Showing results by narrator "Amanda Friday" in All Categories

Set in early 20th century New York, Edith Wharton's classic novel follows the changing fortunes of the beautiful Lily Bart, an impoverished socialite who relies on the kindness of rich friends to move in glamorous society. Lily and all her friends know that she must make a rich marriage to achieve financial security, but she is drawn to kindred spirit Lawrence Selden, a charming but decidedly middle-class lawyer. Will Lily survive in a world of predatory financiers and their ruthless wives?

Betsy Bobbin and her mule Hank find themselves on the shores of Oz after a storm. While trying to find their way home, they wander into the Rose Kingdom and are held prisoner by the Royal Gardener. Just in the nick of time, Shaggy Man falls through the roof of the greenhouse and tries to convince the Gardener to let the pair go, using his powerful Love Magnet. Unable to convince them, the trio is instead banished with Ozma's cousin, Princess Ozga, in tow.

Richard MacBlair has all the answers Idina Moorfield needs and is finally willing to share them. Well, most of them. Who knew there was a whole special forces division? Dedicated to people exhibiting magical powers to deal with unique challenges? Things are starting to make a lot more sense to Idina. But a lot more changes may be coming her way. She has to face new challenges. A series of tests to determine if she's good enough for a new special forces group.

Marilla "Rilla" Blythe, the youngest daughter of Gilbert and Anne Blythe, is nearly 15 when the First World War begins making news. Seemingly overnight, the men of the town are being called up to enlist. Rilla, who had long yearned for adulthood, finds new responsibilities as the war wages on.

In this elegant comedy of manners, Penelope O'Farrell discovers that her husband has been having an affair with an attractive married woman. Instead of lapsing into despair, she decides to employ some cunning strategies to save her marriage.

Everyone knows and loves the adventures of that silly old bear Winnie the Pooh, the beloved teddy bear of young Christopher Robin. This collection of 10 short stories by A. A. Milne is a family favorite, introducing Pooh Bear as well as Piglet, Eeyore, Owl, Rabbit, Kanga, Roo, and of course, the delightful Christopher Robin, inspired by Milne's own son. This charming children's classic from 1926 continues to appeal to young and old alike.

Wuthering Heights is an 1847 novel by Emily Bronte, initially published under her pen name "Ellis Bell". It is about two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their turbulent relationships with Earnshaw's foster son, Heathcliff. It is now considered a classic of English literature, but contemporary reviews were polarized. It was controversial for its depictions of mental and physical cruelty, including domestic abuse, and for its challenges to Victorian morality and religious and societal values.

Carlo Collodi's whimsical recasting of the myth of Pygmalion and Galatea was first published in 1883 and has since become an established classic of children's literature. Geppetto, a poor wood carver, receives a piece of wood from which he carves a marionette. Much to his surprise, the puppet springs to life and embarks on a wild series of adventures.

According to legend, the Pyncheon family has been cursed by their 17th century ancestor, Colonel Pyncheon, who stole the land from Matthew Maule. Maule was later put to death after being accused of witchcraft and the deed for the land could not be found. Now living in the New England mansion fraught with haunted miseries of the past, Hepzibah Pyncheon opens a small shop to pull herself from the poverty-striken curse she has lived under while her brother, Clifford, was serving a decades-long prison sentence for murder.

A Little Princess tells the story of Sara Crewe, daughter of a rich English officer stationed in India, who is sent to Miss Minchin's boarding school in London. Despite her wealth and privilege, Sara is kind and generous, befriending everyone from school outcast Ermengarde and motherless toddler Lottie to the teenage scullery maid Becky. When Sara's status is abruptly changed, her resolve to behave like a princess no matter her circumstances is put to the test. Frances Hodgson Burnet's children's classic is performed by a full cast and will be loved by listeners of all ages.

On the day of her mother's funeral, 23-year-old Grace Maxwell discovered the man who raised her was not her biological father. Instead, he was a best-selling self-help author and a world famous "Guru to the Stars." Known as Mr. MAJIC, for the miraculous impact his books and seminars had on millions of people, he had inexplicitly vanished around the time Grace's mother became pregnant with her. For over 20 years, the mystery of Mr. MAJIC’s sudden and unexpected disappearance, and the speculation of what might have become of him, was the stuff of Urban Legend.

The Marvelous Land of Oz is book two in the Oz series by L. Frank Baum. In this story, we meet a young boy named Tip. His guardian Mombi is a wicked witch and Tip is always met with anger and abuse. One day Tip has had enough and seeks revenge on the witch, building a wooden man with a pumpkin for a head, hoping to frighten Mombi. His plan backfires and while not fooled, Mombi demonstrates her own power by bringing the aptly named Jack Pumpkinhead to life. Not yet done with her abuse, Mombi informs Tip she will turn him into a stone statue as punishment for his deceit.

Ebenezer Scrooge, described as "a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner," is certainly no lover of the Christmas season.

Originally published in 1906, Pride and Prejudice: A Play, based on Jane Austen's novel written in 1813, brings a new way to experience a much-loved story and characters. Follow the Bennet family through their daily lives as new people move into the neighborhood, romance blossoms, hearts are broken, scandals are had, and, of course, love prevails. This classic story is brought to life while keeping true to the spirit and wit of Ms. Austen herself!

Lady Susan is an epistolary novel by Jane Austen about a beautiful and manipulative widow scheming to arrange wealthy marriages for herself and her daughter. This book is the basis for the film Love & Friendship, written and directed by Whit Stillman, and starring Kate Beckinsale and Chloe Sevigny. This dramatized production is presented by the Online Stage.

In her lifetime, Allison Clark has made many bad choices. Topping the list; she married the wrong man. Now, on the cusp of signing her divorce papers, she finds herself sandwiched between caring for her often difficult and dying mother and dealing with the seemingly endless drama of her rebellious teenaged twins. When she thinks life couldn’t possibly get any more complicated, Allison discovers her mother has concealed a family secret from her for her entire life.

Anatol, one of Arthur Schnitzler's earliest works, concerns the life of a shallow and immature playboy, who has multiple dalliances with various women but suffers from a crippling fear of commitment underneath his womanising facade. The play offers sharp social commentary on the themes of toxic masculinity and fidelity, and has been adapted in English to two different musicals: The Game of Love and The Gay Life.

Hedda and George Tesman have just returned from their six-month honeymoon tour of the Tyrol. George, a studious and somewhat dull academic has spent most of the time continuing his research. Hedda, the daughter of the celebrated, aristocratic General Gabler, recently deceased, has been accustomed to the finer things in life. She is already bored in her marriage and diverts herself with her father's pistols and the attentions of family friend, Judge Brack.

Lady Viola Oberbrook only wanted to forget the ill-fated early morning duel that took the lives of two young, wealthy, promising men of the ton and sent her fleeing for her father's country estate. Eight years later, she has her life in order: a fulfilling business, a few trusted friends, and no plans to return to London society. What she doesn't expect is to come face to face with her past.

Persuasion has certain similarities with Emma, another late novel by Jane Austen. In both stories, the heroine is a young woman who lives with her widowed father, and who has an enduring attachment to her eventual spouse from the opening of the action. Persuasion also incorporates certain elements common to Austen's earlier novels, such as characters from the military, visits to Bath and calculating and cynical suitors. In the end, Anne Elliot successfully combats the destructive vanity of her father and the machinations of her villainous cousin William.