Showing results by publisher "A.R.N. Publications" in All Categories

One of Jude Fawley's ambitions in life is a university education, but his dreams come crashing down around him when he is forced into marriage with Arabella. The marriage doesn't last long before his new bride abandons him for a different life. Left with nothing more than his broken dreams, Jude moves to the city of Christminster, where he finds work as a stonemason.

Set in 18th century Philadelphia, the book follows Frank as he amasses a large fortune through stock speculation and purchases of shares in the growing street railway industry. He marries an older woman and has two children and uses his new found wealth to become socially prominent. Things however take a turn for the worst when he has an affair with Aileen Butler, the daughter of a politically prominent Irish industrialist.

Margaret Hale returns home to her family in the rural south of England, after living with a wealthy aunt for 10 years, learning how to become a proper young woman. She is not home for long before her life is uprooted and her family moves to a town called Milton, in Northern England, where her father intends to be a tutor, leaving their Pastoral life, and the Church of England behind.

The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang is the first in a series of fairy tale compilation books. These fairy tales cover a variety of cultures and stories, including several from the Brothers Grimm and Arabian Nights stories. This is a great collection for any listener looking for nearly 40 different stories in one book. Lang includes classic tales such as "Cinderella" and more uncommon adventures, including "The Story of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou".

Though he embodies neither wealth nor a lavish persona, Charles Bovary - a somewhat established doctor - takes a chance in marrying the young, vibrant, and ambitious farm girl Emma Rouault. At first, Emma is delighted to be married and away from her father's farm, but her thirst for the rich and ornate lifestyle that she witnesses other people living soon drives her away from her husband and into the arms of various suitors.

In 1831, the HMS Beagle took sail. Onboard was a young Charles Darwin. He would set out on an adventure that would lead him to question everything about man's place in the world. The Voyage of the Beagle is the journal Darwin kept of his observations of the extraordinary and natural wonders he encountered, from volcanoes to the coral reefs of Australia. It would be these natural wonders that would lead to him questioning how the different species of the world came to be and eventually to his radical theories.

The Jewish rebellion against Rome was a significant turning point in Jewish history. Although Josephus is known for his divided loyalties in the rebellion, his account is the most detailed record available of the Jewish life and revolt under Roman rule. Born in Jerusalem to a father of priestly descent and a mother who claimed royal ancestry, Josephus was a first-century Romano-Jewish scholar, hagiographer, and historian.

Andrew Carnegie immigrated to the United States with his parents as a young child. He began his climb to the top as a modest errand boy and eventually moved into the steel industry. By the time he was an adult, Carnegie was one of the richest men in the country. Known as a generous man, he spent a great deal of his fortune investing in organizations that aimed to advance social progress and improve conditions for people of all classes. Andrew Carnegie was also intensely interested in world peace and the security of democracy.

The Age of Reason is formed of two parts. The first, written in 1793 in France during the revolution, is a criticism of not just the Christian church, although it is primarily focused on Christian theology, but as a rejection of all forms of organized religion, including Judaism and Islam. However, Paine's position is not one of atheism, and he begins the book with a declaration of faith in one god.

As the third book in the series, Anne of the Island by Lucy Maud Montgomery continues to follow the adventures of Anne Shirley. After leaving her teaching career behind in Green Gables, Anne attends Redmond College in Nova Scotia with some of her friends. Anne and her friends spend the first year of school at a boarding house, but they then decide to live together in a quaint little cottage known as Patty's Place. Here Anne pursues her dream of higher education but is interrupted by Gilbert Blythe and his attempts at seeking her hand in marriage.

A classic tale of the journeys and challenges faced by young boys unravels in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The energetic Tom - who lives with his aunt - is frequently made to do things that he simply does not want to do; namely, going to school and to church. His days off are Saturdays, but when he misbehaves, even those are taken away from him by Aunt Polly. Yet after Tom and his friends witness a murder, for whom the wrong person is blamed, his summer of adventures truly begins.

In Politics, Aristotle discusses a variety of different regimes, and methods of community, organizing that would ensure success for the many, providing a convincing argument on the usefulness of Democracy. He also goes into some detail on the structures of different types of governments, including dictatorships, monarchies, and constitutional democracies.

Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows is a delightful children's book that captures the attention of listeners of all ages. Set in England, Grahame brings animals to life for an adventure full of mishaps and lessons. One of the main characters in the story, Mole, befriends the water vole, Rat. Together, they explore the beautiful landscape of England by boat and eventually leading to a visit with Toad.

The timeless tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and his adventures on Christmas Eve continue to teach an important lesson, even to this day. Author Charles Dickens introduces us to the main character by painting him in a negative light, a selfish and miserly old man who will barely pay enough money to keep his office heated. When Scrooge returns home after work, the ghost of his former business partner, Jacob Marley, visits him and tells him that because of the wrongdoing he had done during his life, he has been condemned to walk in his ghost years shackled....

In a series of complicated and complex cycles of births, deaths, marriages, and reunions, Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights encapsulates much of what life was like in 18th-century England for the noble estate owners and members of prestigious social classes. Told through a series of memories from the housekeeper of a nearby manor, the novel details the adoption of Heathcliff, who currently owns the Wuthering Heights manor when the story begins.

Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped tells the story of a young orphaned 17-year old boy named David living in Scotland during the 18th century. While trying to make his way in the world, David moves in to his uncle's estate, where he soon after finds clues that prove that his father, and thus himself, should have been the rightful heir to the estate, rather than his uncle.

Dante's Divine Comedy is a mythical epic poem adventure in which Dante is guided through heaven, purgatory, and hell. Each after-life division is further divided. The sections of heaven are on different planets and stars, the sections of purgatory are divided along the upward journey of a mountain, and the levels of hell are an upside-down funnel composed of seven rings of punishment.

First published in the 19th century, On the Origin of Species is one of the most important and controversial books ever written on human origins. Darwin's work is the cornerstone of the theory of evolution and is as important today as it was when it was released nearly 160 years ago.

Just So Stories is a collection of contemporary children's stories by Rudyard Kipling. Many of the stories are fictitious explanations for natural occurrences, including the stories How the Whale Got His Throat and How the Camel Got His Hump. These stories will keep children entertained for hours.

Published in 1651, Leviathan is considered to be one of the most important works of political philosophy and a major contribution to the modern idea of central government. In the mid-17th century, England was going through a turbulent time of change and unrest, which likely shaped Hobbes' ideas on strong government. Thomas Hobbes established the social contract theory. He believed that self-government did not create the ideal state due to the human tendency to be self-serving, something he believed would eventually lead to chaos.