Download Best Sellers Audiobooks in Classics, Greek & Roman

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Lion's Honey

Subtitle: The Myths #5

Author: David Grossman

Narrator: Mel Foster

Format: Unabridged

Length: 2 hrs and 56 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-17-08

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 9 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

Yet beyond the wild impulsiveness, the chaos, the din, we can make out a life story that is, at bottom, the tortured journey of a single, lonely and turbulent soul who never found, anywhere, a true home in the world, whose very body was a harsh place of exile.

"For me, this discovery, this recognition, is the point at which the myth - for all its grand images, its larger-than-life adventures - slips silently into the day-to-day existence of each of us, into our most private moments, our buried secrets.

Members Reviews:

interesting exploration of biblical myth

I love mythology and biblical history and this was an interesting take on the Samson myth, exploring Samson's outsider-ness, and mixed relationship w/both his own clansmen and the Philistines. While Grossman has some interesting interpretations of Samson's possible motives for various parts of his story, there is no explanation whatsoever about why he would possibly tell Delilah the secret of his strength, especially after she already tried to set his enemies upon him twice. Nor is there any suggestion about why he would continue to love a wretched wench like that. Sounds like suicide, which is fine, arguably Socrates & Jesus of Nazareth used 3d parties to effectuate their own demise as well, but that would be a really interesting angle to explore. Grossman doesn't touch it. Still, short, interesting, moderately thought provoking.

Anthropologically-inaccurate thought exercise on Scripture.

I read this book for my anthropology class and, in my review, I noted to my teacher when Grossman ceased his comments on the ancient culture. My teacher wrote in "thank goodness!" so that gives you a bit of an insight as to the attention paid to accuracy in representing the ancient culture. Aside from this, the book's short, fast-paced style makes it a quickly digested reinterpretation of the Samson story. However, it is plain to see that much hypothesizing has been done in order to fill in details regarding sparsely developed Biblical characters. So, while I would certainly not put much weight in the "man-child" and "careless, controlling god" themes Grossman postulates, this book does well to serve as a thought exercise in the depths of unexamined aspects in Scripture and encourages the reader to enjoy the text even as it is toyed with to fill in the silences.

A most beneficial bible-study lesson...

David Grossman is one of Israeli's pre-eminent novelists, perhaps best known for his book,The Yellow Wind: With a New Afterword by the Author. And through his writings, as well as his advocacy, he serves as a conscious for a nation.

"Lion's Honey, The Myth of Samson," is a careful examination of four chapters in the Book of Judges in the Old Testament, which are included at the beginning of his analysis. Grossman meticulously weighs each sentence, holds each to the light, seeing the nuance, what was said, what wasn't, who was there, who wasn't.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Iliad

Subtitle: The Story of Achilles

Author: Homer

Narrator: Anthony Heald

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 33 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-01-08

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 73 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

"Homer is full of merriment, full of open fun and delicate comedy, even farce - as when Ares, wounded, bursts up to Olympus like a bomb. And the divine family! What a delightful natural party: human beings raised a degree or two, but all the same, funnier than that. They are the comic background for the tragedy below - for the story of Achilles is a tragedy - the fiery conflict of a man divided against himself, who in a few short days drops to the lowest hell of savagery, then rises to self-mastery and inward peace." - W.H.D. Rouse

Members Reviews:

A good translation and narrator.

I have to disagree with the earlier negative reviews. The translation is the prose translation by W.H.D. Rouse, which is interesting and straightforward. If you are looking for iambic pentameter, the translation to read is Alexander Pope's, which was reprinted in paperback by Penguin within the last few years, but has not been recorded as far as I know. It is great poetry, but much less accurate than Rouse. Rouse may not be the latest and greatest translation out there, but if you are looking for an unabridged recording, this is a good choice. I prefer the Richmond Lattimore or Robert Fagles translations, but as far as I know they are only available in abridged recordings. The abridged recording of the Lattimore translation is also available from Audible, read by Anthony Quinn, but you are not getting the whole thing.

To me, Nadia May has a fine voice and it is perfectly intelligible to me.

Odyssey was great but did not finish Iliad

If, like me, you both read and listen to books, select this as a reader, unless you like hearing how each and every man died in the Trojan war. Sorry guys, but I am a woman and just could not listen to how another man died from having a sword thrust into his back and through his blander or whatever (there are over 250 deaths described), no matter how beautiful the telling. I would love an abridged edition, where only the relevant deaths are described. Still, the Iliad is a great book and a must read, just not a listen. The narrator and translator were both wonderful, just too much death in one place, too well described (and read) for my tastes.

A great listening experience

Some of the reviews above look to be about a different book. The version I heard was read by Anthony Heald and was very understandable.

Heald has a nice crisp pace that kept me engaged and did not let my mind wander. The reading does not sound like someone somberly reading a classic, but like they are telling a story and animated. His character voices were helpfully varied (maybe a tinsy inconsistent e.g. I think Hektor's voices varied across chapters - but I was never confused who was talking) and Heald's voice acting was engaging. The translation was helpful because it provided a sense of the prose of the original Iliad. I'm not qualified to say how accurate it was but it's use of rhyme and meter was not forced but done nicely in key places, such as when a character in an argument is stating some well-known axiom which often live longer as a rhymed verse. As done, I appreciated it as I thought gave a sense of what meter in the Greek version must have felt like and how it could fit in such a story.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Histories

Author: Tacitus

Narrator: James Adams

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-21-08

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 30 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

This superbly written, highly listenable account of the tumult of A.D. 69 focuses on the four men who sought imperial power in the void left by Nero: an old man, a soldier, a playboy, and an extravagant debaucher. The empire-wide, year-long civil war that resulted is brought to life in this sustained narrative, which is rich in detail, intrigue, and insight, as well as the aristocratic biases of the author. Though part of the original work is lost, even thousands of years later this account is a gripping masterwork.

(P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Members Reviews:

Warning this is not the complete History

I just downloaded the History, so can't comment on the narration yet. Just wanted to warn potential buyers that this is NOT the complete book, but only part two of the complete recording. This download starts with Book 3.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Aristotle: An Introduction

Author: Hugh Griffith

Narrator: Hugh Ross, Roy McMillan

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 02-25-08

Publisher: Naxos AudioBooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 17 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

Aristotle was the third key figure among the philosophers of Ancient Greece, after Socrates and Plato. Here, extensive sections of the main works for which he is still respected are given, following accessible introductions setting the scene.

Editorial Reviews:

Aristotle's surviving works were likely intended for his students and other philosophers. His prose is less than gripping for contemporary readers. This audiobook seeks to make the texts accessible by providing manageable excerpts from works such as The History of Animals and Nicomachean Ethics. Hugh Ross's narration of Aristotle is friendly and spirited, a style that goes some way in making this work sound less like lecture notes than it might have in other hands. Even more inviting are the preambles that place each passage in context. Roy McMillan delivers these in an avuncular voice, as though he were reading to children. In the end, these introductions are often more interesting than the extracts themselves.

Members Reviews:

Disappointing But Adequate

After loving the audio versions of Plato's Socratic dialogs, I wanted to try listening to Aristotle. This recording was disappointing both for its selections and the narration.

The selections lean toward colorful but unchallenging tidbits such as zoological observations. I'd have liked more of the Ethics, Logic, and other work that I might spend some time contemplating.

The narrator doesn't help matters, sounding as pedantic as a small-college Philosophy professor serving out his time until retirement.

But still, it's Aristotle. There isn't much of his work available so far in Audio format, but I'd say try Nichomachean Ethics first. Come back to this collection if you want more.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Odysseus

Author: Geraldine McCaughrean

Narrator: Cynthia Bishop

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 30 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-25-08

Publisher: Full Cast Audio

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 5 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

On his epic voyage - an adventure so grand and glorious it has become the very symbol for all great journeys - Odysseus must face the monstrous cyclops, escape the enchanting nymph Circe, defy the terrors of Scylla and Charybdis, and descend to the land of the dead. Even home is not safe, for there Odysseus must triumph in one last battle to be reunited with his loving wife.

For nearly 3,000 years, the story of Odysseus' journey has enthralled the world. Now Full Cast Audio brings you Geraldine McCaughrean's brilliant retelling, in a dazzling recording that will captivate young and old alike.

Members Reviews:

Five Stars

Great book. Perfect condition.

My boys, 8 and 6, listened to the ...

My boys, 8 and 6, listened to the audio book of this story and remained excited and engaged during the whole telling. Unlike some authors, McCaughrean has not tried to improve or embellish the beauty of the story, but penned a masterpiece of abridgment that is true to the original.

"I Won't Forbid the Old Sea-Shaker His Revenge..."

This, the forth and final book in Geraldine McCaughrean's stories of Greek heroes, (preceded byPerseus,Hercules (Heroes)andTheseus (Heroes)) is the only one based on actual literature: Homer's Odyssey. As such, McCaughrean does not have to pick and choose aspects of convoluted and often contradictory myths; her source material has already been written, providing a fairly linear sequence of events. As such, the stories concerning Odysseus have always been more straightforward than those of his peers.

The retelling begins well after the Trojan War, with Odysseus sailing home with his fleet of ships to his small kingdom of Ithaca, where his wife Penelope and son Telemachus await him. He has not seen them in ten long years, and the voyage home is a dangerous one. Meawhile, interspersed with Odysseus's journey there are "updates" as to what is happening in Ithaca with his wife and child: Penelope has been bombarded with unwelcome suitors who fight for her hand in marriage, leading mother and son to make secrets plans of their own to keep them at bay.

McCaughrean keeps the most famous encounters of Odysseus's adventure (those that even those who have little knowledge of Greek myth are probably familiar with) such as the blinding of Polyphemus the Cyclops, the enchantress Circe turning men into swine, the twin terrors of Scylla and Charybdis. Along with these are slightly less-known experiences, such as his sojourn into the Underworld to speak with the blind seer Tiresias, hospitality in the household of the god of the winds, and the blissful stupor of the Lotus Eaters. All of this is more or less a condescened version of Homer's original text, but there is an amusing variation on the nymph Calypso who holds Odysseus "captive" on her paradiscal island. Turns out that living the life of luxury with an adoring female isn't quite as appealing as it sounds...

McCaughrean even manages to sneak in minor episodes, such as the unheroic death of Elpenor (poor guy fell off a roof) and Odysseus's actions to secure his peaceful rest in the Underworld. Come to think of it, its amazing just what is packed into a relatively slender book.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Odes of Pindar

Author: Pindar

Narrator: Charlton Griffin

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 20 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-19-07

Publisher: Audio Connoisseur

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 19 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

Those myths were the religious foundation for the athletic festivities. Pindar knew these athletes and their noble families, as he was a member of the nobility - he had a personal link to the traditions that were highly cherished by Dorian Greeks. Pindar's renown as a poet was richly deserved, and he was extremely well paid for his work.

Pindar was born in Boeotia around 518 B.C., and, according to tradition, died at Argos in 443 B.C. Some sources say he lived to be 79. His first extant ode, Pythian number 10, was written in 498 B.C. His last, a Nemean ode, was composed in 444 B.C.

Although the Olympic games are today the most famous of Greek athletic contests, they were not the only ones of importance. The Isthmian, Nemean, and Pythian games were also highly regarded in ancient times, and odes to victors in those games make up a large part of these surviving pieces. The extreme piety with regard to the gods Zeus, Apollo, Aphrodite, Hera, and the Muses is singularly apparent throughout. It is indicative of the spiritual reverence of the Greek people in this period. There has never been a poet who celebrated the majesty and mystic significance of athletic competition more magnificently than Pindar.

Members Reviews:

Disappointing narration

Where does The Odes of Pindar rank among all the audiobooks youve listened to so far?

Fairly low

What will your next listen be?

Homers odyssey

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

Not at all

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

interesting to hear

Any additional comments?

After enjoying charlton griffins reading of the history of Rome with his very well schooled accent. I was rather disappointed with this one. Admittedly Pindar is rather an obscure interest and there are unlikely to be many more readings available. However it certainly a felt that griffin had little knowledge and Understanding of the poetry he was reading, it felt as if it the stuff was being read for the first time without rehearsal or familiarity. I am grateful that it is available at all but a little more effort in the production could have improved things immensely. Pindars poetry is interesting (to me) for some of the Greek myths it contains and as the insight it gives to Ancient Greek history so worth a listen for those reasons.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Odyssey

Author: Homer, Ian Johnston - translator

Narrator: Anton Lesser

Format: Abridged

Length: 4 hrs and 39 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-19-07

Publisher: Naxos AudioBooks

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Classics, Greek & Roman

Publisher's Summary:

Anton Lesser, one of Britain's finest audiobook stars, brings this great classic to life using a new and imaginative translation by Ian Johnston.

Members Reviews:

The Odyssey

This book is really nice to read expecially if you like reading Greek myths. In this story alowne, I came across lots different adventures and things that went wrong. Odyssious is a really good character and I think he's lucky because he always managees tp sirvove whenever dezaster struk him and his crew. The nirator is good and I'm sure that anyone would enjoy Homer's story and also enjoy the differt adventures that Odyssious found himself in.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Secret Garden

Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett

Narrator: Anne Flosnik

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 58 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-30-07

Publisher: Alpha DVD

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 93 votes

Genres: Classics, Kids & Young Adults

Publisher's Summary:

Mary Lennox is sent to Misselthwaite Manor in Yorkshire England after her parents die from Cholera. Also living in the manor house is her sickly cousin Colin, who is every bit as spoiled as she. Mary and Colin are like two peas in a pod, closed up in a gloomy old manor on the Yorkshire moors, until a secret garden captures their imaginations. As spring brings new life to the Earth, Mary and Colin's sour natures begin to change. Playing and working every day in the secret garden improves their nature and health, as the "magic" of the garden transforms them into normal, healthy children.

(P)2007 Alpha DVD LLC

Members Reviews:

Lovely rendition of a classic

As well known as the story is, I really enjoyed listening to Anne Flosnik's narration. I liked her Yorkshire, although I must admit that, never having heard the real thing, I couldn't say whether it's well done or not.

"The Magic is in me!"

In the beginning of Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic children's novel The Secret Garden (1910/11), ten-year-old newly-orphaned Mary Lennox is sent from India to live in her uncle's Yorkshire home, Misselthwaite Manor. Her uncle, Archibald Craven, is a wretched, unhealthy wealthy man, because ten years ago his beloved wife died in their beloved garden, so that he locked it up and buried the key. Misselthwaite Manor is a great Gothic setting: the 600-year-old house on the edge of the moor has 100 mostly shut up and locked rooms, a labyrinth of gardens and orchards, a reclusive and absent master, and mysterious sounds of crying that may be the moor wind or a child. But of course Burnett is writing an anti-Gothic novel in which the main characters, far from suffering psychic and physical assaults from malign supernatural entities, are improved, saved, and made healthy by the natural "Magic" of rain, sun, growing things, and positive thinking.

At first Mary is an unloving, unloved, and unlovely girl, sour, scrawny, and sallow. Neglected by her parents and spoiled by her native servants in India, she never learned how to deal with people. She has never had a friend. Luckily for her, Martha, the Misselthwaite housemaid assigned to her, is a good-natured, "common" cottage girl from a family with twelve kids and a comfortable and wonderful, kind and wise mother, Mrs. Sowerby. Martha's goodness, affection, and volubility interest Mary, while Mary's solitary forays into the fresh air and extensive manor gardens, pushing against the wuthering winds off the moors, smelling the heather, skipping rope, and building up an appetite and eating more all begin making the girl healthier, "fatter," and more pleasant. Her imagination is also waking up, largely due to having been told about the forbidden secret garden. Mary befriends the cross old loner gardener Ben Weatherstaff, who introduces her to a curious robin redbreast.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Little Lord Fauntleroy

Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett

Narrator: Teresa Gallagher

Format: Abridged

Length: 2 hrs and 17 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-10-07

Publisher: Naxos AudioBooks

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 9 votes

Genres: Classics, Kids & Young Adults

Publisher's Summary:

Since its first publication in 1885, Little Lord Fauntleroy has become a favorite with children. The move from New York to his ancestral castle comes as a shock to both Cedric and his new-found relatives, and while he comes to terms with aristocratic ways, they become more aware of compassion and social justice.

Editorial Reviews:

This meticulous program does a good job with Burnett's classic rags-to-riches story. Kindly fate transports an American boy, Cedric Errol, to England when he is discovered to be heir to the earldom of Dorincourt. Prepared to hate the American upstart, the crusty earl finds he can't resist his grandson's love. Teresa Gallagher's gentle, refined voice brings the precocious Cedric into listeners' hearts with arresting success. Equally well depicted are the pithy sayings of the ancient earl and Cedric's mother's bell-like tones. Characters and significant dialogue appear seamlessly, and there are few continuity issues in the abridgment. Narration and script combine to present a merry audiobook.

Members Reviews:

Not as good as "The Secret Garden".

Not one of her better books. I read from beginning to end waiting for the action to start but it never did. Feels like a book that is always on the verge of launching into an extraordinary story but never does. The duke-grandfather character is hard to believe. Sociopaths don't suddenly get nicer because they are inspired by a kind person grandchild or not. The mother and little Lord Fauntleroy are described as kind but you never really get to know them as real people because real people are not perfectly flawless. I found the grandfather to be the most likeable and easy to relate to. He seems to be the most human.

Downton Abbey for the small set

LIttle Lord Fauntleroy has a bad rap because of its huge popularity in the late 19th century. Every mother apparently wanted their boy to be as selfless and precocious as the title character, so they dressed the innocent boy in the absurd outfit of the book - the velvet, lace collared affair that scarred a generation.

But that misses Burnett's point. She creates a world where a child of American sensibilities - raising all boats as his own tide increases - counters the old British guard which, at the time, was the lord had it all, the villagers had nothing.

My two favorite childhood books are A Little Princess and Secret Garden. And while Cedric is a little too perfect, the message and the characterization of sudden wealth leading to actual kindness is refreshing.

a wonderful printing of a delightful story

first, allow me to say that i am quite enjoying these puffin classics editions of some of my favorite novels!

this is the story of little cedric errol, having recently lost his british-born father, being plucked from his american life to fufill his duty as the future earl of dorincourt. he is summoned by his crusty grandfather, the current earl of dorincourt, who is disliked far and wide for his tyrannnical behavior. cedric soon becomes little lord fauntleroy, and he and his mother ('dearest') are taken across the atlantic to england.

the story is filled with changes, difficult situations, and the redemption of those most in need of it. cedric errol is a unique little boy, and the power of his positivity is infectious.

a bonus here with the puffin classics is the addition of backstory included at the end of the book.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: William's Happy Days

Author: Richmal Crompton

Narrator: Martin Jarvis

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-19-07

Publisher: CSA Word

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 28 votes

Genres: Classics, Kids & Young Adults

Publisher's Summary:

Here are 10 hilarious stories from the genius pen of Richmal Crompton, featuring legendary, lateral-thinking schoolboy William Brown. Stories include "William the Superman", "William Puts things Right", "William's Birthday", "William and the School Report", "William Goes Shopping", "The Christmas Truce", "The Outlaws and the Hidden Treasure", "William and the Cow", "William and the Twins", and "William Helps the Cause".

©1930 Richmal Crompton; (P)2007 CSA Telltapes Ltd.

Critic Reviews:

"The humour needless to say is as dry as ever, and while William remains eternally 11, age has not withered Jarvis' youthful delivery." (Sunday Times)

Members Reviews:

Fun, Light-hearted Stories

The"William" stories are delightfully written, always amusing. Martin Jarvis does his usual excellent reading. I recommend this book.

Great book

Nice book! classic William Brown - I've enjoyed all his stories since I was a kid and this one doesn't disappoint!

My Happy Days too

I grew up reading Richmal Crompton's account of the irascible eleven year old. I love to listen to them, especially read by Martin Jarvis. What a treat!

A good performance, Shameful putting together.

This is Brilliantmasterpiece by Martin Jarvis, funny, witty and altogether just William!

The reason why I'm not giving a five-star review is due to the shameful fact of audible not being able to correctly mark the chapters. Instead of having each chapter with the correct name of the story in the chapter all you get is Chapter 1, Chapter 2 etc.

to many people this may not make a difference, but as for me, this is one of the main reasons I buy at audible

The antidote to Enid Blyton

Martin Jarvis has made a nice little sideline of reading Richmal Crompton's William books on the BBC for ages. Then they appeared on tapes and CDs, and now they are available here. If you haven't heard them before, then you are in for a big treat, just so long as you can accept the conventions of early to mid-twentieth century British middle-class life. My own early life was a generation after William's, although I did go to school wearing grey flannel shorts, a school cap, blazer and tie, we had no servants at home, and the increase in road traffic curtailed my generation's capacity to roam widely.

Once you have projected yourself into this prelapsarian age then the antics of William and the Outlaws become compulsive. In much the same way that P. G. Wodehouse's books appeal to those who cannot have been acquainted with realities on which they draw, Richmal Crompton's stories set eternal themes and their inevitable conclusions in a way which often leads the reader, or in this case listener, to collapse in fits of uncontrollable mirth. This was proved by my grand-daughter, who is still eight, becoming a hopeless devotee of the stories. Her background could not be more different from that of William and his chums, but she will sit quietly for hours listening to Martin Jarvis's voice on her iPod.

And there, of course, is a major part of the appeal. Through many years of narrating the books Martin Jarvis has developed a capacity to inhabit the world and to animate the characters which adds considerably to the pleasure of the books.