Narrated Archives
Narrated Archives explores the extensive public domain library to offer listeners both enduring classics and forgotten tales. The content spans genres including adventure, mystery, horror, love, and the human spirit, all waiting to be rediscovered.
With each episode a brief biography of the author(s) introduces the episode.
Episodes
28 episodes
More from Rootabaga Country
In the bonus episode of Narrated Archives we’re stepping further into a world that feels like a fantasy in Rootabaga Country.In 1922, the legendary American poet Carl Sandburg decided that American children didn’t need any...
Subscriber Episode
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Episode 25
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9:27
Tales from Rootabaga Country
In this episode we’re celebrating the pure, nonsensical joy of Carl Sanburg’s Rootabaga Stories and Rootabaga Pigeons. Know for his monumental 6 volume biography of Abraham Lincoln, Sandburg also wrote poetry and children's fairy tales...
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Episode 25
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37:29
Which Was the Murderer
In this bonus episode we’re looking at a moral and legal puzzle by the Scottish-Canadian master of irony, Robert Barr. We’ve heard from Mr. Barr in the episode “The Doom of London”. First published in his 1896 colle...
Subscriber Episode
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Episode 24
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15:20
The Doom of London
In this episode we’re unearthing a chillingly prescient piece of Victorian science fiction by Robert Barr that feels all too modern.In 1892, Robert Barr—a writer who influenced the likes of Agatha Christie—penned a pioneering h...
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Episode 24
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35:47
Four Observations of Stephen Crane
In this episode of Narrated Archives we step into the brief, blazing life of Stephen Crane, author of The Red Badge of Courage. In the four stories presented, Stephen Crane captures the intersection of quiet huma...
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Episode 23
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32:27
Stories from The Black Cat
In this episode are 2 stories froma collection all written by H. D Umbstaetter, entitled “The Red Hot Dollar and Other Stories from The Black Cat”. Also included is the Introduction to the collection written by Jack London...
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Episode 22
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31:08
Sixty Years in Southern California
This week we’re listening to a sample from Harris Newmark’s memoir, “Sixty Years in Southern California".We’ll be listening to the first 2 chapters in which Newmark recounts his upbringing and how he ended up traveling to Calif...
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Episode 21
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35:03
Some Remarks from Bill Nye
In this episode we’re meeting the 19th century humorist, journalist and author known for his witty satirical columns and depictions of western life.Mush and Melody has Mr. Nye attempting to provide a grand solution for a n...
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Episode 20
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29:54
Kate Chopin
In this episode we’re sampling Kate Chopin.‘The Kiss’ is a short story about a calculating young woman managing a love triangle and highlights themes of irony, pragmatism over romantic love, and the manipulation of s...
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Episode 19
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26:56
Sir Richard Steele x3
This episode holds 3 essays and musings of Sir Richard Steele. These writings hail from as far back as we’ve ventured so far. Sir Richard Steele born in Ireland in 1672, was an essayist, dramatist, and politician....
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Episode 18
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31:25
The Scarlet Woman
On this episode of Narrated Archives is the story, The Scarlet Woman, by Louis Bromfield, which was published in McClure's magazine in January of 1927 and was awarded one of the prizes for best stories for October 1926 to September 27 by the...
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Episode 17
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30:09
South Seas with Robert Louis Stevenson
In the depths of winter Narrated Archives is taking a trip to warmer climates with Robert Louis Stevenson. We're heading to the South Seas with a selection from “In the South Seas”. The narrative describes arriving a...
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Episode 16
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31:00
Winter Animals from Walden
This week, as we are smack dab in the throes of winter, Narrated Archives is leaning into the season with a selection from Henry David Thoreau, Winter Animals from Walden or Life in the Woods.
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29:49
Prairie Gold - Iowa Authors
In this episode I’ve pulled a few stories and poems from an anthology called Prairie Gold, an anthology of Iowan authors and artists. Created during the social upheaval of World War I, the collection emphasizes cooperation and humanitarian i...
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Episode 14
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46:18
The Enchanted Bluff by Willa Carter
"The Enchanted Bluff" by Pulitzer Prize winning author, Willa Cather, a bittersweet story about a group of Nebraska boys on the cusp of adulthood, whose friendship and grand adventure plans are contrasted with the reality of their adult live...
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Episode 13
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28:00
Happy New Year x2
This week we bring in the New Year with two optimistic New Year’s stories. Cressy's New Year's Rent by Albert Lee revolves around a kind-hearted newspaper reporter who helps a poor tenant named Cressy on New Year’s Ev...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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34:21
5 of the Shortest Stories from Life Magazine
This episode includes a few stories from “Short Stories From Life" a collection of short stories of under 1,500 words were compiled from “Life” magazine’s Shortest Story Contest published in 1916. The contest received over 30,000 entries fro...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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31:13
A Christmas Story: Young Lucretia
This episode of Narrated Archives takes us back to the late 19th century and quiet yet complex world of Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman with a little Christmas story called "Young Lucretia". It’s a seemingly simple tale...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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31:32
Edith Wharton’s The Verdict
In this episode "The Verdict" by Edith Wharton is a short story first published in 1908. The narrative centers around an artist who abandons his painting career at the height of his success. The story is told from the pers...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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31:30
2 Allegorical Tales from H. G. Wells
This week we have 2 stories from H.G. Wells that tell allegorical tales that do not (slight spoiler) with unhappy or ambiguous endings. What relevant lessons can we glean from them for today's world?The Pearl of Love – The...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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29:15
Insightful Satirical Dorothy Parker
In Episode 7 we dig into the vast library of the public domain to bring you stories and today a little poetry of a bygone era with the concise, biting humor or Dorothy Parker.Men I'm Not Married To - a collection which inc...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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30:54
The Girl Who Went Right by Edna Ferber
Edna Ferber's 1913 short story "The Girl Who Went Right" follows a new salesgirl named Ray Willets, who navigates the challenges of selling high-end lingerie at a ritzy department store. In a world of wealth she can't relate to, Ray uses her...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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43:05
The “O. Henry Ending”
Narrated Archives samples the vast quantity of short stories by the prolific author O. Henry. Many of his stories explore themes of coincidence, fate, sacrifice, and the ironies of everyday life. His trademark "twist ending" became so renown...
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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24:29
Down Under with 3 Banjo Paterson Stories
In this episode we've found some humor from Down Under with Banjo Paterson, and Austrailian author know for writing the ballades "The Man from Snowy River" and "Waltzing Matilda".The Cat – a contrast of the cat's public image of ...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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32:19