Historical Audiobooks

Ivy Takes Care

After her best friend, Annie, leaves for a fancy camp in New Hampshire, Ivy can't imagine how she's going to endure the long, hot Nevada summer with no one around but that pain-in-the-neck Billy Joe Butterworth next door and all those melancholy visitors to the Red Star Guest Ranch. Happily, an answer comes to Ivy in a flash of honey-colored topaz, and she cleverly hires herself out to take care of people's farm animals or pets while they're away. So begins a summer of discovery for tender- hearted but sensible Ivy, who must win over the stubborn pony Chestnut, take on the challenge of training a puppy named Inca, and patiently court the trust of the magnificent but scarred racehorse Andromeda. All this while tending to her own private hurts and hopes and managing the hapless tagalong Billy Joe, who has a knack for trouble and accidents like nobody else! Celebrated writer Rosemary Wells delivers a compassionately observed and exquisitely distilled novel set in the midcentury Southwest about a young heroine with an exceptional gift, a heart of gold, and a budding dream for her future.

Rosemary Wells (Author), Emily Beresford (Narrator)

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The Bloody Country

Fifteen-year-old Ben Buck and his family spent four years clearing the wilderness to build a new home in Pennsylvania. They fought the Indians and the British, and made sacrifices most people wouldn't have been strong enough to make. All so they could be independent and free. Now someone's trying to take everything away from them...their land, their home, even Ben's best friend, Joe. But the Bucks won't give up without a fight, and Ben knows his family will have to win a war to stay free. But what he doesn't know is that wars sometimes last a very long time. And even if you win in the end, you can lose almost everything along the way.

Christopher Collier, James Lincoln Collier (Author), Charlie Thurston (Narrator)

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Jump Ship to Freedom: A Novel

Young Daniel Arabus and his mother are slaves in the house of Captain Ivers of Stratford, Connecticut. By law they should be free, since Daniel's father fought in the Revolutionary army and earned enough in soldiers' notes to buy his family's freedom. But now Daniel's father is dead, and Mrs. Ivers has taken the notes from his mother. When Daniel bravely steals the notes back, a furious Captain Ivers forces him aboard a ship bound for the West Indies--and certain slavery. Even if Daniel can manage to jump ship in New York, will he be able to travel the long and dangerous road to freedom?

Christopher Collier, James Lincoln Collier (Author), Sean Crisden (Narrator)

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The Worst of Times: A Story of the Great Depression

When the Depression strikes America, throwing millions out of work, Petey Williamson’s family seems safe. Hadn’t the boss promised Petey’s father that he’d always have a job? But during the Depression, promises cannot always be kept, and Petey finds his family sliding rapidly into poverty. And when Petey’s much-admired cousin Steve starts working as a union organizer in the battle to improve conditions for workers, poverty turns into tragedy. “Collier tugs at readers’ heartstrings.”—School Library Journal

James Lincoln Collier (Author), Charles Carroll (Narrator)

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Rose of No Man's Land

Rosie is in trouble at school again, just because she struggles with reading. When she picks up an old watch in an antique shop, it transports her to a World War I Red Cross hospital. As a nurse Rosie listens to the men's' stories and meets Edith Cavell - who helps soldiers to escape from the Germans. When Rosie learns of Edith Cavell's arrest, she has to make a tricky decision.

Anne Perry (Author), Julia Barrie (Narrator)

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Infinity Ring #3: The Trap Door

Dak, Sera, and Riq return to the United States in the year 1850 when the nation is divided over the issue of slavery. The Underground Railroad provides a light of hope, helping runaway slaves escape to freedom. But the SQ has taken control of the Underground Railroad from within. Now Dak and Sera are left wondering who to trust...

Lisa McMann (Author), Dion Graham (Narrator)

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The Jazz Kid

Paulie Horvath is never going to be a good student like his brother, John, never going to follow his hardworking father into the plumbing trade, never going to ease his mother's mind by passing tests or cleaning up his room. But once he hears jazz by accident from the basement of a speakeasy, he knows exactly what he will do: learn that music and make it his life. Jazz is all around in gangland Chicago, but not so easy for a twelve-year-old to find, especially when his father disapproves of it. Paulie has to lie, beg, and steal just to get time for lessons, time to practice, time to slip across town to see stars like King Oliver and Louis Armstrong. Lies last only so long until they are found out, and a confrontation is coming. Will he choose home and family or sleazy dives with that wonderful music? To decide, Paulie has to face an even tougher question. What id jazz, after all? Author James Lincoln Collier has played and studied jazz throughout his life. Here is a novel that shows us a great moment in the history of jazz, and points at issues that still trouble us today.

James Lincoln Collier (Author), August Ross (Narrator)

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The Adventures of Sir Lancelot the Great

Many years ago, the storytellers say, the great King Arthur brought justice to England with the help of his gallant Knights of the Round Table. Sir Lancelot the Great Of these worthy knights, there was never one so fearless, so chivalrous, so honorable, so . . . shiny as the dashing Sir Lancelot, who was quite good at defending the helpless and protecting the weak, just as long as he'd had his afternoon nap. Behold the very exciting and very funny adventures of Lancelot the Great, as only the acclaimed Arthurian author Gerald Morris can tell them.

Gerald Morris (Author), Steve West (Narrator)

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The Adventures of Sir Givret the Short

Many years ago, the storytellers say, the great King Arthur brought justice to England with the help of his gallant Knights of the Round Table. There was Sir Lancelot the Great, Sir Kay the Loyal, Sir Bedivere the Just, and others, including young Givret, who was known for being . . . well, short. Poor Givret: his size makes him so easy to overlook. But there's more to knighthood than height, and before long, Givret's quick thinking lands him a place at the famous Round Table! As everyone knows, a new knight of any size must prove himself with a quest-even if he privately thinks his quest is silly. And so beginneth the exciting and comical adventures of Sir Givret the Short, the Brilliant, and the Marvelous, as only the acclaimed Arthurian author Gerald Morris can tell them.

Gerald Morris (Author), Steve West (Narrator)

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The Adventures of Sir Gawain the True

Many years ago, the storytellers say, the great King Arthur brought justice to England with the help of his gallant Knights of the Round Table. King Arthur's Knights were brave like Sir Lancelot the Great. They were smart like Sir Givret the Short. But they didn't always act quite as . . . gallantly as a true knight should. Even King Arthur's nephew, known at that time as Sir Gawain the Undefeated, was too full of himself to accept a token of thanks from a rescued princess! Someone, like a giant Green Knight, needed to teach Sir Gawain that courtesy and friendship are just as important as strength and courage. Come ride along on this exciting yearlong quest of Sir Gawain the Undefeated-but-who-may-learn-a-lesson-along-the-way, as only the acclaimed Arthurian author Gerald Morris can tell it.

Gerald Morris (Author), Steve West (Narrator)

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The Adventures of Sir Balin the Ill-Fated

Many years ago, the storytellers say, the great King Arthur brought justice to England with the help of his gallant Knights of the Round Table. Sir Balin the Ill-Fated Which makes destiny a splendid thing for King Arthur and his noble knights, but what about a knight who is destined to bring disaster to everything he touches? Such a knight is poor Sir Balin, who bears the burden of a childhood prophecy of doom. And sure enough, whenever he's around, things seem to go sour. Whether he's battling an invisible knight or accidentally overthrowing kingdoms, Sir Balin does his best but always expects the worst. Will Sir Balin finally discover his true destiny? And which ill-fated path will he choose? Join him in this latest gallant adventure from the acclaimed Arthurian author Gerald Morris.

Gerald Morris (Author), Steve West (Narrator)

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Navigating Early

At the end of World War II, Jack Baker, a landlocked Kansas boy, is suddenly uprooted after his mother's death and placed in a boy's boarding school in Maine. There, Jack encounters Early Auden, the strangest of boys, who reads the number pi as a story and collects clippings about the sightings of a great black bear in the nearby mountains. Newcomer Jack feels lost yet can't help being drawn to Early, who won't believe what everyone accepts to be the truth about the Great Appalachian Bear, Timber Rattlesnakes, and the legendary school hero known as The Fish, who never returned from the war. When the boys find themselves unexpectedly alone at school, they embark on a quest on the Appalachian Trail in search of the great black bear. But what they are searching for is sometimes different from what they find. They will meet truly strange characters, each of whom figures into the pi story Early weaves as they travel, while discovering things they never realized about themselves and others in their lives. Starred Review, Publishers Weekly, November 19, 2012: "This multilayered, intricately plotted story has a kaleidoscopic effect, blurring the lines between reality and imagination, coincidence and fate." Starred Review, Booklist, December 15, 2012: "Newbery Medal-winning author Vanderpool's sharp, honest narrative, sparkling with the stars of the night sky, pieces together an elaborate, layered plot with precision, weaving multiple threads into a careful, tidy conclusion perfectly suited for those, like Jack and Early, who want to believe."

Clare Vanderpool (Author), Cassandra Campbell, Mark Bramhall, Robbie Daymond (Narrator)

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