Audiobooks narrated by David Barnes

The Canterville Ghost (Unabridged) Audiobook

The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde is a humorous short story by Oscar Wilde. It was the first of Wilde's stories to be published, appearing in two parts in The Court and Society Review, 23 February and 2 March 1887. The story is about an American family who moved to a castle haunted by the ghost of a dead English nobleman, who killed his wife and was then walled in and starved to death by his wife's brothers. It has been adapted for the stage and screen several times. Summary: The American Minister to the Court of St James's, Hiram B. Otis and his family move into Canterville Chase, an English country house, despite warnings from Lord Canterville that the house is haunted. Mr. Otis says that he will take the furniture as well as the ghost at valuation. The Otis family includes Mr. and Mrs. Otis, their eldest son Washington, their daughter Virginia and the Otis twins. At first, none of the Otis family believes in ghosts but shortly after they move in, none of them can deny the presence of Sir Simon de Canterville. Mrs. Otis notices a mysterious bloodstain on the floor and comments that 'She does not at all care for bloodstains in the living room', Mrs. Umney, the housekeeper, tells her that the bloodstain is evidence of the ghost and cannot be removed. Washington Otis, the eldest son, suggests that the stain will be removed with Pinkerton's Champion Stain Remover and Paragon Detergent. When the ghost makes his first appearance, Mr. Otis promptly gets out of bed and pragmatically offers the ghost Tammany Rising Sun Lubricator to oil his chains. Angrily, the ghost throws the bottle and runs into the corridor. The Otis twins throw pillows on him and the ghost flees. The Otis family witnesses reappearing bloodstains on the floor just by the fireplace, which are removed every time they appear in various colours. Despite the ghost's efforts and most gruesome guises, the family refuses to be frightened, leaving Sir Simon feeling increasingly helpless and humiliated. The Otises remain unconcerned. The ghost falls victim to tripwires, toy peashooters, butter slides and falling buckets of water. The mischievous twins rig up their own 'ghost', which frightens him. Sir Simon sees that Virginia, the beautiful and wise fifteen-year-old daughter, is different from the rest of the family. He tells her that he has not slept in three hundred years and wants desperately to do so. The ghost tells her the tragic tale of his wife, Lady Eleanor de Canterville.

Oscar Wilde (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Unabridged)

Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson is a 1886 Gothic novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It follows Gabriel John Utterson, a London-based legal practitioner who investigates a series of strange occurrences between his old friend Dr. Henry Jekyll and a murderous criminal named Edward Hyde. Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is one of the most famous pieces of English literature, and is considered to be a defining book of the gothic horror genre. The novella has also had a sizable impact on popular culture, with the phrase 'Jekyll and Hyde' being used in vernacular to refer to people with an outwardly good but sometimes shockingly evil nature. Plot: Gabriel John Utterson and his cousin Richard Enfield reach the door of a large house on their weekly walk. Enfield tells Utterson that months ago, he saw a sinister-looking man named Edward Hyde trample a young girl after accidentally bumping into her. Enfield forced Hyde to pay her family £100 to avoid a scandal. Hyde brought Enfield to this door and gave him a cheque signed by a reputable gentleman later revealed to be Doctor Henry Jekyll, Utterson's friend and client. Utterson fears Hyde is blackmailing Jekyll, as Jekyll recently changed his will to make Hyde the sole beneficiary. When Utterson tries to discuss Hyde with Jekyll, Jekyll tells Utterson he can get rid of Hyde when he wants and asks him to drop the matter. One year later in October, a servant sees Hyde beat Sir Danvers Carew, another one of Utterson's clients, to death and leave behind half a broken cane. The police contact Utterson, who leads officers to Hyde's apartment. Hyde has vanished, but they find the other half of the broken cane. Utterson recognizes the cane as one he had given to Jekyll. Utterson visits Jekyll, who shows Utterson a note, allegedly written to Jekyll by Hyde, apologizing for the trouble that he has caused. However, Hyde's handwriting is similar to Jekyll's own, leading Utterson to conclude that Jekyll forged the note to protect Hyde. For two months, Jekyll reverts to his former sociable manner but, in early January, he starts refusing visitors. Dr. Hastie Lanyon, a mutual friend of Jekyll and Utterson, dies of shock after receiving information relating to Jekyll. Before his death, Lanyon gives Utterson a letter to be opened after Jekyll's death or disappearance. In late February, during another walk with Enfield, Utterson starts a conversation with Jekyll at his laboratory window. Jekyll suddenly slams the window shut and disappears, shocking and concerning Utterson.

Robert Louis Stevenson (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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Jekyll and Hyde

Listen to Jekyll and Hyde with a movie-style soundtrack and amplify your audiobook experience. The story of respectable Dr Jekyll's strange association with 'damnable young man' Edward Hyde; the hunt through fog-bound London for a killer; and the final revelation of Hyde's true identity is a chilling exploration of humanity's basest capacity for evil.

Robert Louis Stevenson (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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The Canterville Ghost

The first thing the American family see when they step into their new British mansion is the bloodstain in the sitting room. As it turns out, they have moved into an already occupied house, and their new roommate is a proud ghost determined to terrify them to death. But things do not go as planned for the poor ghost. The more he tries to scare the Otis family, the more they make fun of and ignore him. Clever from start to finish, Oscar Wilde‘s `The Canterville Ghost‘ (1887) is charming and engaging. It has been adapted to the screen many times, and 1996 saw Patrick Stewart as the ghost Sir Simon de Canterville.

Oscar Wilde (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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The Canterville Ghost

Oscar Wilde (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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The Metamorphosis

As travelling salesman Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect. He was lying on his hard, as it were armor-plated, back and when he lifted his head a little he could see his domelike brown belly divided into stiff arched segments on top of which the bed quilt could hardly stay in place and was about to slide off completely. His numerous legs, which were pitifully thin compared to the rest of his bulk, waved helplessly before his eyes.

Franz Kafka (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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The Canterville Ghost

An amusing chronicle of the tribulations of the Ghost of Canterville Chase when its ancestral halls become the home of Hiram Otis, the American Minister to the Court of St. James. Deftly contrasting the conventional gothic ghost story with the pragmatism of the modern world, Wilde creates a satire of American materialism, a lampoon of traditional British values, and an amusing twist on the traditional gothic horror tale.

Oscar Wilde (Author), David Barnes (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by David Barnes