Showing results by narrator "Neville Jason" in All Categories

The life of Franz Liszt was as daring and spectacular as his music. Famed throughout Europe as the greatest pianist of the nineteenth century, he was one of the most original and prophetic composers who ever lived. Beautiful in youth, glowering in age, his high-profile love affairs were the talk of the town wherever he went and his generosity to young musicians was legendary. In this account of his epic life, actors’ readings combine with plentiful musical excerpts to paint a living portrait of a highly complex man.

Rousseau's Discourse sets out to explore the origin of inequality among people, a journey that sees him trace the evolution of humans from the savage man to the foundations of civil society. With verve and passion, the philosopher argues that the birth of private property was the "beginning of evil". Throughout the book we are led to consider the development of language, reason, self-preservation, benevolence, pity, and law - all through the lens of perhaps the most original thinker of the 18th century.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

Shamela is a bawdy, spirited, and hilarious response to Samuel Richardson's hugely popular 1740 novel, Pamela. In this pointed satire, Shamela (which transpires to be the real name of Richardson's Pamela) reveals the ulterior motives behind the events that took place in Pamela. Shamela is unlike the virtuous young lady portrayed in Richardson's novel and she takes command of her master, Squire Booby. Our heroine has planned it all out from the start and she is determined to entrap her master into marriage.

Gulliver's Travels is renowned as a playful and comic children's classic. The book itself, rather than the bowdlerized versions that have been derived from it, is a savage, rude and brilliant satire, timeless in its appeal and unerringly accurate.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

In The Guermantes Way, Part 1, the third volume of Marcel Proust's monumental, seven volume Remembrance of Things Past, Marcel penetrates the inner sanctum of Paris high society and falls in love with the fascinating Duchesse de Guermantes. With his unmatched powers of observation Proust vividly describes the struggles for political, social, and sexual supremacy played out beneath a veneer of elegant manners.

The Castle of Otranto is regarded as the first Gothic novel. The son of Manfred, Prince of Otranto, is mysteriously killed on his wedding day by a huge helmet. The event leads to a fast-paced story of jealous passion, intrigue, murder and supernatural phenomena unfolding in an atmosphere of thunderclaps, moonlight, and dark castle walls mirroring the inner turmoil of the characters themselves.

David Timson talks about Charles Dickens, much loved for his great contribution to classic English Literature. Listen to The Pickwick Papers narrated by Anton Lesser.

Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire occupies an immortal place in the pantheon of historical masterpieces. This recording covers the final three volumes of Gibbon's work, tracing ten centuries in the life of the eastern half of the empire, whose capital city was Constantinople.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

The Guermantes Way, Part 2, the third volume of Marcel Proust's monumental, seven volume Remembrance of Things Past, continues the story of Marcel's entry into the highest circles of French aristocracy. Having renewed his acquaintance with the enchanting Albertine, who now submits to his amorous advances, Marcel finds himself pursued by the predatory Baron de Charlus.

William Henry Hudson was a founding member of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). Though born in Argentina, Hudson came to England in 1874, where he remained until his death in 1922. Absorbed by nature, and in particular by the lives and activities of birds, his acute observations on wildlife led to some charming books which helped establish the pastime of bird watching. Birds in Town and Village is one of his classics. It is a truly engaging rumination on birds, as he watched them go about their daily lives. It is unfailingly charming, and read with an easy, relaxed tone by Neville Jason.

David Timson talks about Charles Dickens, much loved for his great contribution to classic English Literature.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

Within a Budding Grove, Part 2 is the second volume of Proust's monumental, seven volume, quasi-autobiographical novel Remembrance of Things Past, in which young Marcel falls under the spell of an enchanting group of adolescent girls. At first, intoxicated by their beauty and athletic energy, he finds it difficult to choose between them. But gradually he finds himself drawn to the beautiful Albertine, without guessing how much she is to mean to him in the future.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.

This is an essay from the Favorite Essays collection.