Great Literature

Elegant, enigmatic Jay Gatsby yearns for his old love, the beautiful Daisy. But she is married to the insensitive if hugely successful Tom Buchanan, who won’t let her go despite having a mistress himself. In their wealthy haven, these beguiling lives are brought together by the innocent and entranced narrator, Nick – until their decadent deceits spill into violence and tragedy. Part morality tale, part fairy tale, The Great Gatsby is the consummate novel of the Jazz Age. Its tenderness and poetry make it one of the great works of the 20th century.

In 1926, Henry Beston spent two weeks in a two-room cottage on the sand dunes of Cape Cod. He had not intended to stay longer, but, as he later wrote, "I lingered on, and as the year lengthened into autumn, the beauty and mystery of this earth and outer sea so possessed and held me that I could not go."

"Have you ever seen a ghost, Mr. Holmes?" asks Victoria Temple, and Sherlock Holmes, at the height of his powers in 1898, must face a new challenge, one that plunges the great detective into the realm of the supernatural. Miss Temple has been found guilty - but also insane - at her trial for murdering a child under her care. She is locked away in the Broadmoor lunatic asylum, and worse still, she believes fully in her own guilt....

London Labour and the London Poor is a rare and fascinating insight into the lives and struggles of the 19th-century poor. Written by journalist and reformer Henry Mayhew, a founder and editor of the satirical magazine Punch, it collects hundreds of testimonials from the lower strata of Victorian society. We encounter street entertainers, 'pure finders', cabinetmakers, gingerbread sellers, 'screeve-fakers', swindlers, and burglars. We hear accounts from toshers finding items in sewers, people attempting to train pigs to dance, and witness the sale of everything from gilt watches and chickweed to needles, dog collars, and eel soup.

Honora and Sexton are just settling into their new marriage, and have just bought their beloved New Hampshire house, when the economy crashes and everything in their world changes. Anita Shreve presents a "literary novel of the caliber and craft of Edith Wharton or Henry James," says the Baltimore Sun.

In this special presentation, William J. Bennett presents a selection from his best-selling anthology of stories that has inspired and instructed audiences of all ages from coast to coast. From the Bible to fables to Greek myths, from ancient philosophy to American history to unforgettable words of our nation's leaders, here are the timeless works that will help children understand and develop character - and help adults teach them.

There were warning signs that the molasses tank would break. The steel sides moaned and groaned. Molasses oozed from its seams. But the people of Boston's North End - mostly poor immigrants - were powerless to complain to the big molasses company. On a bright January day in 1919, the tank finally broke and almost three million gallons of molasses rushed the neighborhood. At 15 feet tall, 160 feet wide, and traveling at 35 miles per hour, the gooey wave was more destructive than any flood of water would have been.

The Great Eggscape is when the Good Egg and his pals escape their carton and drop into the store for a morning of fun, enjoyed by everybody. Well, almost everybody. Shel (an egg) isn’t a huge fan of group activities, especially when he’s made to be “It” for a game of hide-and-seek. Nevertheless, Shel doesn’t want to let his friends down, so he reluctantly plays, anyway. But after a morning of hiding and seeking, somebody’s still missing. Will the dozen eggs friends ever be reunited?

When words of love do not come to you on their own, then listen to these letters. Complete, actual love letters of great men like Lord Byron, John Keats, and Voltaire. Leaders like Henry VIII, George Washington, and Napoléon, who wrote to his beloved Joséphine, "I awake consumed with thoughts of you...." Artists like van Gogh, Mozart, and Beethoven, who famously penned, "Though still in bed, my thoughts go out to you, my Immortal Beloved...."

Having lost the prince to the madness of The Blessing, Tejohn and Cazia are the only people who know of his plan to retrieve a secret spell that might - just might - turn the tide of battle against the grunts. But Tejohn's body is broken, and Cazia has been stripped of her magic. Worse, both are being held captive: Tejohn faces charges of treason in the lands where he was born. On the other side of the continent, Cazia is a prisoner of the Tilkilit queen, a creature with a desperate, deadly plan.

Daisy Finnegan is looking forward to the endless golden freedom of summer. No more college, no more pressure, no more worries. But when her cousin goes missing at an exclusive house party, Daisy is all too ready to confront the mysterious host…only to discover the wealthy recluse is Jay Gatsby, her childhood sweetheart—now sinfully hot and impossible to deny.

Claudia, who has always been very different from her sister, comes to the conclusion that she must be adopted.

Your Story Hour is proud to present this new set of exciting, dramatized stories. You’ll enjoy hearing the adventure of Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton, the classis stories of the 'Golden Locket' and 'Alone for Christmas', and other heart-warming stories of courage and character. Great listening and entertainment for the whole family!

It is early 1846, and many Saints, including most of the Steeds, begin the difficult journey across Iowa as they move toward a new and distant home in the Rocky Mountains. Among them is the volatile Joshua Steed, who, intent on accompanying his now widowed mother, has temporarily left his wife and children behind in Nauvoo. With trouble brewing in that dying city, will they be in danger? And what is the secret that Joshua feels compelled to keep hidden from the other Steeds?

Eff is riding west, away from the safety of the frontier city she's always known.... Eff could be a powerful magician if she wanted to. Except she's not sure she wants that kind of responsibility. Everyone keeps waiting for her to do something amazing - or to fail in a spectacular way. Worse, her twin brother, Lan, a powerful double seventh son, is jealous of all the attention she's been getting. Even as Eff protests that she's just an ordinary girl, she's asked to travel past the Barrier Spell with one of the new professors at her father's school. The land west of the Barrier is full of dangers, both magical and wild. Eff will need to use all her strength - magical and otherwise - to come safely back home.

In this, perhaps Dickens' most profound and personal novel, we are invited to share in the sentimental education of Pip, the poor boy from the village forge who risks losing himself in snobbery and selfishness when he mysteriously inherits a fortune. The story moves from the bleak Kentish marshes of Pip's childhood to a thrilling climax that mingles tragedy and triumph.

Thomas Keneally, the Booker Prize-winning author of Schindler’s List, is universally praised for crafting smooth narratives from authentic historical events. With The Great Shame, he turns his insightful eye toward the Irish struggle through the 19h century. In sharp contrast to much of Europe, Ireland was a terrible place to be during the 1800s. Many of the nation’s finest people set sail for America and Canada.

Three complete stories in one collection! Includes The Great Bicycle Race Mystery, The Mystery of the Wild Ponies, and The Mystery in the Computer Game.

Helia has served as the Sage of Hope for the Great Library of Tomorrow for centuries. She is one of the chosen few who embody and protect the values of humanity across the numerous realms of Paperworld, which are connected within the Library itself via magical portals controlled by the Book of Wisdom. But even her hope is tested when she and her partner, Xavier, the Sage of Truth, are attacked while visiting the famous Rose Garden in the realm of Silvyra. Wounded and in shock amid a storm of fire, they are confronted by a deadly figure known to them as the Ash Man.

Here are eight tales of the Greatcoats, legendary sword-fighting magistrates brought together by an idealistic young king and disbanded after his execution as a tyrant. Follow along through their swashbuckling adventures, their triumphs and defeats, their darkest hours and their moments of shining redemption as they struggle to bring justice to a corrupt kingdom.