LibriVox – Page 59

LibriVox: The White Company by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Friday, July 24, 2009 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

LibriVox Sir Arthur Conan Doyle could be remembered as an important author quite apart from his creation of Sherlock Holmes. His novel of The Lost World, for instance, is still being read and enjoyed today. He wrote a great many books too. One is The White Company, a book which I discovered even just two months ago when the proprietor of the Golden Age Comic Book Stories scanned and uploaded the gorgeous images that illustrated the 1922 edition HERE. Now, thanks to the team-up of LibriVox’s Laura Caldwell and Clive Catterall, we are all owners of a public domain audiobook version. Thanks folks!

The White Company
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; Read by Clive Catterall
38 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: July 24, 2009
Set during the Hundred Years’ War with France, The White Company tells the story of a young Saxon man who is learning what it is to be a knight. Raised by Cistercian Monks and rejected by a violent elder brother, Alleyn Edricson takes service with one of the foremost knights in the country. When Alleyn falls in love with the knight’s daughter, he must prove himself to be a courageous and honourable knight before he can win her hand. Alleyn and his friends set forth with the other men-at-arms to join Prince Edward in Bordeaux, from where they will take part in the Prince’s campaign into Spain. It is in Spain that Alleyn and others must prove themselves to be very valiant and hardy cavaliers.

Podcast feed:

http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/the-white-company-by-sir-arthur-conan-doyle.xml

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

Posted by Jesse Willis

LibriVox: Triplanetary by E.E. “Doc” Smith

Wednesday, July 22, 2009 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

Thanks go to LibriVox for Triplanetary. This is the first book length public domain audiobook by E.E. “Doc” Smith. Here’s the editorial from the first issue of its serialization in Amazing Stories:

“We are sure that our readers will be highly pleased to have us give the first installment of a story [Triplanetary] by Dr. Smith. It will continue for several numbers and is a worthy follower of the ‘Skylark’ stories which were so much appreciated by our readers. We think that they will find this story superior to the earlier ones. Dr. Smith certainly has the narrative power, and that, joined with his scientific position, makes him an ideal author for our columns.”

Triplanetary
By E.E. “Doc” Smith; Read by Mark F. Smith
13 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – Approx. 6 Hours 25 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: July 21, 2009
E.E. “Doc” Smith virtually invented the space opera sub-genre singelhandedly. In Triplanetary physics, time, and politics never stand in the way of a plot that gallops ahead without letup. The heroes of Smith’s story are all scientists. In their hands the electromagnetic spectrum becomes a raw material to be molded into ever-more amazing and lethal forms, and the speed of light is no bar to their traveling through the interstellar void. Come enjoy this story of yesteryear, set in tomorrow, where real women ignite love at a glance, real men achieve in days what governments manage in decades, and aliens are an ever-present threat to Life-As-We-Know-It! First published in the January, February, March and April 1934 issues of Amazing Stories magazine.

Podcast feed:

http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/triplanetary-by-ee-doc-smith.xml

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

Additional credit for this audiobook goes to:

Dedicated Proof-Listener: Ans Wink
Meta-Coordinator/Cataloging: David Lawrence

Posted by Jesse Willis

The SFFaudio Podcast #031 – NEW RELEASES/AUDIOBOOK: Founding Fathers by Robert Bloch

The SFFaudio Podcast #031 – Jesse (that’s me) and Scott (my buddy) are again joined by Rick Jackson of Wonder Audio. We talk about audiobooks, new and newer, a little about radio drama, throw in some politics, some Canada bashing, and then add in two complete short stories. The first short story is read by me (it is only two sentences long) and the other runs about 40 minutes and is performed by a professional narrator. Enjoy it folks!

Talked about on today’s show:
Full Cast Audio, Graceling by Kristin Cashore, Hugo Nominees, Young Adult novels, Little Brother by Cory Doctorow |READ OUR REVIEW|, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman |READ OUR REVIEW|, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins |READ OUR REVIEW|, On Basilisk Station by David Weber, Grover Gardner, Shards Of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold, Barayar, The Honor Of The Queen, Paul W. Campbell, Honor Of The Clan by John Ringo and Julie Cochrane, Cally’s War, Audible Frontiers, Brilliance Audio, Paperback Digital, Hyperion by Dan Simmons, The Canterbury Tales, The Kick-Ass Mystic Ninjas, Black Library Audio, Warhammer 40,000: Heart Of Rage by James Swallow, Warhammer 40,000: Slayer Of The Storm God by Nathan Long, Infinivox, The Year’s Top Ten Tales Of Science Fiction edited by Alan Kaster, Ted Chiang is awesome, Zombie Astronaut posts 5 adaptations of Knock by Frederic Brown, Earthmen Bearing Gifts, Expedition, Arena, Rocket Men: The Epic Story of the First Men On The Moon by Craig Nelson, Penguin Audio, 40th Anniversary of Apollo 11, Digital Apollo by David A. Mindell, MIT Press, Wernher von Braun, I Aim For The Stars (1960), Ascent by Jed Mercurio |READ OUR REVIEW|, Voyage by Stephen Baxter (and adapted by Dirk Maggs to radio drama), Four Sided Triangle by William F. Temple, Ray Bradbury, Damon Knight, William Coon, The Fabulous Clip-Joint by Frederic Brown, The Alcoholics by Jim Thompson, Audible.com/wonderaudio, Rule Golden by Damon Knight, Worlds Of The Imperium by Keith Laumer, Mark Douglas Nelson, This Crowded Earth and Other Stories by Robert Bloch, overpopulation, James Powell, The Vanishing Venusians by Leigh Brackett, noir, The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Lawrence Kasdan, Body Heat (1981), Wolfbane by Frederik Pohl and C.M. Kornbluth, Plague Of Pythons by Frederik Pohl, Passengers by Robert Silverberg, The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi, Old Man’s War, Zoe’s Tale, The Sagan Diaries, Lord Valentines Castle by Robert Silverberg |READ OUR REVIEW|, Stephan Rudnicki, Greg Margarite, LibriVox.org, Deathworld by Harry Harrison, Philip K. Dick, Andre Norton, William Coon, Amazon Kindle, ebooks, where the great lakes came from, Comics, The Iliad by Homer; Adapted by Roy Thomas, The Punisher: From First To Last by Garth Ennis, The Golden Slave by Poul Anderson, The Lies Of Loch Lamora by Scott Lynch = Lankhmar meets Oliver Twist, Harry Potter, Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert, messiahs, clairvoyance, the dangers of charismatic leaders, Dune, Harkonnen government was poor management, BBC versions of the Falco books by Lindsey Davis, Radio Downloader, the Brother Cadfael series by Ellis Peters, The Name Of The Rose (1986), Umberto Eco.

And last, but not least, a complete short story, courtesy of Wonder Audio, by Robert Bloch:

Founding Fathers
By Robert Bloch; Read by William Coon
Approx. 40 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: The SFFaudio Podcast
Podcast: July 20th, 2009
A humorous time travel tale.
First published in Fantastic Universe July 1956.

Get more Robert Bloch read by Willam Coon HERE.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Aural Noir Review of The White Moll by Frank L. Packard

Thursday, July 9, 2009 Scott D.

Aural Noir: Review

The White Moll
By Frank L. Lampard; Read by Rowdy Delaney
21 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – 8 Hours 45 Minutes – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Librivox.org
Published: November 15, 2008
Themes: / Crime / Gangsters / Superheroes / Thieves / New York City /

“…an angel of mercy who spends her time helping the poor in the slums of New York City is drawn into the criminal world when she attempts to help Gypsy Nan, who is not what she seems. Accused of a crime and on the run from the police, she must battle the most nefarious criminal gang in the New York underworld to prove her innocence.”

The White Moll is an exciting adventure story by Frank L. Packard who also wrote the wonderful Adventures Of Jimmie Dale. Set in New York’s shady underbelly of crime, we follow The White Moll as she strives to do good but finds herself framed by criminals who also blame her for ruining their schemes. Can she foil their plans and also save herself? And what of the adventuring thief with whom she has fallen in love?

This book is not as hard-boiled as a typical noir-ish story but definitely holds its own in New York City’s seamy underbelly as unsavory characters plot thefts and murders with little regard for any sense of decency. The White Moll is a quick thinking and plucky heroine who never performs better than when her back is against the wall and we think there is no way out of a threatening situation. Packard wrote in the early 1900s but the stories have as much zest and adventure as when they were new.

Reader Rowdy Delaney has a low key narrative style. She does not attempt to change voice styles from one character to another yet we still get impressions of the characters as they appear. Her reading is smooth and steady, allowing the story to succeed or fail upon its own merits.

This book is available free from Librivox.

Podcast feed:

http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/the-white-moll-by-frank-l-packard.xml

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

Posted by Julie D.

LibriVox: Stories Of King Arthur’s Knights Told To The Children by Mary MacGregor

Thursday, July 9, 2009Sunday, October 4, 2009 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

New at LibriVox for kids of all ages (especially those who like crossbows and catapults)…

Stories Of King Arthur’s Knights Told To The Children
By Mary MacGregor; Read by Joy Chan
7 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – Approx. 1 Hour 53 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: July 8, 2009
“More than four hundred years ago there lived a diligent man called Sir Thomas Malory, who wrote in English words many of the beautiful Welsh tales about King Arthur’s Knights, that the people of Wales loved so well. All the stories in this little book were found in Malory’s big book, except ‘Geraint and Enid.’ But it, too, is one of the old Welsh tales that tell of the brave knights and fair ladies of King Arthur’s court. Many times, since Sir Thomas Malory wrote his book, have these stories been told again to old and young, but perhaps never before have they been told to the children so simply as in this little book.”

Too see all the pictures associated with this book look HERE.

Podcast feed:

http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/stories-of-king-arthurs-knights-told-to-the-children-by-mary-macgregor.xml

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

Posted by Jesse Willis

LibriVox: Year Of The Big Thaw by Marion Zimmer Bradley

Tuesday, July 7, 2009Sunday, October 4, 2009 Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

From a new collection at LibriVox.org called Young Adult Short Works Collection Vol. 001 comes a short Marion Zimmer Bradley story.

Year Of The Big Thaw
By Marion Zimmer Bradley; Read by Tom Hackett
1 |MP3| – Approx. 15 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: July 5, 2009
In this warm and fanciful story of a Connecticut farmer, Marion Zimmer Bradley has caught some of the glory that is man’s love for man—no matter who he is nor whence he’s from. By heck, you’ll like little Matt. From Fantastic Universe, May 1954.

Also included in Young Adult Short Works Collection Vol. 001 is a humorous tale, Pigs Is Pigs by Ellis Parker Butler. I draw it to your attention primarily because it helped inspire Robert A. Heinlein’s The Rolling Stones (aka Space Family Stone). The Rolling Stones is a novel depicting an industrious family on an interplanetary tour of our solar system. One sequence, the part in which “Pigs Is Pigs” is mentioned, features an cuddly xenomorph called a “Flatcat.” Star Trek‘s David Gerrold later used a similar concept in his creation of the “Tribble.” Pigs Is Pigs is definitely neither Science Fiction or Fantasy, but it is funny. If you’re a bit curious have a listen |MP3|!

Posted by Jesse Willis