Get the Most Popular Audiobooks in Classics, British Literature Top Rated

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Title: Fanny Hill

Author: John Cleland

Narrator: Emma Fielding

Format: Abridged

Length: 3 hrs and 46 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-26-00

Publisher: Naxos AudioBooks

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 59 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Fanny Hill, one of the most popular novels of the 18th century, traces the rise of its heroine from prostitution to middle-class respectability. Condemned in its own time on grounds of indecency, the book was the subject of several law suits until as recently as the 1960s. For today's listener, the work holds as much fascination as when it was first published, not only as the foremost example of English erotic fiction, but as a literary classic in its own right.

Editorial Reviews:

Scandalous when it came out in 1748 after being written from prison by John Cleland, Fanny Hill was almost immediately banned for obscenity, and was only available "underground" for centuries before finally being published legitimately in 1963. It still titillates even today.

The highly charged, erotic novel is told as a series of letters from prostitute Fanny Hill, that describe her vivid sexual encounters in and around London. The 350 years after its publication has done nothing to damper the steamy heat this arousing drama generates. Narrated elegantly with subtle sensuality by Emma Fielding.

Members Reviews:

A classic, and still exciting

This classic of erotica is still as exciting a read as ever. The tale of women working in a high class victorian bordello, the characters tells tales of varied sexual adventures. Told in the first person, the heroine is a good narator, and her own story is both titilating and sophisiticated. Contains storys that include mild S&M, deflowering virgins and an outdoor orgy.

great story

this was a great story. the story teller told the story well. i felt the emotions the character. i would listen to this over and over.

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Title: Frankenstein (Dramatized)

Author: Mary Shelley

Narrator: full cast

Format: Abridged

Length: 1 hr and 59 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-03-00

Publisher: Monterey SoundWorks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 13 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

This exciting full-cast presentation is like nothing you've ever heard before!

To supplement this reading of Frankenstein, listen to

.

Critic Reviews:

"Stylish." (Booklist)

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Title: The Sonnets

Author: William Shakespeare

Narrator: John Gielgud

Format: Abridged

Length: 2 hrs

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-99

Publisher: Caedmon Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 16 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Shakespeare's timeless sonnets, which describe love in all its aspects, represent one of the finest bodies of poetry ever penned. They include the star-struck Sonnet 18 ("Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"), the witty Sonnet 103 ("My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun"), the despairing yet hopeful Sonnet 29 ("When, in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes, I all alone beweep my outcast state"), and more. As read by the legendary Sir John Gielgud - perhaps the greatest contemporary interpreter of the Bard - the sonnets in this selection come alive with all the passion and profound human insight of their brilliant creator.

Critic Reviews:

"Gielgud is to Shakespeare what Luciano Pavarotti is to Italian opera: his magnificent voice gives you shivers." (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Members Reviews:

Hambone

Gielgud hams it too much, reading as if he were on stage, trying to emote. More concerned with his interpretation than he is with the meter, he may be a good actor but he doesn't understand the music of verse.

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Title: The Return of the Native

Author: Thomas Hardy

Narrator: Jill Masters

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 hrs and 15 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-99

Publisher: Books on Tape

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 49 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Eustacia Vye is a beautiful, commanding presence on England's Egdon Heath. Her longing for the glamour of city life leaves her dissatisfied with her traditionalist husband, Clym Yeobright, and leads her to take Damon Wildeve as her lover. In a mixing of fate, chance, and human error, Eustacia's marriage smolders and explodes in violent tragedy. Set against the looming presence of the Heath, Hardy's work vividly depicts characters cruelly manipulated by the forces around them, unable to dictate their own fates. This classic story, a forerunner to the 20th-century psychological novel, is presented in unabridged form, revealing all of its poetic compassion and universal themes.

(P) JimCin Recordings

Members Reviews:

Life on the Heath

Hardy does a marvelous job of portraying life amongst the small hamlets of Egdon Heath. The story line though, is fairly typical and it belies Hardy's status as a literary heavyweight. The physical description of people and place are extraordinary and more than makes up for the somewhat flat plot. Hardy does require something from the reader (listener) and can display near cunning in his use of English.

Hardy's attention to accent and intonation in the dialogue of his characters really set this book apart and help the reader to become immersed. I attempted reading the print version of this book 3 times and the dialogue did me in each time. For this reason an audio version of the book is much appreciated.

The narration does not disappoint but the audio quality is uneven. I might have rated this a 5 star work if the audio was pristine.

worth the effort

I'm new to Hardy, and loved his descriptions and strange romantic sensibility, though I had to listen to the first couple chapters more than once to get a feel for the scene and characters. I am a big fan of Jill Masters--I love her throaty, musical voice. She is a reader rather than a dramatist, allowing the author's work to take precedence over the performance. That said, her recordings are generally not good quality. If this bothers you in the sample audio, you will not enjoy listening to hours of it.

Truly Disappointing

After Tess of the D'Urbervilles, I was keen to listen to more Thomas Hardy, however the differences between Tess and this title could hardly be greater. While the Audible information indicates that Jill Masters is the narrator, the cover of the audiobook indicates that it is "read by Alan Rickman". Unfortunately, Jill (or Alan, depending on what she likes to be called) is simply abominable as a narrator. She sounds like the Queen reading her Christmas address inside a trunk at the bottom of the ocean...in 1972. Not only does her very posh voice not suit the context of this book, she is simply unable to alter her voice in any significant way to make the characters in the narrative come alive. It is as though she is reading to 8 or 10 year old children. As noted, the "echo chamber" in which she appears to be reading is a constant distraction. There is no clarity at all. I love my Audible books, but this one is a complete and utter shocker.

shame about the sound quality

I looked forward to hearing this, as I read the book many years ago and loved it. Unfortunately the sound quality is so bad it's impossible to listen to in format 3, so it was no good on my mp3 player, and have now downloaded it in format 4 so I can listen to it from my computer.

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Title: Gulliver's Travels

Author: Jonathan Swift

Narrator: Norman Dietz

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-99

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 85 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Lemuel Gulliver, a surgeon and sea captain, journeys to different islands, where he meets some of the strangest creatures ever to appear in literature. His most famous visits are to Lilliput, where he towers over the 6-inch, warlike people, and Brobdingnag, where the natives are gigantic, yet cannot understand abstract concepts. Gulliver also travels to the flying island of Laputa, Lagadu, a land of impractical philosophers, and Glubdubdrib, where sorcerers allow him to speak to great historical figures. He meets the Struldbrugs, who are miserable immortals, and visits Houyhnhnmland, where a race of highly intelligent horses are served by filthy creatures called Yahoos. Filled with brilliant satire and wild encounters, Jonathan Swift's masterpiece is one of the most creative, significant novels of all time.

Editorial Reviews:

Irish writer Jonathan Swifts classic tale Gulliver's Travels, which has spawned countless adaptations, can be seen as both a kid-friendly yarn and a satirical indictment of human nature and European government.

First published in 1726, this novel follows the travels of Lemuel Gulliver. Gulliver visits the six-inch tall Lilliputians and then moves on to Brobdingnag, a land of giants. Later voyages see him visiting fantastic places with names like Laputa and Glubbdubdrib - and also Japan.

Using a mid-Atlantic accent, Norman Dietz adopts a wide-eyed, incredulous tone as he assumes the persona of the title character.

Members Reviews:

Gulliver's Travels

The epitome of political satire. Swift's indictment of politicians, lawyers and the clergy are as relevant today as when he wrote them 600 years ago. This book is much to good to be relegated to a childs book.

Gulliver's Travels -

This download had very poor audio quality. The reader was difficult to understand.

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Title: Where Angels Fear to Tread

Author: E.M. Forster

Narrator: Jill Masters

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-99

Publisher: Books on Tape

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 14 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

When Lilia, an English widow, marries a penniless Italian while on vacation, her dead husband's relatives are not amused. That the marriage should fail and Lilia die tragically are to be expected. But that she should have a baby, and that the baby should be raised Italian, of all things, are matters requiring immediate correction. E.M. Forster's first novel addresses cultural collisions and English middle-class sterility, themes that underlie many of his works, including A Room with a View and A Passage to India.

(P) Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic Reviews:

"Ironic and malevolent. Comfortable notions of vice and virtue collapse underfoot and the best intentions go mortally awry." (Spectator)

Members Reviews:

Very Bad Audio

To IPod users...beware that this title is only available in the lower formats. I found the audio to be absolutely terrible. It was very scratcty, irratating, and distracting.

The story is good, but I didn't enjoy it because of the audio. Although I'm a fan of Forster, I don't recommend this audiobook.

Listen to "A Passage to India" instead. Great sound and an exceptional narrator. Also, it's Forster's greatest work.

Worst Narration Possible

I couldn't listen to this book - the narrator has an awful staccato, stop-start delivery, almost like an automated voice telling you your bank balance. Waste of my money.

Back in school

17 years old I tried to read this novel for my english-lessons. I didn't succeed, but now I love it. Forster is so satirical and he knows Italy. It's a slow-pacing novel and not written for teenagers!

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Title: Alice in Wonderland & Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll

Subtitle: With an Excerpt from The Life and Letters of Lewis Carroll

Author: Lewis Carroll, Stuart Dodgson Collingwood

Narrator: Alison Larkin, Derek Perkins

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-10-16

Publisher: Alison Larkin Presents

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Alice in Wonderland and Jabberwocky come alive in a fresh new and highly accessible way in this in this brilliant recording by acclaimed comedienne Alison Larkin and Audie-award-winning narrator Derek Perkins.

The recordings are followed by a short excerpt from The Life and Letters of Lewis Carroll, by Carroll's nephew, Stuart Dodgson Collingwood.

Members Reviews:

This is a GREAT recording of Alice in Wonderland

If you could sum up Alice in Wonderland & Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll in three words, what would they be?

BEST VERSION YET

What other book might you compare Alice in Wonderland & Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll to and why?

Through the Looking Glass - because it was written by the same author

What does Alison Larkin and Derek Perkins bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

Everything. The performance is all here. You feel the characters are real. Alison Larkin has a real gift for bringing characters to life, making you feel like you are actually there. This is a very special experience. .

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I cried at the end...

Any additional comments?

This is the best possible way to enjoy Alice in Wonderland. I just loved it.

OUTSTANDING narration brings Alice to new life

What made the experience of listening to Alice in Wonderland & Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll the most enjoyable?

The originality of the voices. The clarity of the narration.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Alice in Wonderland & Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll?

The Caucus race is so funny, I hadn't realized - also the outrageous scene at the end when the Queen is threatening to cut everyone's heads off.

Have you listened to any of Alison Larkin and Derek Perkins s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have listened to Alison Larkin's narration of Emma and Peter Pan and loved them both. This one is up there with her best. She is one of my all time favorite narrators and I am thrilled to see her narrating the classics. She is SO SO GOOD. Derek Perkins I had not heard before but i just loved the way he narrates Jabberwocky!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The end of Alice in Wonderland.

Any additional comments?

A high quality production. The best Alice I have heard.

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Title: Unusual Fairy Tales

Author: John Ruskin, Katherine Pyle, Leo Tolstoy, Olive Schreiner, Comtesse de Ségur, Leonard Merrick, Mary Coleridge

Narrator: Cathy Dobson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 hrs and 17 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-15-15

Publisher: Red Door Audiobooks

Ratings: 1 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

A delightful collection of lesser known traditional and modern fairy stories:

1. "The King of the Golden River"

2. "The Empty Drum"

3. "The Fire Spirit"

4. "The Tree of Death"

5. "The Smugglers Daughter"

6. "A Dream of Wild Bees"

7. "The Fisherman"

8. "The Masked Ball"

9. "The Petrified Man"

10. "The Were-Wolf"

11. "The Walled Nun of Avila"

12. "The Little Grey Mouse"

13. "The Serpent Woman"

14. "The Castle of Jativa"

15. "Ourson"

16. "The Magic Turban, the Magic Sword and the Magic Carpet"

17. "The Three Silver Citrons"

18. "The Magic Pipe"

19. "The Triumph of Truth"

20. "Lifes Secret"

21. "The King of Root Valley"

22. "The Wonderful Pear Tree"

23. "The Stone Monkey"

24. "Stealing Peaches"

25. "The Painted Skin"

26. "The White Wolf of the Hartz Mountains"

27. "The Bee-Man of Orn"

28. "The History of Ali Cogia"

29. "The Talking Eggs"

30. "The Girl Who Was Tired of Love"

Members Reviews:

If this had a chance,

Would you try another book from the authors and/or Cathy Dobson?

Never anything with this narrator. Dreadful to listen to.

Has Unusual Fairy Tales turned you off from other books in this genre?

No it is not about the material.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Her voice was so dull and dragged every single bit of the writing right down to the ground.

What character would you cut from Unusual Fairy Tales?

It had nothing whatever to do with character, and all to do with the dreadful narrator.

Any additional comments?

Want to return this audio book.

great for adults

this collection was amazing to listen to, I highly recommend it to anyone who loved the brothers grimm as a child or anyone who feels their imagination wavering as an adult. it's quite scary though and I would NOT recomend to anyone who is thinking of buying it for a young audience

terrible !!! narration !!

the stories were good but the narration the worse ever, her inflections, timing all terrible making it so hatd to listen to.

she seemed better as it went on but omg never heard someone try so hard they end up sounding like a strange slow presenter . listen before you purchase one i feel sad i cant listen to all way though.

Delivery off putting :(

I am sad to say I could not even get through the first chapter due to the narrators odd and stilted delivery.

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Title: Gulliver's Travels

Author: Jonathan Swift

Narrator: Simon Cadell

Format: Abridged

Length: 2 hrs and 39 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-02-08

Publisher: The Copyright Group

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

This classic book of English literature is an insightful satire on human nature, probing the corruption of man. It's also a parody on traveller's tales, as Jonathan Swift chronicles the voyages to Lilliput, Brobingnag, and other fantastical destinations in this powerful 18th-century masterpiece. Simon Cadell reads with a sure touch and great understanding of his subject.

(P)2006 Horse's Mouth

Members Reviews:

Only half the book

The reading was great, i wasn't too bothered by a few skips in the chapters all though it was annoying, but as far as I can tell this is only part 1 and 2 of a 4 part book so i must download another file to finish listening. Thats stupid.

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Title: Mr Wray's Cash Box

Author: Wilkie Collins

Narrator: Peter Joyce

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 11 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-14-11

Publisher: Assembled Stories

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Mr. Reuben Wray, a retired actor who has had little public success, flees Stratford-upon-Avon fearing pursuit by the police. He arrives in Tidbury in the Marsh and sets up shop teaching elocution. Two local villains notice he carries a rather large cash box and attempt to steal the contents. When their plans come to naught and they exact their revenge Mr. Wray is left devastated and it takes Annie, his granddaughter, and her intended, Martin, to rectify the situation. It is Squire Colebatch however, an ex-patron of Reubens, who brings the perfect ending to this wonderful Christmas whimsy.

Wilkie Collins was a good friend of Charles Dickens and like that great man he was a radical freethinker with a passion for the rights of the common man and a disdain for Victorian convention. Both men had a love for the theatre and performed Collins novel The Frozen Deep [also an Assembled Stories title] as a play, once by Royal Command. The authors love of mystery, the works of Shakespeare and his sympathy for the plight of the lower orders come together in this quixotic and very heart-warming tale.

Critic Reviews:

About Assembled Stories: Over the years the national press have reviewed Assembled Stories titles as "excellent", "remarkable", "entrancing", "superb", "magic for sure", "masterly", "wonderful", "a class act" and "a splendid example of audio at its best".