Showing results by narrator "David McCallion" in All Categories

Tristram Shandy is an example of classic literature that has withstood the test of time. A sensation in England when first released in a series of nine volumes, this amusing novel is widely considered to be a masterpiece in satire fiction.

Vincent Van Gogh: The Ambiguity of Insanity is a fictionalized biography and gripping novel of the life of the 19th-century Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh. The author, Giuseppe Cafiero, draws a psychological portrait of the post-impressionist painter through the women that marked his life and the cities in which he lived.

His Last Bow is a collection of eight Sherlock Holmes mysteries, including "The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge", "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box", "The Adventure of the Red Circle", "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans", "The Adventure of the Dying Detective", "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax", "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot", and "His Last Bow".

When Adam Salton travels to a remote village in England to visit his great uncle, he soon finds himself in the middle of some strange happenings, where someone or something is killing people. Within the dark walls of the Caswell estate, there resides a new heir named Adam, and he has a sinister agenda. Lady Arabella has her sights set on becoming Mrs. Caswell, but there may be more to her than meets the eye. When snakes start coming out of nowhere, Adam buys a mongoose to help rid the property of them. That's when things really take a turn for the worse.

The Odyssey by Homer is an ancient Greek poem which tells the story of the hero Ulysses and his arduous journey home to Ithaca after the long and bloody Trojan war. After the ten-year battle and the fall of Troy, Ulysses intends to make his way back to his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus. The Gods are against him and he faces many obstacles in his path which delay his return for many years. With her husband gone for so long Penelope assumes that he is dead and never to return.

The 15 short stories that make up James Joyce's Dubliners give a realistic account of the life in and around Dublin, Ireland, in the early 20th century. In many of the short stories within the work, Joyce includes the Irish struggle for self-identity through epiphanies from the main characters.

At its heart, De Profundis is a love letter and is better known as the De Profundis papers. Written in 1897, while Oscar Wilde was imprisoned in Reading Gaol, De Profundis would become one of his best-known works. The papers include Wilde's account of living a lavish lifestyle and his relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas, both of which he credited for his eventual downfall and imprisonment. The second half of the papers is Wilde's account of prison life and his spiritual awakening.

Silas Marner, the namesake of the work, is a humble weaver. He comes to the town of Raveloe, where he continues his trade, yet his story intertwines with that of two brothers, Godfrey and Dunsey, the latter of whom is a conniving trickster. Silas, having little money to begin with, becomes obsessed with counting his small fortune that he keeps hidden in his cottage, and through a series of events involving the two brothers, that money is stolen, devastating Silas.

When Kim O'Hara's Irish parents die, he is left to raise himself on the streets of Lahore where he scrapes a living. After being recognized by an acquaintance of his father, Kim is sent to an English school to learn espionage, and his education is paid for by an old Tibetan priest. After graduating the two are reunited and two roam India in search of the River of the Arrow, which will wash away all sin. Kim must find a way of reconciling his status as both a sahib (white European) and a chela (disciple).

Aramis, now a Bishop, visits the Bastille where a prisoner named Philippe, said to be the twin brother of Louis, has been held since birth. Aramis, with ambitions to become the Pope, convinces Philippe that they can overthrow King Louis and put Philippe on the thrown instead with the twin ruling the people and Aramis reigning over their souls. Aramis plots and schemes and is able to sneak Philippe out of the Bastille but things do not go as planned and after a very brief reign of Philippe, Aramis, along with Porthos are on the run as enemies of the crown.

Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, is a poem, translated by Bayard Taylor, which tells the beautiful and emotional story of a man who has seen and done it all. However, despite all of his learning and education, his life still feels empty and unaccomplished. He believes wholeheartedly that there is something else out there. Faust, having exhausted all other fields of study, turns to magic for fulfillment. He summons the devil and makes a pact - that if the devil can show him something rewarding and fulfilling, he will give the devil his soul.

The Man Who Was Thursday was written by G. K. Chesterton and follows newly recruited Scotland Yard detective Gabriel Syme as he infiltrates the dangerous underworld of the European anarchist council. Syme is a member of a special antianarchist division of the police and finds his way into the secret group through a poet he befriends, named Lucian Gregory.

20,000 Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Verne follows the adventures of the mysterious captain Nemo and his incredible submarine, the Nautilus. Joining the captain on his epic journey around the world is Professor Pierre Aronnax, his servant Conseil, and the Canadian whaler Ned Land. These three become guests of the reclusive submariner when they are washed overboard on a ship that is tracking the Nautilus, believing that it is some kind of giant sea creature.

This collection of 13 short mystery stories features everyone's favorite detective, Sherlock Holmes, and his assistant, Dr. Watson. Three years after Holmes disappears and is presumed dead, he reappears and picks up right where he left off with Watson.

Considered to be the first autobiography of its kind, The Confessions is two distinct books published seven years apart and covers the first 53 years of the author's life. The autobiographies of the time delved primarily into the individual's religious life, but Jean-Jacques Rousseau wanted to do something different. Instead of focusing on faith, he wrote about his thoughts and misadventures.

Written by Saint Augustine of Hippo, Confessions is the saint's autobiography that features 13 books that detail his early life and his conversion to Christianity as a result of the sin that he had incurred in his youth. Throughout the series, he also delivers his philosophical ponderings and ideas on theology, and it becomes evident that each event that has occurred in his life has had something to do with religion, as Saint Augustine is able to bridge the connections between these two very important topics.

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome tells the story of three friends and their dog after they decide to take a boating trip along the Thames River. Taking a boat along the river was a popular way to spend a few days at the time, but most people who indulged in the activity probably didn't have as adventurous a time as J, George, Harris, and Montmorency the fox terrier when they came upon the perfect way (at least, it seems like this at the time) to spend their summer holidays.

The stories revolve around the same character, Horne Fisher, who uncovers mysteries that he can't bring to the public eye. In the first story, The Face in the Target, Fisher and two other men come across a dead man at a park. The dead man is a political figure, and Fisher realizes that uncovering the truth could lead to political trouble for the city. Although Fisher usually finds out who has killed the victim, the different circumstances regarding the murders in each of the eight stories usually prevent him from taking further action.

This classic of Mormon literature is based on a series of theological lectures by Talmage, which were created for use in religious education. James E. Talmage was an English chemist and geologist, who moved to the United States and became a prominent figure in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This book provides commentary and doctrinal references for each of Joseph Smith's Thirteen Articles of Faith that form the core beliefs of the LDS Church.

The young Danish Prince, Hamlet, is vexed by a trip home to Denmark from school in Germany, to attend his father, the king's funeral. Upon arriving at home, Hamlet has discovered that his mother has already become married to the former King's brother, Hamlet's uncle. What's more, the man has declared himself to be King of Denmark even though Hamlet was the true and rightful heir. Hamlet is enraged by this deception, and immediately suspects foul play in his father's murder.