Tragedy of Mariam
The Tragedy of Mariam (1613) is the first original drama written in English by a woman. Elizabeth Cary drew on Jewish histories by Josephus to create a closet drama (written to be read, rather than performed live) about Mariam, the second wife of Herod the Great. At the beginning of the play, Mariam believes that Herod has been killed by Octavius, and struggles with how to respond. On the one hand, she is relieved, as she is angry with Herod for killing her brother and grandfather. On the other, she knows that he loved her, and she feels caught by her sense of duty as his wife. When Herod unexpectedly returns, Mariam must decide what to do.
Mistakes of Moses
Robert G. Ingersoll was an extremely popular humanist orator in the late nineteenth century, and he wrote Mistakes of Moses after many bootlegged versions of his speeches had been published and circulated. In Mistakes of Moses, through a close, literal reading of the Pentateuch, he challenges biblical stories using science, logic and morality.
Revolted Woman
One man's opinion of woman in 1894. Charles Harper believes in the superiority of the male sex and the subordination of the female. He paints an entire gender with the same brush. He believes all women to be identical in mind (illogical) and body (knock-kneed) and vastly inferior to the male. He presents 'facts' to support his opinions:
"Woman's Mission is Submission"
"for woman has ever been the immoral sex"
"how truly like nature their tongues say 'No,' when their hearts throb 'Yes, yes!'"
"She will have to develop very greatly before she becomes the equal of man, either in mind or muscle"
"Woman is altogether different from and inferior to man: narrow-...
Grandma Knight's Tales
Grandma Knight's Tales* includes stories that provide entertainment and, hopefully, some moral learning to small listeners. A special dedication goes out to the narrators own grandchildren, by whom this book was inspired. "Merry Christmas to my Bucket, Stuff, Jo-Jo, Buster Brown Eyes, and little Curly...grandma loves you! And a very Merry Christmas to children all over the world! Enjoy!" (Deborah Knight, December 2013) Created to inspire an early love for reading, writing, and literary works it includes the following stories... 1.) Briar Rose 2.) Grandmother 3.) Tiny or Thumbelina 4.) The Old Man and his Grandson 5.) She Was Good for Nothing 6.) The Emperor's New Suit 7.) Jack and the Be...
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels - St. Luke Vol. 2
“Expository Thoughts” divides the Gospels into sections of about twelve verses each, from which J. C. Ryle selects two or three prominent points to dwell on and bring to the reader’s attention. In Ryle’s day, there were many detailed commentaries and expositions on scripture. In writing these “Expository Thoughts”, Ryle aimed to offer a resource to the laity for use in family prayers, as an aid to those who visit the sick and desire a proper book to read on such occasions, and for private devotions for those whose callings and engagements make it impossible for them to read large commentaries. This is the second of two volumes on St. Luke. As with the previous volumes on the Gospels of S...
Short Poetry Collection 126
This is a collection of 20 poems read by LibriVox volunteers for November 2013.
Nothing But the Truth
A young man, finding himself unexpectedly impecunious, attempts to improve his fortunes by wagering that he can speak nothing but the absolute truth for three weeks. He soon learns, however, that telling only the unvarnished truth can have surprising consequences. This 1914 novel of love, mystery, and misunderstandings, with amusing characters and plot twists, was adapted as a Broadway play in 1916, followed by six motion pictures: in 1920 and 1929; in 1931 separately in Spanish, French and German; and in 1941 starring Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard. Frederic S. Isham was a writer of short stories, novels and plays. (Lee Smalley)

Love Insurance
A young man came to Lloyds of London. He knew they took out policies on unusual risks... And what he wanted was love insurance. What follows is a comic novel, by the creator of the Chinese detective - Charlie Chan!
Better Far to Pass Away

At this time of year, we dedicate the Fortnightly Poetry project to the fallen in war. This poem, written at a time when the average life expectancy of an officer at the front was a mere six weeks, vividly demonstrates a young officer's expectation and acceptance of his own death.
Book of Cats
One day, ever so long ago, it struck me that I should like to try and write a book about Cats. I mentioned the idea to some of my friends: the first burst out laughing at the end of my opening sentence, so I refrained from entering into further details. The second said there were a hundred books about Cats already. The third said, “Nobody would read it,” and added, “Besides, what do you know of the subject?” and before I had time to begin to tell him, said he expected it was very little. “Why not Dogs?” asked one friend of mine, hitting upon the notion as though by inspiration. “Or Horses,” said some one else; “or Pigs; or, look here, this is the finest notion of all:—



‘THE BO...