Poetry audiobooks

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

By: author

Narrated by: Terry Jones

Length: 4 hours 24 minutes

Abridged: No

A collection of three medieval English poems, translated by Tolkien for the modern-day reader and containing romance, tragedy, love, sex and honour. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Pearl are two poems by an unknown author written in about 1400. Sir Gawain is a romance, a fairy-tale for adults,... Read more

At Blackwater Pond

By: Mary Oliver

Narrated by: Mary Oliver

Length: 1 hour

Abridged: No

Mary Oliver has published twenty-one volumes of poetry and six books of prose in the span of five decades, but she rarely performs her poetry in live readings. With At Blackwater Pond, Mary Oliver gives her audience what they've longed to hear: the poet's voice reading her own work. In this audio, she has recorded forty of her favorite poems,... Read more

Troylus and Cressida - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare

Length: TBA

Abridged: Yes

Troilus and Cressida is set during the latter years of the Trojan War, faithfully following the plotline of the Iliad from Achilles' refusal to participate in battle to Hector's death. This full-cast dramatization is performed by The Marlowe Society. Read more

The Pam Ayres Poetry Collection

By: Pam Ayres

Narrated by: Pam Ayres

Length: 2 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: No

Warm and witty, direct and droll, the sharply funny Pam Ayres has been amusing and entertaining her many fans for more than 30 years since her first television appearance on Opportunity Knocks. Her humorous observations of daily life touch a chord with anybody who's ever been bewildered by the exercise craze or has yearned after the vanished... Read more

Beowulf

By: Anonymous

Narrated by: Robertson Dean

Length: 2 hours 47 minutes

Abridged: No

The earliest extant heroic epic in any European vernacular, Beowulf is considered the most important poem in Old English. The title character is a warrior of superhuman strength who accomplishes glorious deeds to honor his king. He also represents the ideal lord and vassal, generous to his own men while fulfilling all the forms of courtesy at... Read more

We Speak Your Names

By: Pearl Cleage

Narrated by: Pearl Cleage

Length: 45 minutes

Abridged: No

“Sisterhood in the service of truth is an undeniable force in these remarkable times. My Sisters, here, there, and everywhere, this poem is for you.”In the tradition of Maya Angelou’s Phenomenal Woman, bestselling author Pearl Cleage brings us an inspiring poem for all women, destined to become a classic.Cleage refers to We Speak Your Names as a... Read more

Don Juan

By: Lord Byron

Narrated by: Frederick Davidson

Length: 15 hours

Abridged: No

Byron's exuberant masterpiece narrates the exploits of Don Juan, a handsome and charming young man naturally gifted with the ladies. After his first illicit love affair at the age of sixteen in his native Spain, Don Juan is exiled to Italy and catapulted into a string of adventures that send him into dire peril and luxurious boudoirs around the... Read more

William Blake

By: William Blake

Narrated by: Frederick Davidson

Length: 1 hour 59 minutes

Abridged: No

“To see a World in a Grain of Sand And a Heaven in a Wild Flower, Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand And Eternity in an hour.” —from “Auguries of Innocence”At the end of his life, William Blake gave up hope of being widely understood, but the twentieth century brought his work a new and intense interest and acclaim. A poet, artist, and... Read more

Henry the Fourth - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Harry Andrews & Pamela Brown

Length: 2 hours 38 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This updated edition offers a strongly theatrical perspective on the origins of Shakespeare's The First Part of King Henry IV and the history of its interpretation. The introduction clarifies the play's surprising, de-centred dramatic structure, questioning the dominant assumption that the drama focuses on the education of Prince Hal. It calls... Read more

Amazing Peace

By: Maya Angelou

Narrated by: Maya Angelou

Length: 29 minutes

Abridged: No

This dazzling Christmas poem by Maya Angelou is powerful and inspiring for people of all faiths.

In this beautiful, deeply moving poem, Maya Angelou inspires us to embrace the peace and promise of Christmas, so that hope and love can once again light up our holidays and the world. “Angels and Mortals, Believers and Nonbelievers, look... Read more

And Still I Rise

By: Maya Angelou

Narrated by: Maya Angelou

Length: 22 minutes

Abridged: No

Maya Angelou’s unforgettable collection of poetry lends its name to the documentary film about her life, And Still I Rise, as seen on PBS’s American Masters.
 
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my... Read more

Runny Babbit

By: Shel Silverstein

Narrated by: Dennis Locorriere

Length: 22 minutes

Abridged: No

From the legendary creator of Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, and The Giving Tree comes an unforgettable new character in children's literature.Welcome to the world of Runny Babbit and his friends Toe Jurtle, Skertie Gunk, Rirty Dat, Dungry Hog, Snerry Jake, and many others who speak a topsy-turvy language all their... Read more

Brauseboys - Wir sind nur Kurzgeschichtenvorleser - Abridged

By: Brauseboys

Narrated by: Brauseboys

Length: 2 hours 26 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Die Live-CD "Wir sind nur Kurzgeschichtenvorleser" versammelt die besten Texte und Lieder aus über drei Jahren Brauseboys. Eine wilde Fahrt mit 120 pbm (pointen pro minute) und immer auf der linken Spur mit hemmungslosen Einsatz der Lichthupe. "Unter den Berliner Lesebühnen brauchen sie sich nicht zu verstecken. Die Brauseboys sind... Read more

Neue Liebe, neues Leben - Abridged

By: Hans-Peter Bögel

Narrated by: Hans-Peter Bögel

Length: 55 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Zu allen Zeiten hat der Frühling die Komponisten in besonderer Weise inspiriert. Die freudigsten, lebensfrohen, liebevollsten Melodien sind im Frühling entstanden. Kompositionen wie Schumanns Frühlingssinfonie, Mendelssohn Bartholdys Frühlingslied oder Beethovens Frühlingssonate strömen eben die positive Kraft aus, die ein Neuanfang, die... Read more

John Keats: Poems

By: John Keats

Narrated by: Douglas Hodge

Length: 1 hour 23 minutes

Abridged: No

This well-edited recording contains Keats's most famous works. Read more

William Blake: Poems - Abridged

By: William Blake

Narrated by: Nicol Williamson

Length: 1 hour 27 minutes

Abridged: Yes

A collection of the best of poet William Blake. Read more

Deutsche Lyrik - Abridged

By: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Rainer Maria Rilke,...

Narrated by: Achim Höppner & Anja Buczkowsky

Length: 1 hour 45 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Beginnend mit Walter von der Vogelweide bis hin zu Kurt Tucholsky wurden 50 Gedichte von 30 AutorInnen vertont. Es geht um Liebe, Tod und Leben, Sommer, Winter, Tag und Nacht, Tiefsinn wie Unsinn. In diesem Download u.a. enthalten: Erlkönig / Goethe Mondnacht / Eichendorff Nis Randers / Ernst Frau Rösel / Keller Herbstbild /... Read more

Loose Woman and Woman Hollering Creek

By: Sandra Cisneros

Narrated by: Sandra Cisneros

Length: TBA

Abridged: No

Loose Woman

Seductive, earthy, and at times confessional, Sandra Cisneros's vibrant collection of poetry celebrates the females aspects of love--from the reflective to the overtly erotic--in a voice recognizable from her powerful works of fiction.

These poems offer narratives as formally elegant as they are emotional and accessible. They are... Read more

Drei kurze Texte (mit tödlichem Ausgang) - Abridged

By: Peter Palizsch

Narrated by: Anne Moll, Germain Wagner & Ulrich Gebauer

Length: 1 hour 6 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Peter Palitzsch hat drei kurze Texte über Krieg, Gewalt und Emigration mit jeweils tödlichem Ausgang geschrieben, es ist sein erstes Drama überhaupt. In ihm geht es um das Beheimatetsein auf einer Erde, die zu oft ihre Kinder ausgespuckt hat, die nun umherirren, gerade auf der Suche nach dieser Heimat. Die drei Texte umreißen verschiedene... Read more

Billy Collins Live

By: Billy Collins

Narrated by: Billy Collins

Length: 1 hour 14 minutes

Abridged: No

In this exclusive audio publishing event, Billy Collins, former U.S. Poet Laureate, shares an evening of his poetry in a benefit reading for WNYC, New York Public Radio. Often compared to Robert Frost, his poetry has been embraced by people of all ages and backgrounds, and his readings are most often standing room only.

Performed by the author... Read more

Les Fleurs du Mal

By: Charles Baudelaire

Narrated by: Astrid Defrance

Length: 1 hour 3 minutes

Abridged: No

L'édition définitive des Fleurs du Mal a été publiée en 1868, après la mort de Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867). Les premiers recueils furent mal accueillis par la critique. Seuls quelques-uns, dont son ami Barbey d'Aurevilly, défendent la poésie de Charles Baudelaire. Le 5 juillet 1857 parait un violent article du Figaro, qui tout à la fois... Read more

Fables de La Fontaine

By: Jean de la Fontaine

Narrated by: Albert Millaire

Length: 1 hour 54 minutes

Abridged: No

Remplies d'humour et de sagesse, les fables de La Fontaine ont su traverser les barrières du temps et sont demeurées un exemple remarquable de grande littérature, ainsi qu'une source inépuisable d'inspiration et de leçon de vie. Issu d'un enregistrement tout à fait exceptionnel, voici 50 des plus connues et plus belles fables de Jean de La... Read more

The Noel Coward Audio Collection - Abridged

By: Noel Coward

Narrated by: Simon Jones

Length: 5 hours 18 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Throughout his life, Noel Coward the master songwriter, 'derived a considerable amount of private pleasure from writing verse.' Much of it is gathered in this first ever CD collection. From moving war-time encounters to satirical barbs at familiar Coward targets and personal reminiscences, this delightful collection is a perfect blend of vintage... Read more

The Poet's Guide to Life - Abridged

By: Ulrich Baer

Narrated by: Ethan Hawke

Length: 3 hours 6 minutes

Abridged: Yes

“You have to live life to the limit, not according to each day but by plumbing its depth.”
–RAINER MARIA RILKE

In this treasury of uncommon wisdom and spiritual insight, the best writings and personal philosophies of one of the twentieth century’s greatest poets, Rainer Maria Rilke, are gleaned by Ulrich Baer from thousands of pages of... Read more