Princess and the Goblin, The
by George MacDonald

Publication date 2007-04-22
Usage Public DomainCreative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, literature, audiobook, children, fantasy
The Princess and the Goblin is an enthralling fantasy tale written by George MacDonald. Her nurse Lootie raises the princess Irene in a house on a mountain, it is here that she meets her mysterious great-great-grandmother, and her friend the minor boy Curdie. Things are peaceful for Irene until the hideous race of goblins that live beneath the mountain start planning something big… Through his writing George MacDonald has influenced such writers as J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. (Summary by Lizzie Driver)

section one of the princess and the goblin this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org recording by lizzy driver the princess and the goblin by george mcdonald chapters one to three chapter one why the princess has a story about her there was once a little princess whose father was king over a great country full of mountains and valleys his palace was built upon one of the mountains and was very grand and beautiful the princess whose name was ireney was born there but she was sent soon after her birth because her mother was not very strong to be brought up by country people in a large house half castle half farmhouse on the side of another mountain about halfway between its base and its peak the princess was a sweet little creature and at the time my story begins was about eight years old i think but she got older very fast her face was fair and pretty with eyes like two bits of night sky each with a star dissolved in the blue those eyes you would have thought must have known they came from there so often were they turned up in that direction the ceiling of her nursery was blue with stars in it as like the skies they could make it but i doubt if ever she saw the real sky with the stars in it for a reason which i'd better mention at once

these mountains were full of hollow places underneath huge caverns and winding ways some with water running through them and some shining with all colors of the rainbow when a light was taken in there would not have been much known about them had there not been mines there great deep pits with long galleries and passages running off from them which had been dug to get at the ore of which the mountains were full in the course of digging the miners came upon many of these natural caverns a few of them had far off openings out on the side of a mountain or into a ravine now in these subterranean caverns lived a strange race of beings called by some gnomes by some kobolds by some goblins there was a legend current in the country that at one time they lived above ground and were very like other people but for some reason or other concerning which there were different legendary theories the king had laid what they thought too severe taxes upon them or had required observances of them they did not like or had begun to treat them with more severity in some way or other and impose stricter laws and the consequence was that they had all disappeared from the face of the country according to the legend however instead of going to some other country they had all taken refuge in the subterranean caverns whence they never came out but at night and then seldom showed themselves in any numbers and never to many people at once

it was only in the least frequented and most difficult parts of the mountains that they were said to gather even at night and in the open air those who had caught sight of any of them said that they had greatly altered in the course of generations and no wonder seeing they lived away from the sun in cold and wet and dark places they were now not ordinarily ugly but either absolutely hideous or ludicrously grotesque both in face and form...

Princess and the Goblin, The
by George MacDonald

Publication date 2007-04-22
Usage Public DomainCreative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, literature, audiobook, children, fantasy
The Princess and the Goblin is an enthralling fantasy tale written by George MacDonald. Her nurse Lootie raises the princess Irene in a house on a mountain, it is here that she meets her mysterious great-great-grandmother, and her friend the minor boy Curdie. Things are peaceful for Irene until the hideous race of goblins that live beneath the mountain start planning something big… Through his writing George MacDonald has influenced such writers as J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. (Summary by Lizzie Driver)

section one of the princess and the goblin this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org recording by lizzy driver the princess and the goblin by george mcdonald chapters one to three chapter one why the princess has a story about her there was once a little princess whose father was king over a great country full of mountains and valleys his palace was built upon one of the mountains and was very grand and beautiful the princess whose name was ireney was born there but she was sent soon after her birth because her mother was not very strong to be brought up by country people in a large house half castle half farmhouse on the side of another mountain about halfway between its base and its peak the princess was a sweet little creature and at the time my story begins was about eight years old i think but she got older very fast her face was fair and pretty with eyes like two bits of night sky each with a star dissolved in the blue those eyes you would have thought must have known they came from there so often were they turned up in that direction the ceiling of her nursery was blue with stars in it as like the skies they could make it but i doubt if ever she saw the real sky with the stars in it for a reason which i'd better mention at once

these mountains were full of hollow places underneath huge caverns and winding ways some with water running through them and some shining with all colors of the rainbow when a light was taken in there would not have been much known about them had there not been mines there great deep pits with long galleries and passages running off from them which had been dug to get at the ore of which the mountains were full in the course of digging the miners came upon many of these natural caverns a few of them had far off openings out on the side of a mountain or into a ravine now in these subterranean caverns lived a strange race of beings called by some gnomes by some kobolds by some goblins there was a legend current in the country that at one time they lived above ground and were very like other people but for some reason or other concerning which there were different legendary theories the king had laid what they thought too severe taxes upon them or had required observances of them they did not like or had begun to treat them with more severity in some way or other and impose stricter laws and the consequence was that they had all disappeared from the face of the country according to the legend however instead of going to some other country they had all taken refuge in the subterranean caverns whence they never came out but at night and then seldom showed themselves in any numbers and never to many people at once

it was only in the least frequented and most difficult parts of the mountains that they were said to gather even at night and in the open air those who had caught sight of any of them said that they had greatly altered in the course of generations and no wonder seeing they lived away from the sun in cold and wet and dark places they were now not ordinarily ugly but either absolutely hideous or ludicrously grotesque both in face and form...

The Reluctant Dragon
by Kenneth Grahame

Publication date 2006-10-20
Usage Public DomainCreative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, literature, audiobook, children, dragons, fantasy, grahame
LibriVox recording of The Reluctant Dragon, by Kenneth Grahame. Read by Mark F. Smith. What would you do if you discovered a dragon living in a cave on a hill above your home? Make friends, read poetry together? It turns out that not all dragons are intent on pillaging the countryside. Some might actually enjoy peace, quiet, and the occasional banquet. The Boy of this story knows how to handle dragons, and life is good… until a knight in shining armor arrives in town to exterminate his friend! It doesn’t matter that it’s a “good” dragon – rules are rules, you know! (Summary by Mark) For more information on our readers, please visit the catalog page

this is a librivox recording all labor box recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org

this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina

the reluctant dragon by kenneth graham

long ago might have been hundreds of years ago in a cottage halfway between a little english village and the shoulder of the downs a shepherd lived with his wife and their little son now the shepherd spent his days and at certain times of the year his nights too up on the wide ocean bosom of the downs with only the sun and the stars and the sheep for company and the friendly chattering world of men and women far out of sight and hearing but his little son when he wasn't helping his father and often when he was as well spent much of his time buried in big volumes that he borrowed from the affable gentry and interested parsons of the country round about and his parents were very fond of him and rather proud of him too though they didn't let on in his hearing so he was left to go his own way and read as much as he liked and instead of frequently getting a cuff on the side of the head as might very well have happened to him he was treated more or less as an equal by his parents who sensibly thought it a very fair division of labor that they should supply the practical knowledge and he the book learning they knew that book learning often came in useful at a pinch in spite of what their neighbors said what the boy chiefly dabbled in was natural history and fairy tales and he just took them as they came in a sandwichy sort of way without making any distinctions and really his course of reading strikes one is rather sensible one evening the shepherd who for some night's past had been disturbed and preoccupied and off his usual mental balance came home all of a tremble and sitting down at the table where his wife and son were peacefully employed she with her seam he in following out the adventures of the giant with no heart in his body exclaimed with much agitation it's all up with me maria never no more can i go up on them their downs was it ever so now don't you take on like that said his wife who was a very sensible woman but tell us all about it first whatever it is as has given you this shake up and then me and you and the son here between us we ought to be able to get to the bottom of it it began some nights ago said the shepherd you know that cave up there i never liked it somehow and the sheep never liked it neither and when sheep don't like a thing there's generally some reason for it well for some time past there's been faint noises coming from that cave noises like heavy sighings with grunts mixed up in them and sometimes a snoring far away down real snoring yet somehow not honest snoring like you and mia knights you know i know remarked the boy quietly of course i was terrible frightened the shepherd went on yet somehow i couldn't keep away so this very evening before i come down i took a cast round by the cave quietly and there oh lord there i saw him at last as...

The Reluctant Dragon
by Kenneth Grahame

Publication date 2006-10-20
Usage Public DomainCreative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, literature, audiobook, children, dragons, fantasy, grahame
LibriVox recording of The Reluctant Dragon, by Kenneth Grahame. Read by Mark F. Smith. What would you do if you discovered a dragon living in a cave on a hill above your home? Make friends, read poetry together? It turns out that not all dragons are intent on pillaging the countryside. Some might actually enjoy peace, quiet, and the occasional banquet. The Boy of this story knows how to handle dragons, and life is good… until a knight in shining armor arrives in town to exterminate his friend! It doesn’t matter that it’s a “good” dragon – rules are rules, you know! (Summary by Mark) For more information on our readers, please visit the catalog page

this is a librivox recording all labor box recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org

this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina

the reluctant dragon by kenneth graham

long ago might have been hundreds of years ago in a cottage halfway between a little english village and the shoulder of the downs a shepherd lived with his wife and their little son now the shepherd spent his days and at certain times of the year his nights too up on the wide ocean bosom of the downs with only the sun and the stars and the sheep for company and the friendly chattering world of men and women far out of sight and hearing but his little son when he wasn't helping his father and often when he was as well spent much of his time buried in big volumes that he borrowed from the affable gentry and interested parsons of the country round about and his parents were very fond of him and rather proud of him too though they didn't let on in his hearing so he was left to go his own way and read as much as he liked and instead of frequently getting a cuff on the side of the head as might very well have happened to him he was treated more or less as an equal by his parents who sensibly thought it a very fair division of labor that they should supply the practical knowledge and he the book learning they knew that book learning often came in useful at a pinch in spite of what their neighbors said what the boy chiefly dabbled in was natural history and fairy tales and he just took them as they came in a sandwichy sort of way without making any distinctions and really his course of reading strikes one is rather sensible one evening the shepherd who for some night's past had been disturbed and preoccupied and off his usual mental balance came home all of a tremble and sitting down at the table where his wife and son were peacefully employed she with her seam he in following out the adventures of the giant with no heart in his body exclaimed with much agitation it's all up with me maria never no more can i go up on them their downs was it ever so now don't you take on like that said his wife who was a very sensible woman but tell us all about it first whatever it is as has given you this shake up and then me and you and the son here between us we ought to be able to get to the bottom of it it began some nights ago said the shepherd you know that cave up there i never liked it somehow and the sheep never liked it neither and when sheep don't like a thing there's generally some reason for it well for some time past there's been faint noises coming from that cave noises like heavy sighings with grunts mixed up in them and sometimes a snoring far away down real snoring yet somehow not honest snoring like you and mia knights you know i know remarked the boy quietly of course i was terrible frightened the shepherd went on yet somehow i couldn't keep away so this very evening before i come down i took a cast round by the cave quietly and there oh lord there i saw him at last as...

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame Mr Badger ch 4 Free Audiobooks.

this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina the wind in the willows by kenneth graham chapter 4 mr badger

they waited patiently for what seemed a very long time stamping in the snow to keep their feet warm at last they heard the sound of slow shuffling footsteps approaching the door from the inside it seemed as the mole remarked to the rat like someone walking in carpet slippers that were too large for him and down at hill which was intelligent of mole because that was exactly what it was there was the noise of a bolt shot back and the door opened a few inches enough to show a long snout and a pair of sleepy blinking eyes now the very next time this happens said a gruff and suspicious voice i shall be exceedingly angry who is it this time disturbing people on such a night speak up oh badger cried the rat let us end please it's me rat and my friend mo and we've lost our way in the snow what ratty my dear little man exclaimed the badger in quite a different voice come along in both of you at once why you must be perished well i never lost in the snow and in the wild wood too at this time of night but come in with you the two animals tumbled over each other in their eagerness to get inside and heard the door shut behind them with great joy and relief the badger who wore a long dressing gown and whose slippers were indeed very down at heel carried a flat candlestick in his paw and had probably been on his way to bed when their summons sounded he looked kindly down on them and patted both their heads this is not the sort of night for small animals to be out he said paternally i'm afraid you've been up to some of your pranks again ratty but come along come into the kitchen there's a first straight fire there and supper and everything he shuffled on in front of them carrying the light and they followed him nudging each other in an anticipating sort of way down a long gloomy and to tell the truth decidedly shabby passage into a sort of central hall out of which they could dimly see other long tunnel-like passages branching passages mysterious and without apparent end but there were doors in the hall as well stout oak and comfortable looking doors one of these the badger flung open and at once they found themselves in all the glow and warmth of a large fire lit kitchen the floor was well worn red brick and on the wide hearth burnt a fire of locks between two attractive chimney corners tucked away in the wall well out of any suspicion of draft a couple of high-backed settles facing each other on either side of the fire gave further sitting accommodations for the sociably disposed in the middle of the room stood a long table of plain boards placed on trestles with benches down each side at one end of it where an armchair stood pushed back were spread the remains of badgers plain but ample supper rows of spotless plates winked from the shells of the dresser at the far end of the room and from the rafters overhead hung hams bundles of dried herbs nets of onions and baskets of eggs it seemed a place where heroes could fitly feast after victory where weary harvesters could line up in scores along the table and keep their harvest home with mirth and song aware two or three friends of simple tastes could sit about as they pleased and eat and smoke and talk in comfort and contentment the ruddy brick floor smiled up at the smoky ceiling the oaken settles shiny with long wear exchanged cheerful glances with each other plates on the dresser grinned at pots on the shelf and the merry fire flickered and played over everything without distinction the kindly badger thrust them down on a settle to toast themselves at the fire and made them remove their wet coats and boots then he fetched them...

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame Mr Badger ch 4 Free Audiobooks.

this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina the wind in the willows by kenneth graham chapter 4 mr badger

they waited patiently for what seemed a very long time stamping in the snow to keep their feet warm at last they heard the sound of slow shuffling footsteps approaching the door from the inside it seemed as the mole remarked to the rat like someone walking in carpet slippers that were too large for him and down at hill which was intelligent of mole because that was exactly what it was there was the noise of a bolt shot back and the door opened a few inches enough to show a long snout and a pair of sleepy blinking eyes now the very next time this happens said a gruff and suspicious voice i shall be exceedingly angry who is it this time disturbing people on such a night speak up oh badger cried the rat let us end please it's me rat and my friend mo and we've lost our way in the snow what ratty my dear little man exclaimed the badger in quite a different voice come along in both of you at once why you must be perished well i never lost in the snow and in the wild wood too at this time of night but come in with you the two animals tumbled over each other in their eagerness to get inside and heard the door shut behind them with great joy and relief the badger who wore a long dressing gown and whose slippers were indeed very down at heel carried a flat candlestick in his paw and had probably been on his way to bed when their summons sounded he looked kindly down on them and patted both their heads this is not the sort of night for small animals to be out he said paternally i'm afraid you've been up to some of your pranks again ratty but come along come into the kitchen there's a first straight fire there and supper and everything he shuffled on in front of them carrying the light and they followed him nudging each other in an anticipating sort of way down a long gloomy and to tell the truth decidedly shabby passage into a sort of central hall out of which they could dimly see other long tunnel-like passages branching passages mysterious and without apparent end but there were doors in the hall as well stout oak and comfortable looking doors one of these the badger flung open and at once they found themselves in all the glow and warmth of a large fire lit kitchen the floor was well worn red brick and on the wide hearth burnt a fire of locks between two attractive chimney corners tucked away in the wall well out of any suspicion of draft a couple of high-backed settles facing each other on either side of the fire gave further sitting accommodations for the sociably disposed in the middle of the room stood a long table of plain boards placed on trestles with benches down each side at one end of it where an armchair stood pushed back were spread the remains of badgers plain but ample supper rows of spotless plates winked from the shells of the dresser at the far end of the room and from the rafters overhead hung hams bundles of dried herbs nets of onions and baskets of eggs it seemed a place where heroes could fitly feast after victory where weary harvesters could line up in scores along the table and keep their harvest home with mirth and song aware two or three friends of simple tastes could sit about as they pleased and eat and smoke and talk in comfort and contentment the ruddy brick floor smiled up at the smoky ceiling the oaken settles shiny with long wear exchanged cheerful glances with each other plates on the dresser grinned at pots on the shelf and the merry fire flickered and played over everything without distinction the kindly badger thrust them down on a settle to toast themselves at the fire and made them remove their wet coats and boots then he fetched them...

This reading stands out as more a performance than a reading! The single reader employs different voices for each of the animals (and humans) - probably over a dozen in all! Read with lively energy, this was a favorite with my kids. Good job!

this is a librivox recording all librebox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina the wind in the willows by kenneth graham chapter 3 the wild wood the mole had long wanted to make the acquaintance of the badger he seemed by all accounts to be such an important personage and the rarely visible to make his unseen influence felt by everybody about the place but whenever the mole mentioned his wish to the water rat he always found himself put off that's all right the rat would say badger i'll turn up someday or other he's always turning up and then i'll introduce you to a best of fellows but you must not only take him as you find him but when you find him couldn't you ask him here for dinner or something said the mole he wouldn't come replied the rat simply badger hates society and invitations and dinner and all that sort of thing well then supposing we go and call on him suggested them all oh i'm sure he wouldn't like that at all said the rat quite alarmed he's so very shy he'd be sure to be offended i've never even ventured to call on him in his own home myself though i know him so well besides we can't it's quite out of the question because he lives in the very middle of the wild wood well supposing he does said them all you told me the wild wood was all right you know oh i know i know so it is replied the rat evasively but i think we won't go there just now not just yet it's a long way and he wouldn't be at home at this time of year anyhow and he'll be coming along someday if you'll wait quietly the mole had to be content with this but the badger never came along and every day brought its amusements and it was not till summer was long over and cold in frost and miri ways kept them much indoors and the swollen river raced past outside their windows with a speed that mocked a boating of any sort or kind that he found his thoughts dwelling again with much persistence on the solitary grey badger who lived his own life by himself in his hole in the middle of the wild wood in the winter time the rats slept a great deal retiring early and rising late during his short day he sometimes scribbled poetry or did other small domestic jobs about the house and of course there were always animals dropping in for a chat and consequently there was a good deal of storytelling and comparing notes on the past summer and all its doings such a rich chapter had it been when one came to look back on it all with illustrations so numerous and so very highly colored the pageant of the riverbank had marched steadily along unfolding itself in scene pictures that succeeded each other in stately procession purple loosestrife arrived early shaking luxuriant tangled blocks along the edge of the mirror whence its own face laughed back at it willow herb tender and wistful like a pink sunset cloud was not slow to follow comfrey the purple hand in hand with the white crep forth to take its place in the line and at last one morning the diffident and delaying dog rose stepped delicately on the stage and one knew as if string music had announced it in stately chords that strayed into a gavat that june at last was here one member of the company was still awaited the shepherd boy for the nymphs to woo the night for whom the ladies waited at the window the prince that was kissed the sleeping summer back to life and love but when meadow sweet debonair and odorous and amber jerkin moved graciously to his place in the group then the play was ready to begin and what a play it had been drowsy animals snug in their homes while wind and rain were battering at their doors recalled still keen mornings an...

This reading stands out as more a performance than a reading! The single reader employs different voices for each of the animals (and humans) - probably over a dozen in all! Read with lively energy, this was a favorite with my kids. Good job!

this is a librivox recording all librebox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina the wind in the willows by kenneth graham chapter 3 the wild wood the mole had long wanted to make the acquaintance of the badger he seemed by all accounts to be such an important personage and the rarely visible to make his unseen influence felt by everybody about the place but whenever the mole mentioned his wish to the water rat he always found himself put off that's all right the rat would say badger i'll turn up someday or other he's always turning up and then i'll introduce you to a best of fellows but you must not only take him as you find him but when you find him couldn't you ask him here for dinner or something said the mole he wouldn't come replied the rat simply badger hates society and invitations and dinner and all that sort of thing well then supposing we go and call on him suggested them all oh i'm sure he wouldn't like that at all said the rat quite alarmed he's so very shy he'd be sure to be offended i've never even ventured to call on him in his own home myself though i know him so well besides we can't it's quite out of the question because he lives in the very middle of the wild wood well supposing he does said them all you told me the wild wood was all right you know oh i know i know so it is replied the rat evasively but i think we won't go there just now not just yet it's a long way and he wouldn't be at home at this time of year anyhow and he'll be coming along someday if you'll wait quietly the mole had to be content with this but the badger never came along and every day brought its amusements and it was not till summer was long over and cold in frost and miri ways kept them much indoors and the swollen river raced past outside their windows with a speed that mocked a boating of any sort or kind that he found his thoughts dwelling again with much persistence on the solitary grey badger who lived his own life by himself in his hole in the middle of the wild wood in the winter time the rats slept a great deal retiring early and rising late during his short day he sometimes scribbled poetry or did other small domestic jobs about the house and of course there were always animals dropping in for a chat and consequently there was a good deal of storytelling and comparing notes on the past summer and all its doings such a rich chapter had it been when one came to look back on it all with illustrations so numerous and so very highly colored the pageant of the riverbank had marched steadily along unfolding itself in scene pictures that succeeded each other in stately procession purple loosestrife arrived early shaking luxuriant tangled blocks along the edge of the mirror whence its own face laughed back at it willow herb tender and wistful like a pink sunset cloud was not slow to follow comfrey the purple hand in hand with the white crep forth to take its place in the line and at last one morning the diffident and delaying dog rose stepped delicately on the stage and one knew as if string music had announced it in stately chords that strayed into a gavat that june at last was here one member of the company was still awaited the shepherd boy for the nymphs to woo the night for whom the ladies waited at the window the prince that was kissed the sleeping summer back to life and love but when meadow sweet debonair and odorous and amber jerkin moved graciously to his place in the group then the play was ready to begin and what a play it had been drowsy animals snug in their homes while wind and rain were battering at their doors recalled still keen mornings an...

The Wind in the Willows The Open Road Free Children's Audiobook Downloads CH 2

A favourite traditional tale for little ones.

this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina the wind in the willows by kenneth graham this is chapter two the open road ready said the mole suddenly one bright summer morning if you please i want to ask you a favor the rat was sitting on the riverbank singing a little song he had just composed it himself so he was very taken up with it and would not pay proper attention to mole or to anything else since early morning he had been swimming in the river in company with his friends the ducks and when the ducks stood on their heads suddenly as ducks will he would dive down and tickle their necks just under where their chins would be if ducks had chins till they were forced to come to the surface again in a hurry spluttering and angry and shaking their feathers at him for it is impossible to say quite all you feel when your head is under water at last they implored him to go away and attend to his own affairs and leave them to mind theirs so the rat went away and sat on the riverbank in the sun and made up a song about them which he called ducks diddy all along the backwater through the rush is tall ducks are dabbling uptails all ducks tails drake's tails yellow feet a quiver yellow bills all out of sight busy in the river slushy green undergrowth where the roach swim here we keep our larder cool and full and dim everyone for what he likes we like to be heads down tails up dabbling free high in the blue above swift swirl and call we are down a dabbling up tails all i don't know that i think so very much of that little song rat observed them all cautiously he was no poet himself and didn't care who knew it and he had a candid nature nor don't the ducks neither replied the rat cheerfully they say why can't fellows be allowed to do what they like when they like and as they like instead of other fellows sitting on banks and watching them all the time and banking remarks and poetry and things about them what nonsense it all is well that's what the ducks say so it is so it is said the mole with great hardiness no it isn't cried the rat indignantly well then it isn't it isn't replied them all soothingly but what i wanted to ask you was won't you take me to call on mr toad i've heard so much about him and i do so want to make his acquaintance why certainly said the good natured rat jumping to his feet and dismissing poetry from his mind for the day get the boat out and we'll paddle up there at once it's never the wrong time to call on toad earlier light he's always the same fellow always good tempered always glad to see you always sorry when you go he must be a very nice animal observe the mole as he got into the boat and took the skulls while the rats settled himself comfortably in the stern he is indeed the best of animals replied rat so simple so good-natured and so affectionate perhaps he's not very clever we can't all be geniuses and it may be that he is both boastful and conceited but he has got some great qualities has tony rounding abandoned in the river they came inside of a handsome dignified old house of mellowed red brick with well-kept lawns reaching down to the water's edge there's toad hall said the rat and that creek on the left where the notice board says private no landing allowed leads to his boathouse that's where we'll leave the boat the stables are over there to the right that's the banqueting all you're looking at now very old that is toad is rather rich you know and this is really one of the nicest houses in these parts though we never admit as much to toad they glided up the creek and the mole slipped his skulls as they passed into the shadow of large boathouse here they saw many handsome boats slung from the...

The Wind in the Willows The Open Road Free Children's Audiobook Downloads CH 2

A favourite traditional tale for little ones.

this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina the wind in the willows by kenneth graham this is chapter two the open road ready said the mole suddenly one bright summer morning if you please i want to ask you a favor the rat was sitting on the riverbank singing a little song he had just composed it himself so he was very taken up with it and would not pay proper attention to mole or to anything else since early morning he had been swimming in the river in company with his friends the ducks and when the ducks stood on their heads suddenly as ducks will he would dive down and tickle their necks just under where their chins would be if ducks had chins till they were forced to come to the surface again in a hurry spluttering and angry and shaking their feathers at him for it is impossible to say quite all you feel when your head is under water at last they implored him to go away and attend to his own affairs and leave them to mind theirs so the rat went away and sat on the riverbank in the sun and made up a song about them which he called ducks diddy all along the backwater through the rush is tall ducks are dabbling uptails all ducks tails drake's tails yellow feet a quiver yellow bills all out of sight busy in the river slushy green undergrowth where the roach swim here we keep our larder cool and full and dim everyone for what he likes we like to be heads down tails up dabbling free high in the blue above swift swirl and call we are down a dabbling up tails all i don't know that i think so very much of that little song rat observed them all cautiously he was no poet himself and didn't care who knew it and he had a candid nature nor don't the ducks neither replied the rat cheerfully they say why can't fellows be allowed to do what they like when they like and as they like instead of other fellows sitting on banks and watching them all the time and banking remarks and poetry and things about them what nonsense it all is well that's what the ducks say so it is so it is said the mole with great hardiness no it isn't cried the rat indignantly well then it isn't it isn't replied them all soothingly but what i wanted to ask you was won't you take me to call on mr toad i've heard so much about him and i do so want to make his acquaintance why certainly said the good natured rat jumping to his feet and dismissing poetry from his mind for the day get the boat out and we'll paddle up there at once it's never the wrong time to call on toad earlier light he's always the same fellow always good tempered always glad to see you always sorry when you go he must be a very nice animal observe the mole as he got into the boat and took the skulls while the rats settled himself comfortably in the stern he is indeed the best of animals replied rat so simple so good-natured and so affectionate perhaps he's not very clever we can't all be geniuses and it may be that he is both boastful and conceited but he has got some great qualities has tony rounding abandoned in the river they came inside of a handsome dignified old house of mellowed red brick with well-kept lawns reaching down to the water's edge there's toad hall said the rat and that creek on the left where the notice board says private no landing allowed leads to his boathouse that's where we'll leave the boat the stables are over there to the right that's the banqueting all you're looking at now very old that is toad is rather rich you know and this is really one of the nicest houses in these parts though we never admit as much to toad they glided up the creek and the mole slipped his skulls as they passed into the shadow of large boathouse here they saw many handsome boats slung from the...