The Old Curiosity Shop; Hard Times; A Tale of Two Cities; Oliver Twist; The Pickwick Papers. Have you read any or all of these famous Dickens stories? The author of this marvelous book, Rives Ermine, a highly successful author in her own right, simply wanted to retell the basic elements of some of Dickens best beloved novels and story lines. Now is your chance to revisit these stories and revive the memories of great reads. Of it you haven't gotten around to some of these classics, this would be a marvelous chance to listen to what they are about so you can enjoy them even more in the original later...

In every country there have been certain men and women whose busy lives have made the world better or wiser. The names of such are heard so often that every child should know a few facts about them. It is hoped the very short stories told here may make boys and girls eager to learn more about these famous people. (from the Forward of the text)

In the previous book of adventures, we met Jimmie Dale, a wealthy playboy by day, who at night put on a disguise and became The Gray Seal, a daredevil entering businesses or homes and cracking safes, always leaving a diamond shaped, gray paper "seal" behind to mark his conquest. He never took anything, but just wanted the thrill of it. This had spun out of control when a mysterious woman, whom Jimmie Dale nicknames The Tocsin, caught him at it and blackmailed him into doing her bidding. On her instigation, he got involved in numerous underworld crimes, righting wrongs and protecting innocent bystanders...

English village life and villagers in the east of England in the late 1700’s and early 1800s—is the subject of The Borough. George Crabbe was an English poet, surgeon, and clergyman. He is best known for his early use of the realistic narrative form and his descriptions of middle and working-class life and people. Lord Byron, an avowed admirer of Crabbe's poetry, described him as "nature's sternest painter, yet the best." Crabbe's poetry was predominantly in the form of heroic couplets, and has been described as unsentimental in its depiction of provincial life and society...