Showing results by narrator "Glenda Jackson" in Literature & Fiction

First published between 1870 and 1893, Émile Zola’s 20-book cycle chronicling four generations of the Rougon-Macquarts was a shocking exposé of the decadence, degradation and moral decay of 19th-century France. It included some of his greatest novels, among them his masterpiece, Germinal. These innovative, ambitious dramas, first broadcast on Radio 4 over 24 hours in 2015-16, are a radical reimagining of Zola’s classic series, introducing us to 104-year-old matriarch, Dide, imprisoned in an asylum in southern France. 

Here is the quintessence of romance that spans not only the ages but the full range of passionate expression of love in all of its forms and stages. Authors include John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, George Gordon Byron, Baron Byron, William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and William Blake.

After Emily Dickinson's death in 1886, her sister Lavinia discovered 1,775 poems bound and small packets tied with thread. They were first published in 1890, attracting unexpected attention in literary circles. With sparse, precise language, Emily Dickinson conveyed a penetrating vision of the natural world and an acute understanding of the most profound human truths. Her poems have been widely recognized as among the greatest in the English language. 

Jane Austen's rich and charming novel about a virtuous young woman's search for love amidst the fickle world of country gentry in Regency England is one of her most memorable works. Anne Elliot exists in a world where shallowness and hypocrisy present a challenge to her own centered values and tender emotions. Anne vies for the affections of the man she loves while at the same time her willpower is threatened as she battles the conventions of a proper parochial society.

What did it mean to be a woman in the Georgian and Victorian periods? These beloved novels offer three dramatically different, but universally recognisable, experiences. . Whether it is the drama of sisterhood, the trials and tribulations of romantic encounters, or the struggles of being a writer in a male world, each story holds just as much resonance for the female experience as they did on first publication. 

Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly abridged and remastered stories are now available to download. Adored across the world by girls and women of all ages, never once having gone out of print, Little Women is as fresh today as it was when it was first published to instant enormous success. Meet Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy: four sisters growing up in America just after the Civil War. Each has her own dreams, each has her own destiny. Hugely charming and big-hearted, it is read by the inimitable, Academy Award-winning Glenda Jackson.

Acclaimed British actress Glenda Jackson narrates what has been called the most important novel of its era. The character of Emma Bovary, a beautiful young woman longing to escape from her dull husband and the constrictions of bourgeois life in France is one of the most compelling figures in all literature. The story of her adulteries and financial ruin was so shocking to mid-19th-century readers that Flaubert was charged with "offenses against public morals and religion".

Jane Austen's first novel is a timeless story of love and marriage as seen through the eyes of two very different heroines, the Dashwood sisters - cautious, level-headed Elinor and impulsive lively Marianne - one representing sense and the other sensibility. Austen's genius for portraying the social norms of her time, along with vivid characters and her trademark ironic wit, make this novel a classic to be treasured.

Just as the style of a great writer cannot easily be imitated, the performance of a great reader is hard to duplicate. This volume features some of the best readers dramatizing some of the best writings.