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Black Beauty (version 3 Dramatic Reading)
Black Beauty is a fictional autobiographical memoir told by a horse, who recounts many tales, both of cruelty and kindness. The title page of the first edition states that it was “Translated from the Original Equine by Anna Sewell.” After its publication in 1877, Sewell lived just long enough to see her first and only novel become an immediate bestseller, as well as it encouraging the better treatment of many cruelly-treated animals. Although initially intended for people who work with horses, it soon became a children’s classic. While outwardly teaching animal welfare, it also contains allegorical lessons about how to treat people with kindness, sympathy and respect. The story is narrated in the first person and each short chapter relates an incident in Black Beauty’s life, with Sewell’s detailed observations and extensive descriptions of horse behaviour lending the novel a good deal of verisimilitude. (Summary by Cori Samuel, Wikipedia, and Mary Kay) Black Beauty: Arielle Lipshaw Ginger: Beth Thomas Squire Gordon: Larry Wilson John Manly: Oxenhandler James Howard: Nolan Fout Jeremiah Barker: Todd Polly Barker: Kristin Gjerl?w Other roles read by: Nick Bulka, Zames Curran, Nolan Fout, Freakwhency, Kristin Gjerl?w, Ricky of Kokiri, Lydia, MaryAnn, Oxenhandler, Adele de Pignerolles, Rachel, Esther ben Simonides, K. Adrian Stroet, Joseph Tabler, Beth Thomas, Todd, Elizabeth Travers, Maggie Travers, Twinkle, Tomas Peter, and Larry Wilson Audio edited by Kim, Arielle Lipshaw, and Adele de Pignerolles
Black Beauty by ANNA SEWELL
Black Beauty is the autobiography of a horse. This gentle book follows the life of a well bred horse, from his early childhood in a pleasant meadow,through a myriad of owners-some kind and some cruel-until fate returns him to the meadow in which he was born. A wonderful story that has lived with us for more than a century now.
Black Heart and White Heart
Black Heart and White Heart, is a story of the courtship, trials and final union of a pair of Zulu lovers in the time of King Cetywayo. (Introduction by H. Rider Haggard)
Black Ivory
Although the book’s title Black Ivory denotes dealing in the slave trade it is not our heroes who are doing it. At the very first chapter there is a shipwreck, which leaves the son of the charterer of the sinking ship, and a seaman friend of his, alone on the east coast of Africa, where Arab and Portuguese slave traders were still carrying out their evil trade, despite the great efforts of patrolling British warships to limit it and free the unfortunates whom they found being carried away in the Arab dhows. Our heroes encountered a slave trader almost at the very spot where they come ashore, and thereby managed to get to Zanzibar in a British warship that had captured the trader’s dhow in which our friends had hitched a lift. At Zanzibar they pick up some funds, and set forth on a journey into the interior. Here again they encounter the vile trade, but most of the story deals with other encounters of a more acceptable nature. This book will open your eyes to what really went on. At the time of writing slave-dealing on the west coast of Africa was, due to the efforts of the British, almost extinct, but this was not the case on the east coast. (Summary courtesy of Nick Hodson, http://www.athelstane.co.uk)
Black Jack
The son of a notorious outlaw is adopted into a wealthy, law-abiding family as an infant after his father is killed in an attempted robbery. Will he follow in the footsteps of his outlaw father or will his life be guided by the respectable woman who nurtured him to manhood? Another exciting tale by the master of the pulp western, Max Brand. (Summary by Richard Kilmer)
Black Magic: a Tale of the Rise and Fall of the Antichrist
Witches, spells, ghosts, pacts with the Devil, occult rituals, love triangles, popes and the Anti-Christ are some of the ingredients of this chilling early horror work (set in the middle-ages) by Marjorie Bowen that some consider to be the ultimate Gothic Novel. With enough suspenseful plot twists and turns to keep most listeners on edge guessing till the very end. (Summary by kadath)
Black Oxen
Lee Clavering, a young playwright falls in love with an Austrian countess, not noticing the adoring glances from the outgoing flapper, Janet. Unknown to the young lover, the object of his devotion is defying age with artifice in this controversial pseudo-science fiction romance. – Summary by Lynne Thompson
Black Oxen by Gertrude Atherton
A 1922 novel by American novelist Gertrude Atherton. The story centers on the relationship between thirty-four year old columnist Lee Clavering and Mary Zattiany, a 58 year old woman who, through modern science, has regained her youth. The story takes place within New York’s high society and there is much criticism of both the older and younger generations in the 1920s. The older generation is argued to be unreasonably caught up in convention while the younger generation is shown as being too eager to flout their straying from those same conventions.
Black Pawl
This riveting novel takes place on a whaling ship, where its captain, Black Pawl, has a troubled relationship with the first mate, his son. A minister is permitted aboard for the homeward-bound journey along with a young woman who is accompanying him. Before long, unforeseen complications and electrifying events ensue. Williams, an American author, wrote hundreds of short stories, many appearing in popular magazines, and over 30 novels, several of which were made into motion pictures. ( Lee Smalley)
Black Spirits and White: A Book of Ghost Stories
A collection of six ghostly tales by Ralph Adams Cram, ranging from the demonic to the deeply sad. Gruesome apparitions, oppressive atmosphere, and throughout it all, a profound appreciation for the haunting beauty of Europe through the eyes of an American architect. Includes The Dead Valley, a story singled out as “memorably potent” by H.P. Lovecraft. Black spirits and white – Red spirits and gray – Mingle, mingle, mingle – Ye that mingle may. (Summary by Andrew Gaunce, with excerpt from Shakespeare’s Macbeth)
BLACK TULIP by Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas’s famous historical novel ‘The Black Tulip’ begins with a historical event — the 1672 lynching of the Dutch Grand Pensionary (roughly equivalent to a modern Prime Minister) Johan de Witt and his brother Cornelis, by a wild mob of their own countrymen — considered by many as one of the most painful episodes in Dutch history, described by Dumas with a dramatic intensity.
Black’erchief Dick
This is noted mystery writer, Margery Allingham’s first novel, written when she was just 18. It a swashbuckling novel of romance and adventure on a British island in the 17th Century – Summary by mleigh
Blackfeet Indian Stories
The Blackfeet were hunters, travelling from place to place on foot. They used implements of stone, wood, or bone, wore clothing made of skins, and lived in tents covered by hides. Dogs, their only tame animals, were used as beasts of burden to carry small packs and drag light loads. The stories here told come down to us from very ancient times. Grandfathers have told them to their grandchildren, and these again to their grandchildren, and so from mouth to mouth, through many generations, they have reached our time.
Blackfeet Tales of Glacier National Park
James Willard Schultz, or Apikuni, (1859 ? 1947) was a noted author, explorer, Glacier National Park guide, fur trader and historian of the Blackfoot Indians. Schultz is most noted for his prolific stories about Blackfoot life and his contributions to the naming of prominent features in Glacier National Park. (Summary by Wikipedia)
Blackie, A Lost Cat
Blackie is a coal black cat who lives with two children and their parents. One day she is led astray by a neighboring cat and decides to go for an adventure. Not knowing what to expect, she walks away from her cushion in the sun, plentiful food and lots of petting attention. All does not go as she expects an indeed her scary adventures cause her much anxiety not to mention an empty belly in the days ahead. Follow Blackie on her stroll through the streets and byways of a busy town. A cute story and I promise a happy ending. – Summary by phil chenevert
Blackthorn Farm
But he was afraid. He had failed twice already. He could not afford to fail a third time. If he failed ruin faced him, and disgrace. His father had warned him that the money he had saved for his education had come to an end. Ruin for his father and his little sister! He had no idea how deeply Rupert was in debt. Rupert himself had only just realised it. And in desperation he had gambled to save himself. (Excerpt from 1st chapter by Arthur Applin)
Blacky the Crow
Blacky the Crow is a clever rascal who lives in the Green Forest and Meadow. He loves to play tricks on the other little people who are his neighbours, and is curious about Farmer Brown?s Boy. Blacky is always thinking about what is right and what is wrong, but he still gets into all kinds of mischief. – Summary by Jude Somers
Bladys of the Stewponey
The setting, geography and history of this story by Rev’d Sabine Baring-Gould, author of Onward Christian Soldiers and a number of other well-known hymns, are all accurate, or at least as accurate as local lore will allow. Kinver has long been a midlands beauty spot, and the UK National Trust own and open one of the rock-dwellings mentioned. The ‘Stewponey’ too was an inn until a year or two into the twenty-first century: http://www.blackcountrybugle.co.uk/News/Reminder-of-the-heyday-of-the-old-Stewponey-2.htm – the present reader having stopped there for a drink and a meal many times. The story, whether you call it a romance, a historical novel or a horror story – comprising as it does a young woman being offered as a prize in a bowling match, a wife-burning, highwaymen and buried treasure – is of course wholly fiction. (Introduction by AJM)
Blake of the “Rattlesnake”
Fred Jane, who later went on to publish his famous “Jane’s Fighting Ships”, doubtless was noting the success of other books that forecast a British defeat in the event of war in the late 19th century when he wrote this fictional account of “The Man Who Saved England.” Jane tells of a possible war against both France and Russia with plenty of verve and derring-do amid naval battles, both small and large. – Summary by Mark
BLAST No. 1
BLAST, edited by Wyndham Lewis and subtitled ‘Review of the Great British Vortex’, was the magazine of the short-lived Vorticist movement in British art. Influenced by Cubism and Futurism, and Imagism in literature, the Vorticists embraced all things modern and veered towards abstraction. The first issue of BLAST was published, with its distinctive puce cover and bold typography, on 20 June 1914, but within weeks war had broken out in Europe. The Vorticists held an exhibition at the Dor? Gallery in London in 1915 and a second issue of BLAST was published, but the movement did not survive the war. BLAST No. 1 includes the Vorticist Manifesto, with their blasts and blesses of all and sundry in British art, and several pieces by Wyndham Lewis, including his play ‘Enemy of the Stars’. Other notable contributions include ‘The Saddest Story’ by Ford Maddox Hueffer (later Ford Madox Ford), which would later become the first chapter of ‘The Good Soldier’, and a short story by Rebecca West, her first published work. BLAST No. 1 also published black and white illustrations of artwork by Wyndham Lewis, Edward Wadsworth, Frederick Etchells, W. Roberts, Jacob Epstein, Gaudier Brzewska, Cuthbert Hamilton and Spencer Gore. These include some of the first abstract paintings to be produced by British artists. ( Phil Benson)
Blazed Trail Stories and Stories Of The Wild Life
Thirteen short stories by a popular writer of the early 20th century (not to be confused with an earlier book Blazed Trail). White’s books were popular at a time when America was losing its vanishing wilderness. He was a keen observer of the beauties of nature and human nature, yet could render them in a plain-spoken style. Based on his own experience, whether writing camping journals or Westerns, he included pithy and fun details about cabin-building, canoeing, logging, gold-hunting, and guns and fishing and hunting. He also interviewed people who had been involved in the fur trade, the California gold rush and other pioneers which provided him with details that give his novels verisimilitude. He salted in humor and sympathy for colorful characters such as canny Indian guides and “greenhorn” campers who carried too much gear. – Summary by Wikipedia and david wales
Bleak House
Bleak House is the ninth novel by Charles Dickens, published in 20 monthly parts between March 1852 and September 1853. It is widely held to be one of Dickens’ finest and most complete novels, containing one of the most vast, complex and engaging arrays of minor characters and sub-plots in his entire canon. Dickens tells all of these both through the narrative of the novel’s heroine, Esther Summerson, and as an omniscient narrator. Memorable characters include the menacing lawyer Tulkinghorn, the friendly but depressive John Jarndyce and the childish Harold Skimpole. The plot concerns a long-running legal dispute (Jarndyce and Jarndyce) which has far-reaching consequences for all involved. (Summary from Wikipedia)
Bleak House (version 3)
The Chancery Court had jurisdiction over all matters of equity, including administration of estates, the guardianship of orphans, and disputed property disbursement. In Dickens? time, some cases could take years to be settled, changing the lives of those involved. Esther Summerson, a young woman raised in a tough and unloving atmosphere, is unexpectedly requested to be a companion to two teenage orphans, Richard Carstone and Ada Clare, for whom the court has appointed as guardian, John Jarndyce. They take up residence at Mr. Jarndyce?s home, Bleak House. The story of their lives and fortunes is the main thrust of the novel, and is related at times through the eyes of Esther, whose gentle point of view gives the reader a different and more intimate perspective. Richard is sure his fortune is ?just around the corner? when the case of Jarndyce-v-Jarndyce, of which he and Ada will be beneficiaries, is settled. He tries his hand at a career or two, but he becomes obsessed with hastening the probate of the willed fortune he feels must soon be theirs. Further difficulties arise when he and Ada fall in love, while he, penniless, continues the quest to bring his case to justice. A scriber of legal documents dies, and from his death, questions arise which unearth secrets that the Jarndyce?s neighbour, Lady Dedlock, has kept hidden for years. Inspector Bucket enters the case, and begins investigating the disappearance of Lady Dedlock. In the dirt poor part of London comes a young boy called Joe who claims to ?know noffink? but who has witnessed something very important. Several other colorful characters are wound into the story. Nearly insane Miss Flite, who for years has attended court every day, with her little folder of documents, is ever hopeful of a settlement. Mr. Boythorn is a boisterous friend of Jarndyce who has a vendetta with Sir Leicester Dedlock. The Jellyby Family, invariably on the verge of a disaster, is neglected by their Mother who is obsessed with an overseas project. The Smallweed family is mean and avaricious ? squeezing money from poor clients. Mr. Skimpole is the childlike captivating friend of Mr. Jarndyce who sees no harm in living off everybody else. Mr. Guppy fawns after Esther, and plots to steal documents with his friend Weevle. Mr. Woodcourt is a gentle surgeon and family friend, who becomes a hero. Since the writing of Bleak House, the property laws of England were changed, and disbursements were thenceforth conducted in court with the object of swiftly coming to a settlement for the benefit of inheritors. (Summary by Mil Nicholson)
Bleak House (version 4)
Bleak house is one of Dickens finest achievements. It was written for serialisation in 1853 when Dickens was at the peak of his career. Monthly sales substantially exceeded his previous bestseller David Copperfield. Dickens’ mastery of the English language comes to the fore in this book. It is an energetic book: a complex mystery story revolving around the heroine Esther Summerson and her path from childhood to marriage. During the course of Esther?s narration Dickens introduces some wonderful and unforgettable characters, and at the same time provides a searing indictment of the laws? corruption and self-serving interests which prevailed during that time. He pokes fun at the languid and landed aristocracy and questions the societal indifference to the poor. Detection, black comedy, farce, and tragic ruin run through the story. Critics at the time were unenthusiastic but the public were enthralled by it! – Summary by Peter John Keeble
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
First published in the year 1853, the present novel ‘Bleak House’ is one of Charles Dickens’s major works. The story is told partly by the novel’s heroine, Esther Summerson, and partly by an omniscient narrator. At the centre of Bleak House is a long-running legal case, Jarndyce and Jarndyce, which came about because someone wrote several conflicting wills. Dickens uses this case to satirise the English judicial system, and he makes use of his earlier experiences as a law clerk and as a litigant seeking to enforce copyright on his earlier books.
Blessed Edmund Campion
Saint Edmund Campion, S.J., (1540 ? 1581) was an English Catholic Jesuit priest and martyr. While conducting an underground ministry to the persecuted Catholics of Elizabethan England, Campion was arrested by priest hunters. Convicted of high treason, he was hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn. Campion was beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1886 and canonised in 1970 by Pope Paul VI as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. (Adapted from wikipedia)
Blessing in Disguise by Rishitha Reddy Kotapalle
Amber Sahni, equestrian enthusiast and heiress, kissed her sterling life in New York goodbye. Only to shockingly end up in the Clandestine Service of the infamous Directorate of National Security in the mosaic of chaos that is Delhi.
But just as her life starts to pick up in her mother country, an almost mythological terror cell surfaces with a deadly agenda. And so, begins the journey that plunges Amber into unadulterated danger, unavoidable language barriers and the job of babysitting a pre-teen at the same time as trying to stop an assassination, only to realize that Plan B of the terror cell might be deadlier than Plan A.
Blessing In Disguise will take you through a fast-paced trek across three essential locales as Amber struggles with patriotism and painful extremists, only ultimately to discover what it means to go at length for one’s country.
But hey, is this life any less than sterling?
Blessings for Chanukah
LibriVox volunteers bring you 12 recordings of Blessings for Chanukah by Jessie E. Sampter. This was the Weekly Poetry project for December 9, 2018. —— Jessie Sampter was a Jewish educator, poet, and Zionist pioneer. She was born in New York City and immigrated to Palestine in 1919. In her twenties, she joined the Unitarian Church and began writing poetry. Her poems and short stories emphasized her primary concerns: pacifism, Zionism, and social justice. – Summary by Wikipedia
Blind Love
Blind Love, also published under the titles Iris and The Lord Harry is Wilkie Collins’ last novel, completed after his death by Walter Besant. The blind love in the title refers to the love of Iris, a woman of virtue, for the morally corrupt Henry Norland. She loves him despite all his faults, but she also does not realize the full extent of them. As in many of Wilkie Collins’ novels, this book also tackles difficult social problems. In this case, the Irish Question and women’s rights bring another layer to the narrative. – Summary by Carolin.
Blindfolded
Giles Dudley is called upon by his cousin Henry Wilton to assist him in San Francisco, but the reason for the summons is not at all clear. Dudley answers the summons, only to find himself immediately wrapped in the middle of mystery and intrigue, the roots and ends of which he is utterly unaware. He has been given to care for a mysterious young boy whom he hasn’t even seen. His cousin has mysteriously disappeared. Dudley’s role in the mystery has him convinced that as he goes about trying to assist his cousin with whatever it was he wanted to accomplish, he does so completely blindfolded. (Summary by Roger Melin)
Blood Pressure Aur Swastha Jeevan by G.D. Thapar
हाई ब्लड प्रेशर को ‘ साइलेंट किलर ‘ (खामोश हत्यारा) कहा जाता है । खामोश इसलिए क्योंकि यह बहुत थोड़े लक्षण ही पैदा करता है, लेकिन अनवरत नुकसान पहुँचाता रहता है । इसके लक्षण उस वक्त सामने आते हैं जब गंभीर समस्याएँ व बीमारियों उत्पन्न हो जाती हैं और वे शरीर के प्रमुख अंगों को प्रभावित करती हैं ।
आज हाई ब्लड प्रेशर दुनिया भर में एक आम बीमारी है । वयस्क जनसंख्या का बीस प्रतिशत से भी ज्यादा या पैंसठ साल से अधिक की उम्र के लगभग साठ प्रतिशत लोग हाई ब्लड प्रेशर के शिकार हैं । ब्लड प्रेशर व इससे संबंधित समस्याओं का उचित नियंत्रण करना बहुत ही आवश्यक है ।
हाई ब्लड प्रेशर की बीमारी क्यों होती है, इसके पीछे कौन-कौन से कारण हैं, उनका निदान क्या है तथा इसे नियंत्रण में कैसे रखा जा सकता है-इसपर प्रस्तुत पुस्तक में विस्तार से चर्चा की गई है । यह पुस्तक आम पाठकों के लिए तो पठनीय है ही, हाई ब्लड प्रेशर के चिकित्सकों तथा चिकित्सा के क्षेत्र से जुड़े अन्य लोगों के लिए भी यह उपयोगी सिद्ध होगी ।
Blood Road
LibriVox volunteers bring you 19 recordings of Blood Road by Katharine Lee Bates. This was the New Year’s Weekly Poetry project for December 30. 2018. —— Katharine Lee Bates was an American writer, poet, professor, and social activist. Although she was a renowned author and professor during her lifetime, today she is primarily remembered as the author of the words to the anthem “America the Beautiful”. For 25 years, she lived with her long-time friend and companion, Katharine Coman. This poem taken from ‘America the beautiful and other poems’ 1911. – Summary by Wikipedia
Blood Will Tell: The Strange Story of a Son of Ham by Benjamin Rush Davenport
Boston was shrouded in a mantle of mist that November day, the north-east wind bringing at each blast re-enforcement to the all-enveloping and obscuring mass of gloom that embraced the city in its arms of darkness.
Blotted Out
The story about a young man who immigrates to the US and is contacted by a mysterious woman. – Summary by Howard Skyman
Blottentots and How to Make Them
This is very short, but it is a book with lots of pictures, and it will be even better if you can look at the pictures in the book at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44898 while you listen to the verses. There are many short verses: the first verses tell you how to make a blottentot with a blot of ink on a piece of paper. You then fold the paper and press it gently to spread out the ink into peculiar shapes. The rest of the verses describe the funny creatures which you can make. I’m sure it could also be done with different colours using thin paint instead of ink, and it looks a lot of fun! The author John Prosper Carmel is believed to be a pseudonym of Raymond Carter, who was the calligrapher, but of whom also nothing is known. (Summary by Ruth Golding)
Bob the Castaway
Frank V Webster was a pseudonym controlled by the Stratemeyer Syndicate, the first book packager of books aimed at children. This pseudonym was used on books for boys from the early 1900s through the 1930s. Bob the Castaway follows the antics of young prankster Bob Henderson, his parents futile attempts to get him to mend his ways, and his subsequent nautical adventures. (Introduction by Nigel Boydell)
Bobby Gray Squirrel’s Adventures
In this sixth volume of the Twilight Animal series, we read about the adventures of Bobby the Gray Squirrel, who (together with his friends from the woods!) brings joy and happiness to a very special new friend. – Summary by Foon
Bobby in Search of a Birthday
The sweet story of a five year old boy named Bobby, who is an orphan. When Bobby learns that other children have birthdays, he goes hunting to find his. Go with him and meet the Man with the Pocketful of Quarters and the Lady who Likes Little Boys and learn how he finds his birthdays and a family besides! (Summary by Trotsa)
Bobby in Search of a Birthday (version 2)
Bobby is a little orphan boy of about 5 who discovers he has somehow lost his ‘birfhday’ and decides to go looking for it. This epic quest takes him into strange places and meetings with people who are sometimes scoffing, but mostly kind and helpful to the small tot. Does he find his birfday? Well I can’t tell you that, you will just have to listen. If you like warm, sweet stories with a great ending, this is for you! A delightful tale full of whimsy and fun. – Summary by phil chenevert
Bobs, a Girl Detective
This is a great short chapter mystery book for girls. It is similar to Nancy Drew. Bobs is one of the four sisters whose parents die, leaving them with the responsibility of caring for themselves. They have to work together to be cheerful through the hard time and a long the way have many adventures! Let’s start decoding the clues! (Summary by peppersnoodles93)
Body Language by M.K. Mazumdar
We are social beings and cannot live without mixing with others. The moment we come in contact with other people, we start communicating; if not through words then by other ways. One such way is body language. It is the voice of silence. Our body reveals more than words and sometimes even contradicts them. It can belie our words. Body language is the non-verbal expression one makes-consciously or unconsciously. The way one carries oneself, moves, sits and stands, speaks volumes. It communicates more effectively than words. If one can present oneself through body language in the same manner that the words voice the thoughts, then it can make all the difference between a good and a bad communication. This popular book is the one that will help enhance your communication skills as well as help you understand what the others are trying to say or not voicing what they want to say.
Body-Organ Donation by Arun Anand
India has made significant progress in the field of body and organ donation over the last few decades. But there still remain many challenges. This book takes stock of the journey of ancient and modern India in the field of body and organ donation and the stellar role played by organisations like Dadhichi Deh Dan Samiti to promote this cause.
This book demystifies the complex and multi-dimensional subject of body and organ donation. It explains the scientific, legal, ethical and financial aspects of the transplantation of organs from Indian as well as global perspective.
The book takes a look at the past, present and the challenges ahead in the field of body and organ donation. It is a ready reckoner for anyone who wants to know about body and organ donation.
Bogi Number 2003 by Harish Naval
‘बोगी नंबर 2003’ इतिहास का वह हिस्सा है जहाँ संस्कृति, शिक्षा, जन सेवाएँ, राजनीति और समाज केविभिन्न वर्गों के कालापन से उपजी विसंगतियाँ, विडंबनाएँ और विद्रूपताएँ इस उपन्यास में रोचकतापूर्ण मनोरंजन सहित ढली हैं।
इस व्यंग्य-उपन्यास में की पीढ़ी उस राजनीतिक काल की पीढ़ी है, जब देश के नियामक रक्षक से भक्षक बनने लगे थे। बहुत से राजनेता धन जमा करने की होड़ में जुटने लगे थे और भ्रष्टाचार जीवन का मूलमंत्र बनने लगा था। ‘काले धन की बैसाखी’ शासन-कर्ताओं को अनिवार्य लगने लगी थी। इन्हीं भ्रष्ट जन का अनुकरण जीवन का व्यवहार बनने लगा था, जिससे बेईमानी का कद बढ़ रहा था। इसके अतिरिक्त इस पीढ़ी पर फिल्मों का प्रभाव बेहद रहा। विवेकानंद, स्वामी दयानंद, सुभाष, भगतसिंह, चंद्रशेखर से कहीं अधिक यह पीढ़ी फिल्मी सितारों को चाहने लगी। महात्मा गांधी तो केवल दो अक्तूबर तक सीमित रह गए, गांधी के नाम पर लूट-खसोट करनेवालों को देख यह पीढ़ी उनकी तरह तुरंत अमीर होना और अय्याशी परस्ती पसंद करने लगी थी। प्रस्तुत कृति में इसका विशद चित्रण आप प्रत्यक्ष भी और परोक्ष भी पाएँगे।
Bohemian San Francisco
While describing his dining experiences throughout “Bohemian San Francisco,” Clarence Edwords paints an historic panorama of California cuisine with all its cosmopolitan influences. Best of all, he offers tantalizing recipes culled from conversations with the master chefs of 1914 in “The City by the Bay.” (Summary by Denny)
Bollywoodnama by Bhawanilal Bharatiya
बॉलीवुडनामा—भवानीलाल भारतीय
हिंदी फिल्मों का इतिहास दो वर्ष पश्चात् एक शताब्दी पुराना हो जाएगा। इस अवधि में रजतपट का वह काल भी आता है, जब मूक फिल्मों का निर्माण होता था।
इस पुस्तक में हिंदी सिने जगत् ‘बॉलीबुड’ में अपना योगदान करनेवाले विशिष्ट अभिनेताओं, अभिनेत्रियों, गायकों, संगीत-निर्देशकों तथा फिल्म निर्मात्री संस्थाओं का ऐतिहासिक मूल्यांकन किया गया है।
दादा साहब फाल्के, के.एल. सैगल, मुकेश, तलत महमूद, प्रदीप, मास्टर मदन, नूरजहाँ, देविका रानी, सुरैया, गीता दत्त, पृथ्वीराज कपूर, बलराज साहनी, नौशाद, मोतीलाल आदि हिंदी सिनेमा के ऐसे स्तंभ हैं, जिनपर आज के ‘बॉलीवुड’ का मजबूत किला टिका हुआ है। इन कलाकारों के अभिनय, गायन, वादन, संगीत, निर्देशन के कारण ही हिंदी फिल्में लोकप्रिय हुईं और दर्शकों के दिलों पर राज करने लगीं।
यह पुस्तक इन महान् कलाकारों के हिंदी फिल्मों के लिए किए गए अनन्य योगदान के प्रति सम्मान व्यक्त करने का विनम्र प्रयास है। ‘बॉलीवुड’ के शैशवकाल की गौरवशाली कहानी है यह कृति।
Bolti Anubhootiyan by Mahesh Bhagchandka
बोलती अनुभूतियाँ की कविताओं के संदर्भ में साध्य का प्रश्न है, तो यहाँ यह साध्य कभी स्वयं कवि ही प्रतीत होता है, जो अपनी कविता के माध्यम से स्वयं तक पहुँचना चाहता है; इस स्थिति में ये कविताएँ आत्मसाक्षात्कार, आत्मचिंतन और आत्माभिव्यक्ति का ही दूसरा रूप लगती हैं। इस संग्रह की कुछ कविताओं में कवि का साध्य समाज और समाज का हित-चिंतन भी दिखाई देता है, यहाँ ये कविताएँ समाज-सुधारिका का बाना पहनकर लोगों के हृदय तक जाती हैं और उनके हृदय को निर्मल बनाती चलती हैं और कहीं-कहीं इस संग्रह की कविताएँ ऐसी भी हैं, जहाँ कवि का साध्य उसका वह आराध्य है, जिसे परमात्मा कहते हैं।
कविता में इतनी सादगी, इतना औदात्य, इतनी स्पष्टता, इतनी स्वच्छता, इतना आकर्षण सामान्यतः नहीं मिलता, किंतु इस संग्रह की हर कविता ने हृदय को छुआ है और केवल छुआ ही नहीं, आलोकित भी किया है। यह काम शायद तब ही हो पाता है, जब साधक बनावट से दूर किसी ऐसे वट के नीचे बैठकर तपस्या करे, जिसे आत्मचिंतन का वटवृक्ष कहते हैं, जिसे निश्छल प्रेम के वंशी-वट की संज्ञा दी जाती है, जो समाज-हित की वाट में आनेवाले किसी भी वटमार के फंदे में नहीं फँसा है और जिसे अध्यात्म की संजीवनी वटी मिल गई है। प्रभु इस संग्रह के कवि के इस रूप को ऐसा ही बना रहने दें, यही प्रार्थना है। इस संग्रह में कविताओं के साथ जो रेखांकन हैं, वे भी इतने बोलते हुए हैं, जितनी कि इस संग्रह में कवि की बोलती हुई अनुभूतियों वाली कविताएँ बोल रही हैं।—डॉ. कुँअर बेचैन
Bonaparte in Egypt and the Egyptians of To-day
Knowing the Egyptian as I know him, I cannot but think that he is greatly misunderstood, even by those who are sincerely anxious to befriend him. His faults and his failings are to be found at large in almost any of the scores of books that have of late years been written about him and his country; but, though not a few have given him credit for some of his more salient good points, yet none that I have seen have shown any just appreciation of him as he really is. (From the Preface)
Bonaventure, A Prose Pastoral of Acadian Louisiana
This is a gentle, delightful story of life and love on the bayoux of Acadian Louisiana during the latter half of the 19th century. Bonaventure is a Creole raised among the Acadians. He loves learning, and through his calling as a teacher, and his own unique force of character, comes to have a lasting effect on the people around him. A word of warning: This story has occasional references to Jews and African Americans that the modern mind finds offensive. They are retained here in the interest of preserving the original text. (Summary by Christine Dufour)
Bones in London by Edgar Wallace
There was a slump in the shipping market, and men who were otherwise
decent citizens wailed for one hour of glorious war, when Kenyon Line
Deferred had stood at 88 1/2, and even so poor an organization as
Siddons Steam Packets Line had been marketable at 3 3/8.
Two bareheaded men came down the busy street, their hands thrust into their trousers pockets, their sleek, well-oiled heads bent in dejection.
Bonne-Marie, a Tale of Normandy and Paris
Bonne-Marie, Henry Gr?ville?s last work, will no doubt create a sensation, such is its freshness, beauty, and delicacy. It is the story of a young girl, the daughter of a smuggler in Normandy, on the coast of France. Having been educated in a Convent, at Cherbourg, she returns from school where her father had placed her, and struggles in spite of her discontent to do her duty in her humble home. She turns a deaf ear to a lover?s pleading, and when her father is killed in a fray with the Coast-Guard, she leaves her home and goes to Paris to seek her fortune. The tale of her struggles with poverty, of her debut as a singer in one of the celebrated Caf?s ? where, after a great success, she loses her heart to an artist, is simply, powerfully and most pathetically told. What happens after we must leave the readers of this charming volume to discover for themselves, all of which is beautifully sketched, and the story from beginning to end is pure, fresh and breezy. Mrs. Sherwood?s English in this translation is beyond all praise ? it flows freely on from beginning to end. – Summary by the Publisher