Showing results by author "ciesse" in All Categories

The town of Hadleyburg had the reputation of being the most honest town in a wide area, indeed an incorruptible community. The elders took this reputation so to heart that they brought up their children shielded from all temptation and trained thoroughly in total honesty. However, a stranger passing through the community was seriously offended by the actions of residents of this Utopia, and he vowed to gain revenge. After several years he came up with the perfect plan to embarrass the town and expose its hypocrisy. (Introduction by Leonard Wilson)

This 3rd volume of the Marie Antoinette Romances begins a decade after the close of "The Mesmerist’s Victim” and is based on a real scandal in Louis XVI’s court, commonly called “The Diamond Necklace Affair.” In this volume, the plotting of a powerful occultist, Count Cogliostro (or “Balsamo”), collides with the long-festering resentments of a previous royal house, Jeanne de Valois (de la Motte), a growing popular movement for sociopolitical reform, and a shrinking supply of bread. It is easy to see how converging sociopolitical challenges can threaten the monarchy, but how can ...

The Life, Adventures & Piracies of the Famous Captain Singleton is a "bipartite adventure story whose first half covers a traversal of Africa, and whose second half taps into the contemporary fascination with piracy. It has been commended for its depiction of the homosexual relationship between the eponymous hero and his religious mentor, the Quaker, William Walters." (Summary by Wikipedia)

LibriVox volunteers bring you 11 recordings of Life by Charlotte Brontë. This was the weekly poetry project for March 8th, 2009.

A collection of twenty one stories featuring ghoulies, ghosties, vampires, huge rats and things that go bump in the night. Expect shivers up your spine, the stench of human flesh, and the occasional touch of wonder. You may also feel more jumpy tonight than usual.

The history of the first return of exiles, in the first year of Cyrus the Great (536 B.C.), till the completion and dedication of the new Temple in Jerusalem, in the sixth year of Darius (515 B.C.). The history of the second return under Ezra, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes Longimanus, and of the events that took place at Jerusalem after Ezra's arrival there. The book thus contains memorabilia connected with the Jews, from the decree of Cyrus to the reformation by Ezra (456 B.C.), extending over a period of about eighty years. (Summary by Wikipedia)

The Book of Job (American Standard Version) is presented in forty-two chapters and is one of the Old Testament Wisdom Books. The narrative chronicles the trials of Job as he is brought low from a comfortable and exalted position in his community to face loss of his fortune, children and health. Joined by three friends who initially commiserate and sympathize with him, there ensues a lengthy argument about the fate of the wicked and the just and much questioning about the character of God and the justice He metes out to his creations.A quite lively and poetic discussion ensues among these wise ...

The Books of Samuel (Hebrew: Sefer Sh'muel ספר שמואל) are part of the Tanakh (part of Judaism's Hebrew Bible) and also of the Christian Old Testament. The work was originally written in Hebrew, and the Book(s) of Samuel originally formed a single text, as they are often considered today in Hebrew bibles. Together with what is now referred to as the Book(s) of Kings, the translators who created the Greek Septuagint divided the text into four books, which they named the Books of the Kingdoms. In the Latin Vulgate version, these then became the Books of the Kings, thus 1 and 2 Samuel were...

During the time of the Judges when there was a famine, an Israelite family from Bethlehem - Elimelech, his wife Naomi, and their sons Mahlon and Chilion - emigrate to the nearby country of Moab. Elimelech dies, and the sons marry two Moabite women: Mahlon marries Ruth and Chilion marries Orpah. Then Mahlon and Chilion also die. Naomi decides to return to Bethlehem. She tells her daughters-in-law to return to their own mothers, and remarry. Orpah reluctantly leaves; however, Ruth says, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. ...

"The Book of Judges (Hebrew: Sefer Shoftim) is a book of the Bible originally written in Hebrew. It appears in the Tanakh and in the Christian Old Testament. Its title refers to its contents; it contains the history of Biblical judges (not to be confused with modern judges), who helped rule and guide the ancient Israelites, and of their times. As Judges stands today, the last judge it mentions is Samson, and although there are two further stories, the traditional view is that Samson's exploits probably synchronise with the period immediately preceding Eli, who was both high priest and judge. ...

"Deuteronomy (Greek: Δευτερονόμιον, "second law") or Devarim (Hebrew: דְּבָרִים‎, literally "things" or "words") is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fifth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch. A large part of the book consists of five sermons delivered by Moses reviewing the previous forty years of wandering in the wilderness, and the future entering into the Promised Land. Its central element is a detailed law-code by which the Israelites are to live within the Promised Land. Theologically the book constitutes the renewing of the covenant between ...

“The Books of Samuel (Hebrew: Sefer Sh’muel ספר שמואל) are part of the Tanakh (part of Judaism’s Hebrew Bible) and also of the Christian Old Testament. The work was originally written in Hebrew, and the Book(s) of Samuel originally formed a single text, as they are often considered today in Hebrew bibles. Together with what is now referred to as the Book(s) of Kings, the translators who created the Greek Septuagint divided the text into four books, which they named the Books of the Kingdoms. In the Latin Vulgate version, these then became the Books of the Kings, thus 1 and 2 ...

"The Book of Nehemiah, sometimes called the Second Book of Ezra, is a book of the Hebrew Bible. It is historically regarded as a continuation of the Book of Ezra, and the two are frequently taken together as Ezra-Nehemiah. Traditionally, the author of this book is believed to be Nehemiah himself. The date at which the book was written was probably about 431 - 430 BC, when Nehemiah had returned the second time to Jerusalem after his visit to Persia. The book consists of four parts: (1) An account of the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, and of the register Nehemiah had found of those who had...

"Moses leads the Hebrews out of Egypt and through the wilderness to the Mountain of God: Mount Sinai. There Yahweh, through Moses, gives the Hebrews their laws and enters into a covenant with them, by which he will give them the land of Canaan in return for their faithfulness. The book ends with the construction of the Tabernacle." (Summary by Wikipedia)

The book commences with a feast organized by Ahasuerus, initially for his court and dignitaries and afterwards for all inhabitants of Shushan. Ahasuerus orders his wife Vashti to display her beauty before the guests. She refuses, and the King's advisors warn that, if unpunished, her actions would inspire other wives to disobey their husbands. Ahasuerus removes her as queen. (Jews believe that she was executed, He then orders all young women to be presented to him, so he can choose a new queen to replace Vashti. One of these is Esther, who was orphaned at a young age and is being fostered by ...

信州の高原で、作家を志す青年と、絵を描く少女が出会った。やがて、二人は婚約する。しかし、少は、肺の病に落ちる。療養の為に、少女と青年は、信州のサナトリウムに行く。しかし、少女は帰らぬ人となってしまう。そして、一年後、青年は少女と出会った村で、冬を過ごす。A love story between a young man and a young lady. They are engaged but the heroine becomes sick. They go to a sanatorium, but she passes away. After a year he goes to the small village where they met, and he lives ...

描述中國唐朝皇帝唐玄宗(又稱唐明皇)與寵妃楊貴妃淒慘的愛情故事。中國文學中有好幾部作品取材自這個歷史故事，例如唐朝陳鴻的〈長恨歌傳〉與白居易的〈長恨歌〉、元代白樸的〈梧桐雨〉，內容上最主要差異在於馬嵬驚變這個高潮之後，對貴妃心境的描寫。相較於其他作者，洪昇塑造了一個更具獨立人格的女性，以及更人性化的唐玄宗。 (概述来源：Summary by Ayishalyu )

語り手と同じ下宿にいた岡田は、無縁坂に住むお玉と、帽を取って挨拶をするようになった。お玉は、高利貸、末造の妾であった。ある日、青大将がお玉が飼っている紅雀を襲った。そこに岡田が通りかかり、蛇を退治してあげる。お玉は岡田と近づきになりたいと思い、末造が来ないと決まった日に、下女を帰らせ、岡田を待った。しかし、その日限り、岡田は一人でなく、行き帰りの二度とも連れ立って歩いていた。そして、岡田はその日を...

高野山に籍を置く旅僧が、敦賀の宿で、道連れに語る物語。飛騨から信州へ抜ける峠道であった不思議な体験。本道をはずれて、旧道を行くと、沢山の蛇のいる所、蛭の降る森と散々な目に会う、そしてようやく、一軒の家があった。そこに、美しい、声も良く、ものやさしい婦人がいた。そして、更に不思議な事が続く。A bonze walks from Hida to Matsumoto. On a mountain pass he encounters strange things. (Summary by ekzemplaro)

God permits "Satan," or in some translations "the adversary" or "the accuser," to put the virtue of Job to the test, at first by giving him power over his property, but forbidding him to touch his person. Satan begins by taking away all of Job's riches, his livestock, his house, his servants, and his children; a series of four messengers informs him that they have perished in various tragedies. In the meantime, only three of Job's friends come to visit him in his misfortune — Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. A fourth, Elihu the Buzite, first begins talking...