparte The Boy of Brienne: 1769-1821

Walter Scott The Boy of the Canongate: 1771-1832

James Fenimore Cooper The Boy of Otsego Hall: 1789-1851

John Ericsson The Boy of the G?ta Canal: 1803-1889

Garibaldi The Boy of the Mediterranean: 1807-1882

Abraham Lincoln The Boy of the American Wilderness: 1809-1865

Charles Dickens The Boy of the London Streets: 1812-1870

Otto von Bismarck The Boy of G?ttingen: 1815-1898

Richard Wagner: The Story of the Boy Who Wrote Little Plays by Thomas Tapper

Wagner's Lohengrin
Wagner’s Lohengrin

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Richard Wagner: The Story of the Boy Who Wrote Little Plays (left click to play or right click ?save as? to download)

This story is an excerpt from the book Stories of Great Composers for Children by Thomas Tapper.?Download the entire book as a zipped file?OR?Subscribe to the entire book in iTunes

Run time: 14 minutes

Frederic Francois Chopin: The Story of a Boy Who Made Beautiful Melodies by Thomas Tapper

Chopin playing for the prince

 

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Frederic Francois Chopin: The Story of a Boy Who Made Beautiful Melodies (left click to play or right click ?save as? to download)

This story is an excerpt from the book Stories of Great Composers for Children by Thomas Tapper.?Download the entire book as a zipped file?OR?Subscribe to the entire book in iTunes

Knights of Art: Stories of the Italian Painters by Amy Steedman

knights_art_1404

A children’s version of the Lives of Artists by Vassari with many Illustrations. Of course we won’t be able to show the paintings but the descriptions and the anecdotes are interesting and may lead a child to further interest. – Summary by Susan Morin

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Run time: 6:30

About This Book

GIOTTO

FRA ANGELICO

MASACCIO

FRA FILIPPO LIPPI

SANDRO BOTTICELLI

DOMENICO GHIRLANDAIO

FILIPPINO LIPPI

PIETRO PERUGINO

LEONARDO DA VINCI,

RAPHAEL

MICHELANGELO

ANDREA DEL SARTO

GIOVANNI BELLINI

VITTORE CARPACCIO

GIORGIONE

TITIAN

TINTORETTO

PAUL VERONESE

Mag and Margaret: A Story for Girls by Pansy

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Summary:?Little Mag Jessup is an orphan girl who works hard as a servant in Mrs. Perkins’ boarding house to earn her keep. She has no education, except what she has picked up on her own. Her future looks unchanging until she is given, on a whim, a devotional book called “Little Pillows,” in which she learns that she is valuable to God as His child. She endures trials from many fronts and the prejudice of haughty, rich Margaret, with whom she has more in common than she thinks, on her journey with God. (Introduction by TriciaG for Librivox)

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Run time: 6:54

01 – ‘Merry Christmas to Mag’

02 – Ethel

03 – ‘A Girl Out of a Book’

04 – ‘I’ll Do My Very Best’

05 – ‘Raisins’

06 – ‘A Crumb of Comfort’

07 – A Sea of Trouble

08 – Things ‘Working Together’

09 – Discoveries

10 – Surprises

11 – New Ideas

12 – Peas and Picnics

13 – White Dresses

14 – Sunshine and Clouds

15 – ‘If We Only Hadn’t’

16 – A Hard Lesson

17 – After the Storm

18 – ‘What Made You Change?’

19 – A New Home

20 – A Memorable Birthday

21 – Mag’s Wages

22 – ‘That Little Mag Jessup’

23 – ‘Excellent’

24 – ‘The Exact Truth’

25 – ‘What Else Could One Do?’