Audiobooks narrated by Lars Rolander

Othello by William Shakespeare - (full title: The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice) is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603. The story revolves around two characters, Othello and Iago. Othello is a Moorish military commander who was serving as a general of the Venetian army in defence of Cyprus against invasion by Ottoman Turks. He has recently married Desdemona, a beautiful and wealthy Venetian lady younger than himself, without the knowledge of and despite the later objection of her father. Iago is Othello's malevolent ensign, who maliciously stokes his master's jealousy until the usually stoic Moor kills his beloved wife in a fit of blind rage. Due to its enduring themes of passion, jealousy, and race, Othello is still topical and popular and is widely performed, with numerous adaptations. Plot Roderigo, a wealthy and dissolute gentleman, complains to his friend Iago, an ensign, that Iago has not told him about the recent secret marriage between Desdemona, the daughter of Brabantio, a senator, and Othello, a Moorish general in the Venetian army. Roderigo is upset because he loves Desdemona and had asked her father, Brabantio, for her hand in marriage, which Brabantio denied him. Iago hates Othello for promoting an aristocrat named Cassio above him, whom Iago considers a less capable soldier than himself. Iago tells Roderigo that he plans to exploit Othello for his own advantage and convinces Roderigo to wake Brabantio and tell him about his daughter's elopement. Meanwhile, Iago sneaks away to find Othello and warns him that Brabantio is coming for him. Brabantio, provoked by Roderigo, is enraged and seeks to confront Othello, but he finds Othello accompanied by the Duke of Venice's guards, who prevent violence. News has arrived in Venice that the Turks are going to attack Cyprus, and Othello is therefore summoned to advise the senators. Brabantio has no option but to accompany Othello to the Duke's residence, where he accuses Othello of seducing Desdemona by witchcraft. Othello defends himself before the Duke of Venice, Brabantio's kinsmen Lodovico and Gratiano, and various senators. Othello explains that, while he was invited to Brabantio's home, Desdemona became enamoured of him for the sad and compelling stories he told of his life before Venice, not because of any witchcraft. The senate is satisfied once Desdemona confirms that she loves Othello, but Brabantio leaves, saying that Desdemona will betray Othello: 'Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see.

William Shakespeare (Author), Bruce Pirie, David Lawrence, Denny Sayers, Filippo Gioachin, Lars Rolander, Lucy Perry, Mark F. Smith, Robert Keiper (Narrator)

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Antigone (Unabridged)

Antigone by Sophocles Audiobook is an Athenian tragedy written by Sophocles in (or before) 441 BC and first performed at the Festival of Dionysus of the same year. It is thought to be the second oldest surviving play of Sophocles, preceded by Ajax, which was written around the same period. The play is one of a triad of tragedies known as the three Theban plays, following Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus. Even though the events in Antigone occur last in the order of events depicted in the plays, Sophocles wrote Antigone first. The story expands on the Theban legend that predates it, and it picks up where Aeschylus' Seven Against Thebes ends. The play is named after the main protagonist Antigone. Synopsis: Prior to the beginning of the play, the brothers Eteocles and Polynices, leading opposite sides in Thebes' civil war, died fighting each other for the throne. Creon, the new ruler of Thebes and brother of the former Queen Jocasta, has decided that Eteocles will be honored and Polynices will be in public shame. The rebel brother's body will not be sanctified by holy rites and will lie unburied on the battlefield, prey for carrion animals,[a] the harshest punishment at the time. Antigone and Ismene are the sisters of the dead Polynices and Eteocles. In the opening of the play, Antigone brings Ismene outside the palace gates late at night for a secret meeting: Antigone wants to bury Polynices' body, in defiance of Creon's edict. Ismene refuses to help her, not believing that it will actually be possible to bury their brother, who is under guard, but she is unable to stop Antigone from going to bury her brother herself.

Sophocles (Author), Algy Pug, Arielle Lipshaw, Bruce Pirie, David Goldfarb, David Lawrence, Elizabeth Klett, Lars Rolander, Lucy Perry, Martin Geeson (Narrator)

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The Tragedy of the Korosko

Written in 1898, Arthur Conan Doyle's classic tale of high adventure portrays an alarmist era of imperial sovereignty, invasive foreign policy, and religious extremism, positing the naivety of a group of Anglo-American holiday-makers against the unbending convictions of Middle Eastern banditti. Among others, a young American ingenue, her matronly aunt, a fusty old bachelor, a loving Irish couple, and an opinionated French graduate gather aboard the Korosko. But during a morning tour of the desert, they are taken hostage by a group whose intention it is either to convert them to Islam or to kill them. Conan Doyle brings his mastery of thrills and suspense to bear on this extraordinary tale of East meets West. Scottish-born writer and novelist Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is best remembered as the creator of the immortal detective Sherlock Holmes

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Author), Lars Rolander (Narrator)

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The Ultimate Allan Quatermain Collection: 8 Novels, 4 Short Stories & 1 Extracanonical Work

The Ultimate Allan Quatermain Collection includes the 8 full-length novels, 4 short stories and 1 extracanonical work featuring Allan Quatermain. The character Allan Quatermain is an English-born professional big game hunter and occasional trader living in South Africa. An outdoorsman who finds English cities and climate unbearable, he prefers to spend most of his life in Africa, where he grew up under the care of his widower father, a Christian missionary. In the earliest-written novels, native Africans refer to Quatermain as Macumazahn, meaning Watcher-by-Night, a reference to his nocturnal habits and keen instincts. In later-written novels, Macumazahn is said to be a short form of Macumazana, meaning One who stands out. Quatermain is frequently accompanied by his native servant, the Hottentot Hans, a wise and caring family retainer from his youth. His sarcastic comments offer a sharp critique of European conventions. In his final adventures, Quatermain is joined by two British companions, Sir Henry Curtis and Captain John Good of the Royal Navy, and by his African friend Umslopogaas. Included in this collection: 1. King Solomon's Mines (1885) 2. Allan Quatermain (1887) 3. Allan's Wife and Other Tales (1887): Allan's Wife / Hunter Quatermain's Story / A Tale of Three Lions / Long Odds 4. Marie (1912) 5. Child of Storm (1913) 6. Allan and the Holy Flower (1915) 7. The Ivory Child (1916) 8. The Ancient Allan (1920) 9. She and Allan (1920) 10. Extracanonical Work: Magepa the Buck (1912)

H. Rider Haggard (Author), Elsie Selwyn, Gregg Margarite, John Nicholson, Keith Salis, Kristine Bekere, Lars Rolander, Peter John Keeble, Sean Mckinley (Narrator)

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The Emperor of Portugallia

'The Emperor of Portugallia' by Selma Lagerlof was first published in 1914 in Sweden and in 1916 in English. The story is set in Vaermland around 1860 or 1870 and centers on Jan of Ruffluck Croft. He loves his daughter more than anything, but when the latter moves to Stockholm, she never sends a word home. As a result, Jan sinks into a dream-world where she is the noble Empress of Portugallia and he believes himself to be Emperor too. His whole world and all his thoughts are dominated by the thoughts of her return and what will happen then. In the role of Emperor in the poor forest country where he lives, he can question the social hierarchies around him, and dressed in his Royal regalia he sits on the front bench in Church, and takes the place of honour at Parties etc. After 15 years his daughter returns home and is shocked to see what a mad clown her father has become.

Selma Lagerlöf (Author), Lars Rolander (Narrator)

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Liliecrona's Home

At the bottom of the dried out Svartsjö lake (Black Lake) lies the Lövdala Parsonage with its stables and outhouses. There resides the good-hearted, widowed Pastor Lyselius and his beautiful daughter. One day, his new wife arrives and she turns out to be a wicked stepmother. She torments her servants and especially the parson's daughter, Maia Lisa. We follow Maia Lisa through torments and sufferings where she gets ever new and harder burdens to carry on her weak shoulders. But by her side through it all is clear-eyed Little Maid, who is never afraid to say what she thinks. It is hard to see her stepmother take control Lövdala and to see her father's his nice personality vanish as he becomes a marionette in his new wife's hands. 'Liliecrona's Home' was first published in Sweden in 1911 and was translated to English by Anna Barwell in 1913.

Selma Lagerlöf (Author), Lars Rolander (Narrator)

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Herr Arne's Hoard

'Herr Arne's Hoard' is a 1904 novel by the Swedish writer Selma Lagerlöf. Its original Swedish title is 'Herr Arnes penningar,' which means 'Sir Arne's money'. Set in Bohuslän in the 16th century, it tells the story of a group of Scottish mercenaries who escape from prison. The group then murders a family in order to steal a treasure chest, but one of them falls in love with the family's sole survivor. The novel has been adapted for film three times: by Mauritz Stiller in 1919 as 'Sir Arne's Treasure,' by Gustaf Molander in 1954 as 'Herr Arnes penningar,' and as 'Poklad pana Arna' in a 1967 Czechoslovak animated short film by Václav Bedřich.

Selma Lagerlöf (Author), Lars Rolander (Narrator)

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The Wonderful Adventures of Nils

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils (orig. Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige; literally Nils Holgersson's wonderful journey across Sweden) is a work of fiction by the Swedish writer Selma Lagerlöf, the first women to receive Nobel Prize in literature to make the study Sweden geography fun for children. It was originally published in two books, 1906 and 1907, and was first published in English as The Wonderful Adventures of Nils in 1907 and Further Adventures of Nils in 1911. The two parts are usually published together, in English as The Wonderful Adventures of Nils, but that name may also refer to the first part alone. Selma Lagerlöf, like many leading Swedish intellectuals of her time, was an advocate of Swedish spelling reform. When published in 1906, this book was one of the first to adopt the new spelling mandated by a government resolution on April 7, 1906.

Selma Lagerlöf (Author), Lars Rolander (Narrator)

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The Cherry Orchard

The Cherry Orchard is Russian playwright Anton Chekhov's last play. It premiered at the Moscow Art Theatre 17 January 1904 in a production directed by Constantin Stanislavski. Chekhov intended this play as a comedy and it does contain some elements of farce; however, Stanislavski insisted on directing the play as a tragedy. Since this initial production, directors have had to contend with the dual nature of this play. The play concerns an aristocratic Russian woman and her family as they return to the family's estate (which includes a large and well-known cherry orchard) just before it is auctioned to pay the mortgage. The story presents themes of cultural futility — both the futility of the aristocracy to maintain its status and the futility of the bourgeoisie to find meaning in its new-found materialism. In reflecting the socio-economic forces at work in Russia at the turn of the 20th century, including the rise of the middle class after the abolition of serfdom in the mid-19th century and the sinking of the aristocracy, the play reflects forces at work around the globe in that period.

Anton Chekhov (Author), Andy Minter, Anna Simon, Arielle Lipshaw, David Lawrence, Denny Sayers, Elizabeth Klett, Kim Stich, Lars Rolander, Ruth Golding (Narrator)

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Korpen

Edgar Allan Poe (Author), Lars Rolander (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Lars Rolander