Great Classic Stories

22 Unabridged Classics

By: Alphonse Daudet, Saki, Oscar Wilde

Narrated by: Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Barbara Leigh-Hunt

Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

A treasure-chest of the written and spoken word, this collection is read by brilliant actors who make this audio anthology a genuine treat for the listener. Includes:

"Reginald on House Parties" by Saki

"The Sphinx Without a Secret" by Oscar Wilde

Tobermory" by Saki

"On Being Idle" by Jerome K. Jerome

"For Better or Worse" by W.W. Jacobs

"The Model Millionaire" by Oscar Wilde

"The Garden of Truth" by E. Nesbit

"The Cat That Walked by Himself" and "The Girl from Arles" by Alphonse Daudet

"Mr. & Mrs. Dove" by Katherine Mansfield

"Georgie Porgie" by Rudyard Kipling

"Caterpillars" by E.F. Benson

"Lost Hearts" by M.R. James

"Ship to Tarshish" by John Buchan

"The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe

"The Man of the Night" by Edgar Wallace

"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" by Nathaniel Hawthorne

"B 24" by Arthur Conan Doyle

"Pat Hobby & Orson Welles" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"Mad" by Guy de Maupassant

"The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe

"The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs

This collection was previously published as Short Stories: The Ultimate Classic Collection.

(P)2005 CSA Telltapes, licensed from CSA Word

Critic reviews

"Emilia Fox reads beautifully. She also supplies an appealing, believable voice for Victoria, the Cockney heroine." (AudioFile)

Good story collection; excellent narration

I've had mixed results with this type of audio collection of classic stories. Not necessarily due to the quality of the individual stories, it's more about the mix and production quality. This collection was a pleasant surprise though. It's a refreshing mix of genre, from Romance to Mystery to Horror. There were some familiar old favorites, like "The Monkey's Paw" and "The Tale-Tell Heart" but most were new to me. The stories are all read by recognizable actors, who all do a fine job - film and TV actors are not necessarily the best at reading audio, and the language in these 100+ year old stories is often stilted to my ears, so these are a particular challenge. The sound quality was excellent, and the start of each short story mostly corresponded to the next chapter, but they were labeled Chapter One, Chapter Two, etc., rather than with the title of the story, requiring me to go back and consult the title description frequently.

awesome

I love this collection of awesome short stories read by incredible readers I think you'll really enjoy these if you like classic literature great stories and really good sound actors

Good variety

I enjoyed all the stories and the performances. I was surprised at some of the authors who wrote what could be described as horror stories. There were a disproportionate number of horror stories which I liked but would not have been able to tell that from the book descriptions. There were a few I stopped listening to because they involved animal cruelty which would have not been out of place when the stories were written so it was just a preference of mine not to finish listening to them.

A combination of classic and stardom

The cast of readers is pleasantly surprising, for these classic tales are a must-read.

Very Enjoyable

Excellent readers and selections. Just wish the chapters were labeled so I could find my favorites more quickly.

Eclectic collection

Most of the stories are well selected, very interesting and well performed. Most stories in this volume are British authors doning the usual great Victorian sense of humour.

Mostly entertaining

As you might expect with a variety pack, the quality of story and the quality of narration varies. Probably does not have the best work from any of the authors. But enjoyable overall. Helped me through a long drive.

Too much horror, not enough "literature"

I'm currently a student in an MFA in Creative Writing program, with a focus on short story.

I am therefore trying to read a wide range of short stories, and bought this and 2 other collections from Audible.com

I was sorry that so many of these stories were in the "horror" genre.

The best classic stories

You won’t find a better introduction to classic short stories than this collection. And even if you are already familiar they are wonderfully performed.

Uneven, disappointing collection of performances

I was attracted by the star-studded cast including Sir Derek Jacobi, Stephen Fry, Martin Jarvis and Nigel Hawthorne... and was disappointed these talented narrators performed some of the shortest pieces.These (and a few other narrators) delivered inspired performances, compared to a handful of others that were laughably amateurish. After a few minutes of listening, I had to skip over those.The production value was often substandard (including clicks, mouth noises, audible gasping breaths, and even one bizarre mispronunciation). Very disappointed.