Showing results by author "Os Swift" in All Categories

The Ultimate Classics Collection: Volume Three is the third instalment of our wide-ranging classic collections. Volume Three features 10 essential works that reach further back into early Greek and Italian stories from Dante, Machiavelli, and Homer, as-well as comparatively modern works from Daniel Defoe, Henry David Thoreau, and others. Read by a cast of incredible narrators including David Rintoul; Daniel Weyman; Rachel Atkins; and more, this is a chance to expand your listening by going back to some of the earliest pieces of classic literature.

A small force of peasants from the forest regions surrounding Lake Lucerne, rise up against their Austrian overlords in the 14th century. Outnumbered seven-to-one by the battle-hardened Habsburg army, they have little hope. A daring moonlight raid leaves the outlaw Noll Melchthal in possession of an Austrian fortress. In the north, an outraged Leopold of Habsburg assembles the ultimate punitive force: a great army, thousands strong, boasting the best knights and soldiers the Holy Roman Empire has to offer.

The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter & Miracles (2005, updated for 10th anniversary in 2015) by cell biologist Bruce Lipton explores the power of the mind to influence health and well being. The Biology of Belief provides scientific proof that debunks the notion of fixed genetic inheritance, or that genes create reality. Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more.

Set and written in 1726, This is a marvelously imaginative tale of the four voyages of Lemuel Gulliver. He finds himself shipwrecked and the prisoner of captors ranging in size from 6 inches tall to 60 feet tall and of various other persuasions. But this is just the beginning of a story written, strangely enough to satirize the foolishness and vices of modern men as they were perceived at the time. No one, young or old, can ever forget the Lilliputians and the Yahoos that starred in these wonderful and riveting stories of long ago.

This is a summary of The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century (2005), in which Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Thomas L. Friedman explains how globalization and improvements in technology have facilitated an economic environment where anyone, no matter where they are from, can excel. The title refers to the idea that the world has been “flattened” now that companies, entrepreneurs, and workers can collaborate and compete with one another on a global scale....

This classic book of English literature is an insightful satire on human nature, probing the corruption of man. It's also a parody on traveller's tales, as Jonathan Swift chronicles the voyages to Lilliput, Brobingnag, and other fantastical destinations in this powerful 18th-century masterpiece. Simon Cadell reads with a sure touch and great understanding of his subject.

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones (2018) by James Clear is a self-help book designed to drive behavior change over the long term. Built on the notion that small changes can spark powerful transformations, this practical volume explains what motivates human behavior with the goal of showing people how to improve their lives.... Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more.

On a June night, Paula, a successful art dealer, lies awake. Mike, her husband of 25 years, is asleep beside her. In nearby rooms, their twin teenage children, Nick and Kate, sleep, too. The next day, Paula knows, will define all their lives. As dawn approaches, Paula recalls the years before and after her children were born. Her story is both a celebration of love possessed and a moving acknowledgement of the fear of loss, of the fragility on which even our most inward sense of who we are can rest.

Never Eat Alone (first published in 2005, and updated in 2014) by Keith Ferrazzi and Tahl Raz is a how-to guide to networking. Networking is frequently cast as selfish or shallow....

On her 20th birthday, Mary Hepburn - daughter of the local magistrate - learns that she is to marry John Aitken, a much older man. Unhappy with this, Mary walks to the local moor to clear her mind. Instead, she meets and falls in love with the handsome Captain Ferintosh, when he saves her from whiskey smugglers. The situation gets even more complicated when Mary's father arrests Ferintosh.

What Color Is Your Parachute? A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers (1970) guides job-seekers through the process of finding fulfilling careers that utilize their individual talents and skills. First published in 1970, the book has been updated annually since 1985... Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more. (Disclaimer: This is NOT the original book. If you’re looking for the original book, it is available from Amazon and Audible.)

Swift's allegorical satire about religion and politics follows the lives of three brothers, Martin, Peter, and Jack, each of who represents a faction of the Christian faith - Anglicanism, Roman Catholicism, and the dissenting faiths, respectively. Each brother inherits a coat (representing religious practice) from their father (God) on the condition that they do not change it. But instead the three quarrelsome youths disobey their father and change their coats beyond recognition.

New Amerland was designed and built by survivors of the Incident. Those were the people who, by some miracle, managed to get underground before the bombs fell; they managed to lock away themselves and their families and to survive the worst nuclear attack in history. A lucky few would be selected by lottery and handed a ticket for free. At least 50 percent failed the test and were fated to die on their desolate and degraded planet.

Deb Willet takes a position as companion to Elisabeth Pepys, Samuel's wife. Deb believes it will give her the respectability she craves, but it proves far more complicated than she could ever have imagined. Samuel Pepys' influence in Restoration London means that the Dutch are keen to get their hands on his secrets, even if that means murder. Deb is soon caught up in a dangerous game, while at the same time trying to counter Mr Pepys' lust for her....

You don’t need to buy hundreds of hard-to-find herbs to start your journey with herbal medicine. Herbal Medicine for Beginners shows you how to use a few important herbs to promote the body’s ability to fight infection and heal naturally. Herbal Medicine for Beginners shows herbalists-in-training how to use a limited number of versatile, medicinal herbs to craft herbal remedies for common ailments. From allergies to fevers to headaches, beginners will gain the essential knowledge they need to blossom into natural healers and practice herbal medicine.

Fuzzy and Coco are online again, and they've found the luxury guinea pig hotel of their dreams! But at Furry Towers the squeaky pals find themselves in a smelly old hutch with only soggy lettuce to nibble. And with Nasty Nigel the horrible human in charge, it seems something sinister is going on.... Luckily, they've got help from old friends and new: Heroic Eduardo, Soldier Pat, and Lazy Lulu. Armed with soap bubbles and a tank full of poo, can the guinea pigs save the day again?

Fuzzy and Coco are guinea pigs who live with their kindly owners, Ben and Henrietta Bliss. Coco likes to spend her days pampering herself and listening to harp concertos. Fuzzy is much more down to earth - he is a passionate cook who wants nothing more than to learn to make delicious meals for Ben and Henrietta. So when Fuzzy spots an ad run by glamorous local chef Scarlet Cleaver stating 'Guinea Pigs Wanted', he is enormously excited - what a chance to learn some cooking skills!

Meet Dr Shah, who has never been to India, and Mrs Kaminski, on her way to Poland via A&E. Meet Holly and Polly, who have come to their own Anglo-Irish understanding. Charlie and Don, who have seen the docks turn into Docklands. Daisy Baker, terrified of Yorkshire and Johnny Dewhurst, stranded on Exmoor. Binding these stories together is Graham Swift's affectionate but unflinching instinct for the story of us all.

Here, in this unusual collection, are some of the greatest essays in Western literature. Witty, informative and imaginative, the topics vary from starvation in Ireland, fine China, the extension of railways in the Lake District, and the tombs in Westminster Abbey. A little like after-dinner monologues, they are passing thoughts expressed as journalism. Neville Jason reads with urbane clarity.

1940, Jersey. When Nazi forces occupy Jersey in the English Channel Islands, Céline Huber, who is married to a German, must decide where her loyalty lies. Love for her island and fear for her Jewish friend Rachel soon propel her into a dangerous double life. Meanwhile, Céline’s husband Fred is conscripted into the Wehrmacht in occupied France. Horrified by Nazi acts of atrocity and torture, he soon becomes a double agent for the French Resistance.