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  The Water Babies

  Charles Kingsley

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  Charles Kingsley's "The Water-Babies" stands as a timeless masterpiece that has captured the hearts and imaginations of readers since its first publication in 1863. A remarkable Victorian clergyman, author, and social reformer, Kingsley wove together a captivating narrative that transcends its era, providing readers with a delightful blend of fantasy, morality, and social commentary. 
  Set against the backdrop of the Industrial Revolution, "The Water-Babies" reflects the societal concerns and moral dilemmas of Kingsley's time. In this enchanting tale, we follow the journey of Tom, a chimney sweep's apprentice who undergoes a miraculous transformation into a water-baby after a series of trials and adventures. As Tom explores the aquatic world, encountering an array of whimsical characters and undergoing moral lessons, Kingsley invites readers to reflect on their own lives and the world around them. 
  One of the novel's unique features is its dual nature as both a charming fairy tale and a vehicle for social critique. Kingsley uses the fantastical underwater realm to address issues of child labour, environmental degradation, and the moral conduct of society. Through humour, wit, and imaginative storytelling, he imparts valuable lessons about compassion, responsibility, and personal growth. 
  "The Water-Babies" remains relevant today as it resonates with universal themes and moral insights that extend beyond the Victorian context. The narrative's enduring appeal lies not only in its engaging storyline but also in the profound messages that it conveys about human nature and societal values. 
  Head Stories Audio presents " The Water Babies" by Charles Kingsley - narrated by Simon Hester. With original music.

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  The Emerald City of Oz

  L. Frank Baum

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  The Emerald City is built all of beautiful marbles in which are set a profusion of emeralds, every one exquisitely cut and of very great size. There are other jewels used in the decorations inside the houses and palaces, such as rubies, diamonds, sapphires, amethysts and turquoises. But in the streets and upon the outside of the buildings only emeralds appear, from which circumstance the place is named the Emerald City of Oz.

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  Poems: Series One

  Emily Dickinson

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  The collection Poems: Series One presents the first installment of the complete poetic works of Emily Dickinson. It is broken into the four parts Life, Love, Nature, and Time and Eternity and includes 115 poems.Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 - May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, into a prominent family with strong ties to its community. After studying at the Amherst Academy for seven years in her youth, she briefly attended the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary before returning to her family's house in Amherst. Evidence suggests that Dickinson lived much of her life in isolation. Considered an eccentric by locals, she developed a penchant for white clothing and was known for her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, to even leave her bedroom. Dickinson never married, and most friendships between her and others depended entirely upon correspondence. While Dickinson was a prolific writer, her only publications during her lifetime were 10 of her nearly 1,800 poems, and one letter. The poems published then were usually edited significantly to fit conventional poetic rules. Her poems were unique for her era. They contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often use slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation. Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality, two recurring topics in letters to her friends, and also explore aesthetics, society, nature and spirituality. Although Dickinson's acquaintances were most likely aware of her writing, it was not until after her death in 1886 - when Lavinia, Dickinson's younger sister, discovered her cache of poems - that her work became public. Her first collection of poetry was published in 1890 by personal acquaintances Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd, though both heavily edited the content. A 1998 article in The New York Times revealed that of the many edits made to Dickinson's work, the name Susan was often deliberately removed. At least eleven of Dickinson's poems were dedicated to sister-in-law Susan Huntington Gilbert Dickinson, though all the dedications were obliterated, presumably by Todd. A complete, and mostly unaltered, collection of her poetry became available for the first time when scholar Thomas H. Johnson published The Poems of Emily Dickinson in 1955.

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  A Dead Finger

  Sabine Baring-Gould

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  Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924) was a British writer, clergyman and member of the landed gentry, having inherited an estate of 3,000 acres. While a young curate, he met and fell in love with a beautiful 16-year-old mill worker. He paid for her education and married her, and they subsequently had 15 children. Their relationship formed the inspiration for George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion, which was turned into the musical My Fair Lady.Baring-Gould's strangest and most enduring works are those which are based on fantastical medieval myths and folklore. 'A Dead Finger' is a strange vampire story about a parasitic dead human finger which feeds off living humans in an attempt to draw the life force out of them and thus regrow its body.

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  The Alexandria Quartet - Justine...

  Lawrence Durrell

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  A four-part story of passion and betrayal in the Mediterranean—voted one of the Modern Library’s 100 Best Novels of the twentieth century.  The Alexandria Quartet is a striking and sensuous masterpiece, breathing vivid life into each of its unforgettable characters and the dusty Mediterranean city in which they live. Set in Alexandria, Egypt, in the years before, during, and after World War II, the books follow the lives of a circle of friends and lovers, including sensitive Darley, passionate Justine, philosophical Balthazar, and elegant Clea. Written in Durrell’s trademark evocative prose, these four novels explore the central theme of modern love, building into a remarkable whole that the New York Times hailed as “one of the most important works of our time.” This ebook features a new introduction by Jan Morris.

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  The Interruption

  W. W. Jacobs

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  W. W. Jacobs (1863-1941) is well known for humorous stories and for the most grisly of horror stories. The Interruption belongs very much in the latter category.Spencer Goddard's wife has died suddenly after a short and intense illness. Finally Goddard has his freedom and full use of his wife's wealth. But before he can begin to enjoy his new-found freedom, Hannah the cook begins to behave rather oddly. Goddard realizes that Hannah knows his secret...and a terrible power struggle begins.

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