Showing results by author "Various Various" in All Categories

This is the twenty-fourth Coffee Break Collection, in which Librivox readers select English language public domain works of about 15 minutes or less in duration -- perfect to listen to during commutes, workouts or coffee breaks. The topic for this collection is Ghosts, Ghouls and Spooky Things in honor of Halloween. Fiction, non-fiction, poetry, prose, essays... all chill and perplex.

A collection of short nonfiction works in the public domain. The selections included in this collection were independently chosen by the readers, and the topics encompass history, science, humor, travel, philosophy, nature, slavery, the U. S. Civil War, and politics. (summary by J. M. Smallheer)

Excerpts from vintage catalogs, read in a soft, soothing voice and meant to lull you to sleep. Drift off to dreamland with details of such topics as bowling alley or railroad truck construction, art exhibits, and Kodak cameras. In other words, be bored to sleep. - Summary by Verla Viera

A collection of fifteen short nonfiction works in the public domain. The essays, speeches, news items and reports included in this collection were independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, politics, philosophy, nature and religion.

This is a collection of short (15 minute or less readings) fiction or non-fiction works in English suitable for a coffee break at work or a short commuter ride. The theme for this collection is Hodge Podge: humor, romance, science, long poems, biography, inspirational -- you name it, as long as it's public domain and between 3 and 15 minutes long.(Summary by BellonaTimes)

The Fabian Society is a British institution, which, though radical, advocated social reform through legislative rather than revolutionary means. It pre-dates the British Labour Party, which it influences to this day. The Fabian Society founded the London School of Economics in 1895. Here we have a collection of essays by great thinkers of the early 20th century and edited by George Bernard Shaw. - Summary by LynneT

A collection of eleven short nonfiction works in the public domain. The items included in this collection were independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, conservation, philosophy, politics, religion and cooking. Included in this collection are Thomas Jefferson's first Inaugural Address, "Secession" by Alexander H. Stephens, "Of Truth" and the preface to "The New Organon, or True Directions Concerning the Interpretation of Nature" by Francis Bacon, John Donne's last sermon delivered in March 1631, "On Old Age" by Cicero, a chapter from "The Fight for Conservation" ...

Fifteen short nonfiction works in the public domain, independently chosen by the readers. Topics include the Faust Legend, Stephen Crane, Sundials and the Statue of Liberty. (Summary by Sue Anderson)

A collection of essays regarding the pros and cons of prohibition of alcoholic beverages, principally in the United States. - Summary by KevinS

A collection of ten short essays or other short nonfiction works in the public domain read by LibriVox volunteers.

A collection of short nonfiction works in the public domain. The selections included in this collection were independently chosen by the readers, and the topics encompass law, history, science, travel, philosophy, nature and religion. (summary by J. M. Smallheer)

A collection of fifteen short nonfiction works in the public domain. The essays, speeches, news items and reports included in these collections are independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, politics, philosophy, nature, religion, etc.

Sixteen short nonfiction works in the public domain, independently chosen by the readers. Topics include Science and Exploration--a tribute to Egyptologist Amelia Edwards, and discourses on gravitation and relativity by Georges-Louis Le Sage and Ralph Sampson; Sociology and Society--Julio Guerrero on the Mexican character, reflections on life from Kierkegaard's Diapsalmata, Immanuel Kant on religious education, the fate of romance in the King of Siam's harem, nickelodeons, and the tragic results of an 1851 fire on small businesses in New York's Bowery; Nature--how weeds spread, animal ...

These articles, pamphlets, and stories relating to the Girls Scouts of America touch on the history, activities, ideals, and traditions of this remarkable girls' organization. Though some of the articles appear redundant, they were selected to represent a contemporary view spanning five years of the organization's early popularity (1917-1921). Of significance are the detailed descriptions of Girl Scout involvement in war work during what is now known as World War I. Girl Scouts were prepared through their training for merit badges to be independent, resourceful, reliable, and helpful. They ...

A collection of ten short nonfiction works in the public domain. The essays, speeches and reports included in this collection were independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, politics science and religion. Included in this collection are Martin Luther’s “Ninety-five Theses,” Jefferson Davis’ speech before the United States Senate in 1861 “On Withdrawing from the Union,” William E. Gladstone’s address delivered in the House of Commons in 1893 on “Irish Home Rule” and Wendell Phillips speech in 1837 in Fanuiel Hall in Boston regarding “The Murder ...

A collection of sixteen short nonfiction works in the public domain. The essays, speeches and reports included in this collection were independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, politics, medicine, nature and religion. (summary by J. M. Smallheer)

This is a collection of essays, edited by Booker T. Washington, representative of what historians have characterized as "racial uplift ideology." These and other similar narratives of the time were a reaction to the gradual erosion of the African-American's civil rights across the United States that began during Reconstruction. - Summary by James K. White

This collection showcases fabricated documents and stories throughout history, and the diversity of purposes and contexts they were deployed in.The "Awful Disclosures of the Hotel Dieu Nunnery of Montreal" is a fabricated anti-Catholic eye-witness account, published in 1836 and purporting to reveal the horrors of life in a convent. The Donation of Constantine is a forged imperial decree, supposedly enacting a perpetual transfer of authority over the western part of the Roman Empire from the emperor to the Pope. George Psalmanazar, who passed himself off as a native of Formosa (Taiwan), wrote a...

The Librivox Coffee Break Collections are themed anthologies, selected and read by Librivox readers. Each short piece is fifteen minutes long, or less -- perfect for coffee breaks, commutes and work outs. Essays, prose, fiction, non-fiction, poetry -- who knows what gems will be uncovered? In this collection, we explore old age -- grandparents, retirement, wisdom, decline. It is an opportunity to reflect on mortality and depth of experience. - Summary by Lynne Thompson

"The moment a man attempts to tell the truth as he not only thinks but feels it, what he says becomes charged with that man himself." This gem is from Walter de la Mare's Some Thoughts on Reading. That "truth" often varies by viewpoint is shown in many of the reader-chosen selections in vol. 098: Scotland Trading to Africa and the West Indies; A Letter on the Arrival at Darien; Loving v. Virginia; Cremation versus Earth Burial; The Covenant of the League of Nations; When the Sea-Asp Stings; Death in the Black Hole at Calcutta; City Boys vs. Country Boys; Birthplaces and Heredity; Locke's Essay...