I have found several more free audiobooks for you, from LearnOutLoud and Tantor Press. Once "purchased", most of these can be downloaded any time. LearnOutLoud also has
49 audiobooks marked down to $1.99 each you may want to browse thru. Over at Tantor Audio, they feature a number of titles for $6.99 each month (it's easiest to find these on their
Facebook page) and the rest of
their audiobook catalog is 50% off right now.
First up, seven free editions of Charles Dickens' classic
A Christmas Carol ($9.95 Amazon) that have been gathered together by
LearnOutLoud (although one of the editions is one I told you about earlier this month). Some of these require an account and are only free for a limited time, so don't dawdle.
Book Description
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman and Hall and first released on 19 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visitations of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present, and Yet to Come. The novella met with instant success and critical acclaim.
The book was written and published at a time when Britain was experiencing a nostalgic interest in its forgotten Christmas traditions, and at the time when new customs such as the Christmas tree and greeting cards were being introduced. Dickens' sources for the tale appear to be many and varied but are principally the humiliating experiences of his childhood, his sympathy for the poor, and the Christmas stories of Washington Irving.
The tale was pirated immediately, was adapted several times to the stage, and has been credited with restoring the holiday to one of merriment and festivity in Britain and America after a period of sobriety and somberness. A Christmas Carol remains popular, has never been out of print, and has been adapted to film, opera, and other media.
Links for the free downloads (with formats noted; several include a download of the text of the book, as well):
- LearnOutLoud, narrated by Antonia Bath (MP3 & MPEG-4) *free today only
- ChristianAudio, narrated by Simon Vance (M4B, MP3, EPUB) *free this month only
- LibriVox, narrated by Glen Hallstrom (MP3, OGG, M4B, ZIP, TXT, RSS)
- iTunes, narrated by Patrick Horgan (podcast)
- Wired for Books, narrated by Karen Chan (MP3, RealAudio Stream)
- Mercury Theatre, narrated by Orson Welles & The Campbell Playhouse (RealAudio, MP3)
- Lit2Go, narrated by Rick Kistner (MP3, TXT/HTML)
Tantor Audio is offering a
free download of both the audiobook and ebook of
Favorite Stories of Christmas Past ($11.95 Amazon), by Clement C. Moore, Nora A. Smith, Louisa May Alcott, et al, narrated by Renée Raudman and Alan Sklar.
Book Description
Tantor Media presents a collection of some of the most popular Christmas stories read by award-winning narrators Renee Raudman and Alan Sklar. This special anthology will transport listeners back to the Christmases of their youth, when they first heard these holiday tales. From "'Twas the Night Before Christmas", Clement C. Moore's classic depiction of St. Nicholas at work, to O. Henry's "The Gift of the Magi", which embodies the very spirit of Christmas, Favorite Stories of Christmas Past has something for everyone.
Also included is Francis Church's moving editorial response to a little girl's Christmastime query, "Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus", as well as seven other Christmas classics that can be heard and shared year after year.
The classics that can be found in Favorite Stories of Christmas Past are: "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" by Clement C. Moore; "The Story of Christmas" by Nora A. Smith; "A Country Christmas" by Louisa May Alcott; "An Empty Purse" by Sarah Orne Jewett; "The Bachelor's Christmas" by Robert Grant; "The Fir Tree" by Hans Christian Andersen; "The Birds' Christmas Carol" by Kate Douglas Wiggin; "Yes Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus" by Francis Church; "The Festival of St. Nicholas" by Mary Mapes Dodge; and "The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry.
Tantor Audio's second
free download is
Gulliver's Travels ($19.95 Amazon), by Jonathan Swift, narrated by David Case.
Book Description
In Gulliver's Travels, the narrator represents himself as a reliable reporter of the fantastic adventures he has just experienced. But how far can we rely on a narrator who has been impersonated by someone else? The work purports to be a travel book, and describes the shipwrecked Gulliver's encounters with the inhabitants of four extraordinary places: Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa, and the country of the Houyhnhnms. A consumately skillful blend of fantasy and realism makes Gulliver's Travels by turns hilarious, frightening, and profound. This is one of literature's most disturbing satires on the human condition.
