We have three versions of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice in our catalogue, with two more recordings in progress. It is clearly a book which many readers want to record. Our first version, which was a collaborative project with over a dozen different readers, was released only 6 months after LibriVox started, and is still one of our most popular downloads.

John Buchan’s The Thirty-Nine Steps has been adapted for several films and television productions, but in a member’s view none measure up to the original book. Here we offer you Adrian Praetzellis’ recording. As a reviewer says: “His voice characterisations were first class…”

All you mathematicians out there will know that it was Pi Day on March 14th, but have you heard our ground-breaking The First Fifty Digits of Pi? A true feast – the first 50 digits served up by 56 readers each to his/her own recipe.

March 14th was also the birthday of Albert Einstein, and you can hear an introduction to Einstein’s space-bending, time-stretching theory of Relativity, written by the master himself at Relativity: The Special and General Theory.

If that is rather heavy fare, how about a light snack of short stories? The Parenticide Club by Ambrose Bierce, read by Peter Yearsley, consists of four grotesque short stories about murder within the family.

Not to be missed is The Return of Dr. Fu-Manchu by Sax Rohmer, superbly read by Elaine Tweddle.

Also highly recommended is J. M. Smallheer’s reading of a top ten bestseller of 1906, The House of a Thousand Candles by Meredith Nicholson. If you like mystery, adventure and romance, you will love this.

If you prefer science fiction, The Door Through Space, an early work of Marion Zimmer Bradley, may be to your taste. When the door swings open, erstwhile Terran Intelligence agent Race Cargill finds himself facing a plot designed to destroy the Terran Empire. Read by Christie Nowak and Clive Catterall.

Notable for its vivid descriptions of the eponymous hero (no mean feat!) The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells is a classic of science fiction. This version from 2006 is read by Alex Foster.

H. P. Lovecraft lists among his greatest influences works by William Hope Hodgson including The House on the Borderland. This recording, by Alan Winterrowd, has been highly recommended by aficionados of the horror and fantasy genres.

And for a little bonne bouche at the end of this banquet of fine things, here is some delicious poetry: Selected Poems by Christina & Dante Gabriel Rossetti, read for you by Leonard Wilson.

All previous listening suggestions may also be found on the Recommended Listening List in the LibriVox Wiki.

If you have a favourite recording you would like me to include next time, feel free to leave a comment here or visit us on this forum thread What are your favourite recordings? and tell us about it.

Stories with a Christmas theme:

A short book, perfect for younger listeners, read by Kara Shallenberg: Christmas Holidays at Merryvale by Alice Hale Burnett.

The Christmas Angel by Abbie Farwell Brown, very much in the spirit of Dickens’ Christmas stories, read by Jan MacGillivray.

The Birds’ Christmas Carol by Kate Douglas Wiggin, a charming story of Christmas cheer.

Old Christmas by Washington Irving, a tale of the quaint and old English traditions of celebrating Christmas.

Christmas Eve ghost stories Told after Supper by Jerome K. Jerome at his tongue-in-cheek best, read by Ruth Golding.

“If you don’t like Christmas stories, don’t read this one! And if you don’t like dogs I don’t know just what to advise you to do!” says Eleanor Hallowell Abbott, author of Peace On Earth, Good-Will To Dogs, read by Allyson Hester.

A grumpy gent learning the lesson of Christmas in Santa Claus’s Partner by Thomas Nelson Page.

Two versions of The Spirit of Christmas, a group of stories, essays and prayers by Henry van Dyke.

… and no Christmas would be complete without Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, of which we now have two English versions and a Dutch, Een Kerstlied in Proza.

Christmas poetry

Music On Christmas Morning by Anne Bronte

Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore. There is also now a new selection of readings of this much loved poem.

Christmas carols:

Christmas Carol Collection 2009, a collection of 30 traditional Christmas carols performed in a variety of styles, and also the 2006 Carol Collection.

Christmas carols, stories and poems

Other collections which include Christmas Carols, as well as seasonal stories and poems, include:

• the annual Christmas Short Works Collections from 2006 – 2009, which have not only English contributions, but also stories and poems in many languages.
• Adventskalender 2009 in German
• Christmas Poetry and Hymn Collection

As we at Librivox approach with great excitement the release of our 1000th audiobook of 2009 and our 3000th in total, we wish you all a very merry Christmas and a peaceful and happy New Year.

LibriVox recordings are Public Domain in the USA. Some of these works may not be in the Public Domain in countries where copyright extends for a period of 50-70 years after the author’s death. Please check copyright laws in your own country before downloading, otherwise you may be violating copyright laws.

We have released two new audiobooks this week: A School History of the Great War, which includes European history leading up to the war and reasons for America’s eventual entry into the war, and Diary of a Nursing Sister on the Western Front 1914-1915, a most moving account of a British nurse’s experiences during the first year of World War One.

In some of our weekly poetry projects, where a particular poem is read by a variety of readers, you will find works by some of the most distinguished war poets:

• Wilfred Owen:
  Smile, Smile, Smile
  Anthem for Doomed Youth
  Dulce et Decorum Est
• John McCrae:
  In Flanders Fields
  The Unconquered Dead

During the week commencing November 8th, why not come and join us in making your own recording of The Soldier by Rupert Brooke?

There is a rich variety of books written about the First World War. Here are some suggestions:

Two books by James Norman Hall: High Adventure A Narrative of Air Fighting in France and Kitchener’s Mob Adventures of an American in the British Army.

Four Weeks in the Trenches by Fritz Kreisler, the famed violinist’s account of his service on the Russian Front.

Canada’s Hundred Days: With the Canadian Corps from Amiens to Mons, Aug. 8 – Nov. 11, 1918. Part One. Amiens by John Frederick Livesay.

The Escape of a Princess Pat by George Pearson, an account of the capture, imprisonment and final escape of Corporal Edwards, of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.

Brieven van den nutteloozen toeschouwer, a series of newspaper columns in Dutch, written by well-known Dutch author Louis Couperus in 1914, during the first weeks of World War I.

In the Field (1914-1915) by Marcel Dupont, “a modest Lieutenant of Chasseurs”.

Over the Top by Arthur Empey, an account of the horror of trench warfare. As a little light relief, this also includes Empey’s popular “Tommy’s Dictionary of the Trenches” which humorously demystifies the slang used by the British soldier.

Observations of an Orderly by Ward Muir, who brings us into the heart of an English war hospital, describing scenes of cleanliness, triumph, order and sadness.

There are also a number of interesting items in Short Works Collections, including:

• Bombardment of the Dardanelles
• Haig Strikes Near Arras
• The First World War – Selections from the Manchester Guardian
• Austrian Emperor to Take Command at Vienna Headquarters

The Book of Hallowe’en by Ruth Edna Kelley, read by Sibella Denton. An account of the origin and history of Hallowe’en, illustrated by selections from ancient and modern poetry and prose.

The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde, read by David Barnes. An American family have bought an English stately home, complete with resident ghost – blood-stains, clanking chains and all.

Ghost Stories of an Antiquary by M.R. James, read by Peter Yearsley. James’s stories often use rural settings, with a quiet, scholarly protagonist getting caught up in the activities of supernatural forces.

Famous Modern Ghost Stories, compiled by Dorothy Scarborough, is an entertaining selection of stories, read by various readers. As the compiler wrote in 1921: “Life is so inconveniently complex nowadays, what with income taxes and other visitations of government, that it is hard for us to have the added risk of wraiths, but there’s no escaping.”

The Beetle by Richard Marsh certainly counts as being creepy enough for Hallowe’en: a story about a mysterious oriental figure who pursues a British politician to London, where he wreaks havoc with his powers of hypnosis and shape-shifting. Narrated from the perspectives of four characters, this is recorded by four different readers.

For a goodly helping of ghosts and witches, how can I possibly leave out the Librivox recording of Shakespeare’s Macbeth?

Nachtstücke von E.T.A. Hoffmann, gelesen von Rainer. Die “Nachtstücke” sind eine Sammlung von unheimlichen Geschichten, die der Romantik zuzuordnen sind.

Animal Ghosts by Elliott O’Donnell, read by Allyson Hester. Supposedly true stories of hauntings by many different kinds of creatures…

And now for a little non-fiction, though these are certainly long-leggedy beasties… The Life of the Spider by J. Henri Fabre, read by various readers.

And, if you finally want to get rid of all those ghouls and get to sleep, how about trying The Ghost Extinguisher by Gelett Burgess, a short story read by Gregg Margarite for one of our many collections of ghost and horror short stories?

The Song of Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, read by Peter Yearsley. We all think we know it, but how many of us do? With its regular, beating rhythm, Hiawatha has often been parodied, but in truth, it is a powerful, emotional epic.

King Coal by Upton Sinclair, read by Michelle Harris, exposes the dirty working conditions in the coal mining industry in the western United States during the 1910s.

Sailing Alone Around the World by Joshua Slocum, a classic of travel literature, written by the first man to sail around the world alone in a small boat. Read by Alan Chant.

Lectures of Col. R. G. Ingersoll, Vol. 1.. Read by Ted Delorme. Colonel Robert Green Ingersoll (1833–1899) was a Civil War veteran, American political leader and orator during the Golden Age of Freethought, noted for his defense of atheism. Volume 2 is also available.

Lady Audley’s Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon, read by Elizabeth Klett. One of the best examples of 19th century sensational fiction, the book’s plot includes madness, bigamy, attempted murder, and seduction.

The Dhammapada, translated by F. Max Muller. The Dhammapada is is a Buddhist scripture, considered one of the most important pieces of Theravada literature. Despite this, the Dhammapada is read by many Mahayana Buddhists and remains a very popular text across all schools of Buddhism.

The Green Odyssey by Philip Jose Farmer. Read by Mark Nelson. Alan Green is a space traveler stranded on a barbaric planet who has been taken slave and made a consort to an insipid and smelly queen. How can you resist, especially as it is a recording by one of our most popular readers?

À se tordre par Alphonse Allais. Alphonse Allais est un journaliste, écrivain et humoriste français célèbre à la Belle Époque, connu pour sa plume acerbe et son humour absurde.

The Daffodil Mystery by Edgar Wallace.
If you’re in the mood for a good old-fashioned murder mystery, this could be for you.

“Doc” Smith’s space opera Triplanetary, eagerly awaited by all fans of reader Mark F. Smith.

The Sea Wolf and The Scarlet Plague by Jack London.

Eight recordings for children, including By Pond and River by Arabella Buckley, Baum’s The Magic of Oz and The Magic City by E. Nesbit.

Religion and philosophy, including St. Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, Part Two, and The Autobiography of Madame Guyon, French mystic and advocate of Quietism.

101 years after the opening of Maria Montessori’s first Children’s House we have recorded the first English translation of The Montessori Method.

Volume One of one of the longest novels in the English Language the epistolary Clarissa by Samuel Richardson.

Stephen Leacock’s Nonsense Novels.

Murder mystery Madame Midas by Fergus Hume, always a popular author here.

The strange and wonderful The First Book of Urizen by William Blake, and the equally strange and wonderful post-apocalyptic classic After London by Richard Jefferies.

As usual, of course, there are short stories, poetry, Sci-Fi (Collections 20 and 21), and Ghost and Horror stories.

We have catalogued works in Chinese, Hebrew, Swedish, Dutch and German.

And much, much more: for all works catalogued during July, please see this page.

Next month, during which we celebrate Librivox’s 4th birthday, I shall return to some lesser-known recordings from our first four years.

You may see all the new additions here.

June provided us with a veritable feast of recordings, including:

• The second volume of Hapgood’s English translation of Hugo’s Les Misérables.
• Another convoluted plot from Wilkie Collins, brimful of colourful characters: Armadale.
• This Simian World by Clarence Day, Jr., a satirical speculation on how the world might be different if we apes had not risen to prominence.
• The concluding volume of Mrs. Gaskell’s Life of Charlotte Brontë.
• The gruesome first volume of the 16th century Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, an English Protestant account of the persecutions of Protestants.
• The long awaited Dubliners by James Joyce and Volume I of Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina.
• Dramatic recordings, including Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and Shaw’s Pygmalion.
• Complete Hypnotism, Mesmerism, Mind-Reading and Spiritualism by A. Alpheus.
• No less than three G.K. Chesterton works: Irish Impressions, Lord Kitchener and What I Saw in America.
• A Spanish recording, a multilingual short story collection, three Dutch recordings, and six German works.

And lots, lots more. Have fun!

It is a story of such grace and skill; the build up slow and good-humoured and banal, but when that last section finally comes, it contains so much nostalgia, so much melancholy, so much revelation. All of us have had those moments, when what we thought we knew got thrown on its head, our own tiny place in the world gently exposed, and the wide, huge and lonely universe – of which we still remain a part – becomes clear and cold and expansive for just that brief moment.

Almost four years after LibriVox was born, I finally got the courage to record the Dead. I don’t think it’s catalogued quite yet, but here are the mp3s for those who want to listen to an audio version of one of the most beautiful-sad short stories ever written.

• The Dead – Part 1 [mp3]
• The Dead – Part 2 [mp3]
• The Dead – Part 3 [mp3]

Happy Bloomsday.

[Thanks to Kayray for the editing, and to Gesine for making sure I finished on time].

Multilingual Poetry Collection 004.
Poems in Arabic, Chinese, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Latin, Latvian, Portuguese, Russian and Turkish.

Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens.
A wonderful recording of one of Dickens’ masterpieces. Read by Mil Nicholson.

The Magic World by E. Nesbit.
An enchanting and timeless collection of short stories by this much-loved author. Read by Ruth Golding.

King Lear by William Shakespeare.
This recording marked the 400th anniversary of the first performance of the play on December 26th 1606, and still holds the Librivox record for a major dramatic work – being completed in just a week.

History of the United States, Vol. I: The Colonial Period by Charles and Mary Beard.
The first volume of this seven-part work by the most influential American historian of the early 20th century. Volumes II – V are also available, and Volume VI is currently being recorded.

Zum ewigen Frieden. Ein philosophischer Entwurf von Immanuel Kant.
In der Abhandlung „Zum ewigen Frieden” wendet Kant die Grundsätze seiner Moralphilosophie auf die Beziehungen zwischen Staaten an. Aufgenommen von Christian Al-Kadi.

The Gerrard Street Mystery and Other Weird Tales by John Charles Dent.
Spooky stories read by Moira Fogarty.

White Fang by Jack London.
Written as a companion to Jack London’s successful Call of the Wild (1903), this is the tale of a wild dog born in the wild and eventually brought to civilization.

Have fun!

The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin
2009 is the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth. This is a vivid and exciting travel memoir as well as a detailed scientific field journal, read by various readers.

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Different characters (and readers) in turn take up the narrative of this mystery novel.

The Cosmic Computer by H. Beam Piper
Sci-fi read by Mark Nelson

Märchen 1 by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Diese Sammlung umfaßt so berühmte Geschichten wie Rapunzel, Hänsel und Gretel, Rumpelstilzchen.

Rupert of Hentzau by Anthony Hope
The sequel to ‘The Prisoner of Zenda‘ read by Andy Minter.

Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers
A Lord Peter Wimsey who-done-it read by Kristin Hughes and Kara Shallenberg.

Heidi by Johanna Spyri
The classic children’s story read by Kara Shallenberg.

Heretics by G. K. Chesterton
One of the best known of Chesterton’s works of Christian apologetics, read by Ray Clare.

The Fairyland of Science by Arabella Buckley
Perhaps a little twee in places, but there is still good science for children in this book, written and read (by various readers) in a very accessible way.

La Comtesse d’Escarbagnas par Molière
Une comédie-ballet, cette pièce de théâtre est lu en francais par plusieurs lecteurs.