Showing results by author "Hilaire Belloc"

Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953) - one of the most prominent Catholic authors of his time - gives a common-sense explanation of why the Crusades were necessary and why they ultimately failed. Writing in 1937, following the demise of the Ottoman Empire, Belloc believed that the West had finally gained the advantage over its mortal foe; however, he also includes a prophetic warning concerning the eventual resurgence of Islam and its enduring desire to destroy Christendom. 

Hilaire Belloc examines the five most destructive heretical movements to have affected Christian civilization: Arianism, Mohammedanism (Islam), Albigensianism (Cathar), the Reformation (Protestant), and the modern phase. Belloc describes how these movements began, how they spread, and how they continued to influence the world up until the time of his writing (1936).

One of the most artful narratives ever written concerning the life of "The Maid". Hilaire Belloc writes with a familiarity only possessed by those with an intimate knowledge of the facts. A Catholic, of both French and English descent; Belloc clearly had an emotional affinity for this episode in the long struggle between the two nations.

Dance with a lobster, telephone an elephant or knock on a moonlit door - this collection includes magical, macabre, dramatic, funny, bizarre, absurd, delightful, moving and charming poems by Lewis Carroll, A.A. Milne, Edward Lear, Hilaire Belloc, Kenneth Grahame and many others. Readers such as Anton Lesser, Simon Russell-Beale and Timothy West bring the lines beautifully to life and make this an ideal introduction to some of the best-loved children's poetry.

Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953) was one of the great Catholic authors and historians of the twentieth century. Born in France, and raised in Great Britain, Belloc later became a naturalised British subject and served in Parliament from 1906 to 1910. After his brief political career Belloc continued his writing, commenting on a large variety of topics throughout his lifetime. This essay, written shortly after the outbreak of WWII (February 1940), examines the state of the war from a Catholic perspective.

This novel tells of that simple person Wilfrid Halterton, Postmaster-General in Mrs. Boulanger's second administration, that of 1960.The placing of the big Television Contract comes within the domain of the Post Office, and Halterton is soon deeply involved in a tangle of intrigue where his simplicity makes him an easy victim to clever financiers and politicians.

Here is a timeless classic in an exclusive audio edition featuring Matilda, who told such dreadful lies; George, who played with a dangerous toy and suffered a catastrophe of considerable dimensions; and many, many other colourful characters. Witty, memorable, and always instructive, join the many generations who have laughed together and enjoyed Belloc's unique and biting humour.

"Cautionary Tales", humorous poems with an implausible moral, are the most widely known of Hilaire Belloc's writings. Supposedly for children, they, like Lewis Carroll's works, are more to adult and satirical tastes. Here, Joyce Grenfell reads a selection.

The Victorians had a fondness for scaring their offspring straight with cautionary tales - moral stories featuring children who misbehaved and suffered the consequences. Hilaire Belloc's Cautionary Tales are a parody of the Victorian moral fables: irresistible, irreverent and downright jolly.

Professor Charles Lexington led a placid and uneventful life until he made the mistake of discovering a way by which lead could be turned into gold. A Mr. Bowry volunteered to help the Professor capitalize the discovery, and from then on things began to happen. Before Professor Lexington got back to Earth he had been a match seller on the streets of London, an end man in a minstrel show, an inmate of a charitable institution, and a plumber.

These humorous verses were originally written for children but the taste is much more to an adult liking. They are strange, perverse and the morals they provide….well, that’s for you to decide. Luckily Joyce Grenfell is narrating so it’s double the experience