Showing results by narrator "B.J.Harrison" in All Categories

Sherlock Holmes is still a student when he receives his very first case. While still in college, he is invited to the house of his good friend, Victor Trevor. There he meets Trevor’s father, who challenges Holmes to analyze him, so that he can test the young detective’s investigative skills. Holmes touches a nerve after mentioning a person with the initials "J.A.". After the shock passes, Trevor’s father tries to hide how terrified he is, but Holmes can still catch the anxiety in his eyes.

Have you ever read the story of Creation told in the first person and in a diary form? If not "The Diaries of Adam and Eve" would be the best choice for you. You will find out what the Garden of Eden looked like, see how Adam and Eve lived, and what their perceptions of each other was. You will witness how Eve named the animals and the plants, and what Adam thought of it. This is Mark Twain’s most amusing masterpiece. B. J. Harrison started his Classic Tales Podcast back in 2007, wanting to breathe new life into classic stories.

One night during his regular rambles, Mérimée stumbles upon a mysterious woman who invites him home to her place. They enter a big, dark but luxuriously furnished room and they spend the whole night having dinner and talking. However things take a turn to the strange when the eery lady starts talking about death and tombs. Mérimée realises that his companion is not an ordinary woman and that he is in danger. Will he get himself out of there alive or will Xélucha drag him with her to the underworld? B. J.

Sam McGee is one of the many gold miners of the Klondike Gold Rush. The freezing-cold and harsh winter of Yukon is about to take his next victim in the face of McGee. The poor man freezes to death on the trail. The night before he passed away, McGee had asked his friend, the narrator of the story, to cremate his remains, saying that he did not want to be buried in the frozen ground. However, after the man is cremated some strange things begin to happen.

It is Thanksgiving day. Stuffy Pete has just come out from an unexpected feast but he is now waiting for his companion, "The Old Gentleman". They only ever meet on this one day of the year, and although they do not know that much of each other, they always spend the holiday together. Stuffy Pete follows the tradition although he is so full that he cannot think of eating more food. The Old Gentleman shows up and they head out to a fancy restaurant for a delicious meal. When Stuffy Pete walks out of the restaurant, he collapses on the sidewalk.

Jim Hawkins is a young boy who lives at his parents’ inn, near Bristol. After Billy Bones, an old sea captain, mysteriously dies at the inn, Hawkins unlocks his sea chest and finds a treasure map. The mysterious treasure map arouses Jim’s curiosity and sparks a wild and adventurous treasure hunt. Before long, Jim has gathered a crew of untrustworthy pirates and sails off to Treasure Island. Long John Silver with his missing leg and his parrot is part of the voyage.

B.J. Harrison reads "The Happy Prince and Other Tales" which consists of various children’s stories by Oscar Wilde. Originally published in 1888, the work includes five memorable stories: "The Happy Prince", "The Nightingale and the Rose", "The Selfish Giant", "The Devoted Friend" and "The Remarkable Rocket". It features unforgettable characters, such as the happy prince who has never experienced sorrow and a nightingale who accepts a rose for the ultimate sacrifice.

A prisoner arrives at a trial before the Spanish Inquisition and is condemned to death. Upon his conviction, he faints and finds himself in a horrendous cell to fight off death. Still, this prisoner is not giving up that easily and describes his horrendous circumstances to the last detail. "The Pit and the Pendulum" by Edgar Allan Poe is nothing short of grim until the very end.

Martians have wanted to invade Earth for some time in order to secure their own survival. They make their way to the new planet, but what they don't realize is that Earth may not be all that suitable for outsiders. H. G. Wells' science fiction novel "The War of the Worlds" dates back to the late 19th century and is one of the first literary works to depict a battle between aliens and humankind. "The War of the Worlds" has even inspired the works of scientists in the field of space travel.

"There was but a single forlorn hope, and I took it." After being unwillingly transported back to Earth, John Carter finally finds a way back to Mars, exited to be reunited with his beloved wife Dejah Thoris after a ten-year separation. Unfortunately, John Carter arrives at the one place on Mars you can never leave: the Barsoomian afterlife. Heroric, cheesy and imaginative, 'The Gods of Mars' is even more entertaining than 'A Princess of Mars'. When it comes to these Martian adventures, there is no such thing as a small taste.

B.J. Harrison reads the classic that has puzzled and delighted readers for over two centuries. Dorian Gray is a beautiful man, who has been immortalized in a painting. As he comes to the realization that his beauty will eventually fade, he makes a wish to never lose his beauty and retain eternal youth. Meanwhile, his age and sins continue to live on in his portrait. The late-19th-century classic by Oscar Wilde, a charming yet horrifying Gothic novel, has been adapted countless times to the screen.

Aristide Valentin holds a dinner party in his secret garden, which only has one main entrance. Many people are invited. Julius K. Brayne, one of Valentin’s rivals, is of the party as well. Everything goes as planned until one group of guests finds a beheaded corpse and the dinner turns into an investigation. Many questions begin to arise: How could someone be killed in a closed back garden without anyone noticing? Who is the victim? Who is the murderer? Where is the head? Find out the answers in "The Secret Garden". B. J.

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are discussing the lack of interesting new cases when a man bursts into the room. The panicked young man is McFarlane and he believes that he will be arrested for the murder of 52-year-old Jonas Oldacre. Oldacre’s burnt remains are found behind McFarlane house, the day after the builder Oldacre came to the lawyer McFarlane to draw up his will and made him his sole beneficiary. McFarlane is arrested as the main suspect. Holmes believes that the young man is not guilty and does his best to prove it.

In 1888, a young British couple are left behind in an African jungle. Seeing no other way than to make a life for themselves, they've soon built a cabin and had a son. When they die unexpectedly, their young boy ends up in the care of a she-ape, who calls him Tarzan. Growing up, Tarzan struggles with being different. But one day, he finds his parents' cabin and suddenly it all starts to make sense. 'Tarzan of the Apes' (1912) is the first in a series of twenty-four books about Tarzan, which author Edgar Rice Burroughs worked on until the 1940s.

Lieutenant-General von Rabbek is a local aristocrat, who invites the officers of the Reserve Artillery Brigade to a cup of tea with brandy. Of all the guests, Ryabovitch is the most unpleasant one. While doing his best to avoid talking to people, Ryabovitch enters a dark room, where he an unknown woman surprises him by kissing him, then running away. The unexpected kiss awakes Ryabovitch's curiosity and passion, and the man spends the rest of the evening searching for the mysterious woman.

Hilton Cubitt visits Sherlock Holmes to show him a sheet of paper with a weird sequence of drawn figures. When these odd messages began to arrive at Cubitt’s house, fear and panic overwhelmed his wife Elsie. She is afraid her past is catching up with her, but she refuses to reveal anything about it. Holmes is tasked with decipher the messages and find out who is sending them.

B.J. Harrison breathes life into one of Oscar Wilde’s first short stories, "The Canterville Ghost". The American Hiram B. Otis and his family move to a castle in Canterville Chase in the English countryside. They soon discover that they are not alone in the castle and that the ghost of an old tenant, Sir Simon de Canterville, is with them. Yet the family is not so easily scared, even if the ghost can take many shapes and forms. The short story from the late 19th century mixes humor with the macabre.

It is Christmas and a little boy receives a gift - a velveteen rabbit. Although the other toys look down on him, the rabbit is happy to be with the boy. They are constant companions and it seems like nothing can worsen their days. But then the boy gets sick and the doctor insists that all the toys get burned because they may be infected. The rabbit as well. Is this the end of their friendship? Or will the rabbit’s dearest wish finally come true? B. J.

Ralph Orth is an American novelist who decides to move to the English countryside. There he buys a marvellous estate called Chillingsworth. Inside Chillingsworth’s gallery, Orth finds an old portrait of a young girl who takes Orth’s breath away. He is fascinated and is determined to find out who this girl was. His obsession with little lady Blanche gets so strong that one day he sees her walking around in the neighborhood.

"The Devoted Friend" from the 19th century is an unconventional classic for children and adults alike. The Water-rat tells the story of Big Hugh and his friend Hans, whose friendship is not what it seems, and certainly not easy. This story within the story tells of friendship, its importance and how it can go wrong. This ageless fairy tale is a dark and funny short story created by Oscar Wilde is now read by B.J. Harrison. It was also adapted into an animated TV movie in 2003 called "Wilde Stories: The Devoted Friend." B. J.