Black Beauty is a touching tale which takes a listener inside the head of a horse. A title featured in the BBC's 'Big Read Top 100', Black Beauty is a touching and enduring classic that appeals to adults and children alike. A young foal is told by his mother to always do his best, and so he does, despite the difficult situations he often finds hims...

Haunting and poignant, the great Oscar Wilde's famous supernatural story of youth and age is narrated brilliantly by Rupert Graves. Wilde's only novel combines sparkling wit, social satire and luxurious description. Full of many of his most famous witticisms, it is essentially a novel about the lust for eternal youth versus the inevitable reality o...

Kim is a magnificent novel, populated by a rich cast of characters - from jewelers and spies, to horse dealers, mystics and military leaders. The novel was once described by Kingsley Amis as "not only the finest story about India . . . but one of the greatest novels in the language". The action takes place in British India in the 1880s and 1890s ag...

Rudyard Kipling classic written in 1890 - the obnoxious Fleete, newly arrived in India, desecrates the temple of Hanuman, the monkey god. A priest avenges Hanuman with a savage bite to Fleete's chest, with grave and mysterious consquences.

Rivalry and love and hate are explored in this intense study of two men's struggle for power. An interesting novel due to its depiction of a violent love/hate relationship between two men, this story highlights the strains of competition in pre-industrial rural society. Michael henchard attains the position of town mayor, but the lies that lead him...

Tess goes through her life at the mercy of unscrupulous men, who take advantage of their positions in society and of her. But how far can a woman be pushed before she is forced to take revenge? Tess of the D'Urbervilles is an early exercise in girl power, Tess spends her life being bullied by men and is pushed to the brink. A dramatic and tragic st...

A wonderful selection of stories to make you laugh, cry and shiver! Featuring stories from Charles Dickens, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Saki amongst a great many famous others, this collection is a must for anyone who enjoys listening to a wide variety of stories from a diverse range of voices.

Hugo's vibrant portrait of the characters in late eighteenth century Paris is a world-famous story, which has also been made into an award-winning musical. Jean Valjean, an ex-convict, tries to turn his life around for the sake of his adopted daughter, Cosette. Set in turbulent times, this reading by Michael Jayston of this classic tale is a bustli...

In "The Legacy," Gilbert Clandon is a widower whose wife has left him the collection of diaries she has kept since their marriage began. The diaries reveal that the wife he thought was completely devoted to him has been in love with another man. With this discovery also comes the realization that her death may not have been accidental, as he previo...

Classic story from the author of The Woman In White, a young woman finds herself caught between true love and her family's honor

Becky Sharpe will stop at nothing to increase her social standing, could anything get in her way? Becky Sharp is one of literature's most important and controversial characters; born into the lower classes, she must rely on her wit and guile and sexuality to master regent society. Neither friendship nor trust can even abate Becky's desire to climb...

The timeless and enchanting festive story of Scrooge, who declares Christmas 'Humbug' and is taught otherwise. Ebenezer Scrooge is a money-grabbing skinflint who makes his own life and the lives of those around him nigh-unbearable with his mean and economical ways. One night just before Christmas, tucked up in his cold bed, he is shocked to meet ap...

Our hero, a carpenter, loves Hetty Sorel, but she loves Arthur Donnington, a local squire. The story soon progresses onto powerful themes, such as: who has the right to determine who lives and who dies? A non-judgemental examination of human relationships and nature, Adam Bede has been highly praised for achieving something 'beyond' realism.

A biting satire on American life which turned convention on its head. This story explores the obsessive affections of the radical Olive Chancellor for Verena Tarrant, a gifted young speaker in the feminist movement. When Olive's cousin Basil becomes equally besotted, the scene is set for a bitter tug of war.

The action is set within the claustrophobic confines of a British man-of-war ship in the summer of 1797. Here live the crew of the HMS Indomitable, many of them pressed into service against their will. Billy Budd, however, enjoys naval life. But the evil master-at-arms, Claggart, loathes his fresh-faced innocence and accuses him of mutiny. From th...

Phileas Fogg sets out on his epic adventure - will he make it back to London in time for tea? Steve Coogan, Jackie Chan and Cecile de France star in a new film version of the book. Here former Manuel actor Andrew Sachs gives full range to hs versatility using his many voices along with brilliant narration.

Anna Karenina risks her lifestyle and wealth when she falls for the wrong man in this dramatic and romantic tale of choices and consequences. Married to a man of importance in 19th century St.Petersburg, Anna 's world crumbles when she falls passionately in love with the handsome Count Vronsky, and is forced to choose between her lover and her you...

Alice is so bored of listening to her sister read that she gazes around the garden and sights a curious white rabbit, who seems to be wearing a coat and a pocket watch. Following the rabbit, she reaches the rabbit hole and tumbles down it-and the very strange adventure starts. One of the most famous and a pioneering example of 'Literary Nonsense',...

The master of surreal and wonderful fiction presents a story about one of his most famous characters - the perpetually grinning and ever-riddling Cheshire Cat. Alice's friend/tormentor in Wonderland, the Cheshire Cat has been immortalized in art, film, cartoon, television and now on audio.

An early morning awakening leads to a discovery much more shocking than a few rifled drawers at a grand house. A suspected bungled robbery that it seems has gone horribly wrong calls our heroes Holmes and Watson to The Abbey Grange, where their super-sleuthing may be able to shed some light on the mystery.

Voltaire and Pangloss travel the world looking for the good in life, but can they find it? Candide and his tutor Pangloss travel the globe trying to follow the philosophy 'All is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds'. However, they are stung and let down at every turn, being robbed, tortured and ridiculed, amongst other trials. On...