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Wrack

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Nördlich von Australien, um 1840. Während einer Reise von Sidney nach Singapur sichtet die Mannschaft des Segelschiffes Betsy Ann auf den Klippen des Great Barrier Reef ein Wrack. Die Bark scheint menschenleer zu sein, doch als einige Männer der Betsy Ann zu dem Wrack hinüberrudern, finden sie dort einen rätselhaften Einsiedler vor. Blutspuren deuten auf einen Kampf an Bord hin, und den Seeleuten wird bald klar, dass hier ein Verbrechen geschehen ist. Aber was genau ist passiert, und welche Rolle spielte dabei dieser schweigsame Mann? Da geschieht plötzlich ein weiteres Unglück… Friedrich Gerstäcker, Sohn eines Opernsängers und einer Schauspielerin in Hamburg, wanderte nach einer landwirtschaftlichen Ausbildung in jungen Jahren nach Amerika aus. Zurück in Deutschland gründete er eine Familie, doch es zog ihn wieder in die Ferne: in Südamerika, als Goldgräber in Kalifornien, auf einem Walfangschiff, in Australien, Java und als Kriegsberichterstatter im Deutsch-Französischen Krieg erlebte er manches Abenteuer, und anders als Karl May konnte er in seinen spannenden Erzählungen seine eigenen Erlebnisse verarbeiten. Er gehört zu den bedeutendsten Vertretern der deutschen Abenteuerliteratur. (Zusammenfassung von Karlsson) [chương_files]

Short Nonfiction Collection Vol. 008

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Essays & Short Works
Chapter: 15 | Listen: 4

A collection of fifteen short nonfiction works in the public domain. The essays, speeches, news items and reports included in this collection were independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, politics, philosophy, nature and religion. [chương_files]

Schwert und die Schlangen

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Action & Adventure Fiction, Fantastic Fiction, Myths, Legends & Fairy Tales
Chapter: 5 | Listen:

Karl Wilhelm Salice-Contessa war ein schlesischer Dichter der Romantik. Er war einer der “Serapionsbrüder” um E. T. A. Hoffmann. Seine Stoffe nahm er oft aus den Sagen des Vorlands des Riesengebirges. Der junge Raimund lebt abgeschieden auf einer Burg im Gebirge. Als eines Tages ein Wanderer in der Burg übernachtet und von dem furchtbaren Schicksal des Königs berichtet, dessen Herz jede Nach von Schlangen benagt wird, sich jeden Tag wieder regeneriert um nachts erneut benagt zu werden, beschließt er, dem König Hilfe und Rettung zu bringen, was keinem Ritter bisher gelungen ist. Auf seiner Fahrt kommt er an seltsame Orte und trifft merkwürdige Wesen. Als er schließlich am Schloss des Königs ankommt, steht ihm ein schwerer Kampf bevor. (Zusammenfassung von Hokuspokus) [chương_files]

Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel

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Action & Adventure, Action & Adventure Fiction
Chapter: 25 | Listen: 8

The Titus Brothers Contractors company have won a government contract in Peru to blast a tunnel through a mountain and connect two isolated railroad lines. The deadline is approaching, and the contractors have hit a literal wall: excessively hard rock which defies conventional blasting techniques. The company is under pressure to finish, or else the contract will default to their rivals, Blakeson & Grinder. Mr. Job Titus has heard of Tom Swift and Tom’s giant cannon, which is used in protecting the Panama Canal, and wants to hire Tom to develop a special blasting powder to help them finish the excavation. Mr. Damon, Tom’s very good friend, arrives in the middle of this conversation, and is unaware of the situation. By coincidence, Mr. Damon is invested in a business which procures cinchona bark from Peru, but production has all but ceased, prompting Mr. Damon to invite Tom to accompany him to Peru and discover the source of the problem. Tom, Mr. Damon and Mr. Titus (along with Koku, Tom’s giant) embark for Peru. On the way, they encounter Professor Swyington Bumper, who is on a life-long quest to locate the lost city of Pelone. Professor Bumper returns to Peru each season, and has thus far been unsuccessful. When Professor Bumper discovers that Tom is headed to the same general area, Rimac, Professor Bumper decides to join the company. (Introduction by Wikipedia) [chương_files]

Of the Injustice of Counterfeiting Books

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Essays & Short Works
Chapter: 1 | Listen: 6

This essay of Kant’s on copyright argues that the unlicensed copying of books cannot possibly be permissible, due to the fact that it assumes a consent on the part of the author which it is logically impossible for the author to give. The argument is dependent upon an assumption that the writings be commodified, for the reason why the author is unable to possibly give consent to multiple publishers is due to the author’s will – to communicate with the public – necessitating the profitability of the publisher, for, it is assumed, there is no way to communicate with the public at large without a great expense which can only be borne by a publishing firm. This is, of course, no longer a necessary assumption. Other arguments here are also of interest: this is a foundational document in claims regarding the moral rights of authors, and Kant’s account of the connection between the communicative intent of the author and the rights resultant is of continuing importance (even though it is not often taken into account in contemporary debates, and has only a tenuous relation to contemporary copyright law); the distinction between works and acts in the “Universal Observation” (the third section of the essay) strikes us as odd today, but is worthy of consideration; his admission of the permissibility of derivative works is striking; and, strangely, the first footnote uses as a reductio ad absurdum an idea of liability which underlies what United States law today calls by the name […]

Short Nonfiction Collection Vol. 001

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Essays & Short Works, Non-fiction
Chapter: 10 | Listen: 3

A collection of ten short essays or other short nonfiction works in the public domain read by LibriVox volunteers. [chương_files]

Royal Book of Oz

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Action & Adventure
Chapter: 24 | Listen: 3

The Royal Book of Oz (1921) is the fifteenth in the series of Oz books, and the first to be written by Ruth Plumly Thompson after L. Frank Baum’s death. Although Baum was credited as the author, it was written entirely by Thompson. The Scarecrow is upset when Professor Wogglebug tells him that he has no family, so he goes to where Dorothy Gale found him to trace his “roots.” Then he vanishes from the face of Oz. Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion mount a search for their friend, but when that is successful, they will need to become a rescue party! [chương_files]

Toby Tyler or Ten Weeks with a Circus

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Action & Adventure, Animals & Nature, Family
Chapter: 20 | Listen: 4

Toby Tyler tells the story of a ten year-old orphan who runs away from a foster home to join the traveling circus only to discover his new employer is a cruel taskmaster. The difference between the romance of the circus from the outside and the reality as seen from the inside is graphically depicted. Toby’s friend, Mr. Stubbs the chimpanzee, reinforces the consequences of what happens when one follows one’s natural instincts rather than one’s intellect and conscience, a central theme of the novel. (Summary from Wikipedia) [chương_files]

Killgloom Park

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Action & Adventure, Religion
Chapter: 17 | Listen: 3

Join Angelo Daily and his chums during a fun filled summer at Killgloom Park, a Coney Island, New York amusement park in the 1930’s. A runaway tiger! Tracking down a wanted thief! Climbing down a ferris wheel in the middle of the night! These are just a few of the exciting things that happen during this adventurous summer! The author grew up in the world of amusement parks, providing first hand material for two of his boys books – “On the Sands of Coney” and its sequel, this title – “Killgloom Park”. (“On the Sands of Coney” is still under copyright, and cannot be recorded, but it is not necessary to be familiar with it to enjoy this book!) The author was a Catholic Jesuit Priest, and in 1926 he was appointed a Scout Chaplain for the Greater New York City Scout Camps. He spent many years involved with the Boy Scouts, and wrote a long list of stories and books, mainly fiction, for and about scouts. (Summary by Maria Therese) [chương_files]

Short Nonfiction Collection Vol. 002

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Essays & Short Works, Non-fiction
Chapter: 10 | Listen: 3

A collection of ten short nonfiction works in the public domain. The essays, speeches and reports included in this collection were independently selected by the readers, and the topics encompass history, politics, religion, science and humor. Included in this collection are the “Oath of Hippocrates” and “The Funeral Oration of Pericles” along with Patrick Henry’s “The Call to Arms,” and Jack London’s eyewitness account of the aftermath of the San Francisco earthquake in 1906. On the lighter side, we have Jerome K. Jerome’s “Should Women Be Beautiful,” a short address by Mark Twain to The Author’s Club in NYC, and the anonymous “Miseries,” a lighthearted lament on subjects such as the difficulties of eating a peach gracefully in public and finding a suitable length of twine when you need one. In this collection you will also find “A Free Man’s Worship” by Bertram Russell, “Obstacle-Cause” from “Sophisms of the Protectionists” by Frédéric Bastiat, and an essay by T. H. Huxley on the science of palaeontology. (summary by J. M. Smallheer) [chương_files]