Interactive English

Yegor the huntsman, walking down a country road, accidentally meets his estranged wife, Pelageya, whom he's been married to for 12 years but visited just several times, and even then, drunk and violent. She weeps and, fawning before him, implores him to visit her more often. He tries to explain why he, the best sportsman around, 'a pampered man', enjoying good tea and 'refined conversation', could not bear to live in a village.

Two little girls from different houses happened to meet in a lane between two homesteads, where the dirty water, after running through the farmyards, had formed a large puddle. One girl was very small, the other a little bigger. Their mothers had dressed them both in new frocks. The little one wore a blue frock, the other a yellow print, and both had red kerchiefs on their heads. They had just come from church when they met, and first they showed each other their finery, and then they began to play....

The Try Not to Laugh Challenge Joke Book: Thanksgiving Turkey Stuffing Edition is different from other jokes and riddle books that we have created. It is not meant to be listened to alone, but instead, it is a game to be played with siblings, friends, family, or between two people who would like to prove who is a better comedian. It's time to see who has the funny bone in the family!

Justice, mortality, mercy in Vienna, dichotomy between corruption and purity. Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall. Mercy and virtue prevail, as the play does not end tragically, with virtues such as compassion and forgiveness being exercised at the end of the production. This edition of Measure for Measure is an adaptation of Shakespeare's eponymous drama, narrated in plain modern English, capturing the very essence and key elements of the original Shakespeare work.

Once upon a time there was a miller who left no more riches to the three sons he had than his mill, his ass, and his cat. The division was soon made. Neither the lawyer nor the attorney was sent for. They would soon have eaten up all the poor property. The eldest had the mill, the second the ass, and the youngest nothing but the cat. Read in English, unabridged.

Once upon a time there was a little fat comfortable grey squirrel, called Timmy Tiptoes. He had a nest thatched with leaves in the top of a tall tree; and he had a little squirrel wife called Goody. Every day they made several journeys and picked quantities of nuts. They carried them away in bags, and stored them in several hollow stumps near the tree where they had built their nest.

Crawl, cling climb! You may have seen a raccoon scurry up a tree or across the road just before dark. Did you know that raccoons stay up at night playing, hunting, and eating when you go to sleep? From birth to first stripes and beyond, discover all that goes into being a raccoon in this charming picture book, the second in the Meet Your World series.

A collection of stories prized for their craftsmanship and comic irony from Russia’s greatest novelists and dramatists. The audiobook features Ivan Turgenev's "Mumu" and 11 Anton Chekhov stories: "A Tragic Actor", "In a Strange Land", "Oh the Public", "The Looking Glass", "Her Husband", "Overdoing It", "Talent", "Anyuta", "The Helpmate", "Ivan Matveyich", and "Polinka".

This volume offers a contrasting selection of stories and tales from the master of psychology Fyodor Dostoyevsky and heartwarming storyteller Beatrix Potter. The collection includes 'An Honest Thief' and 'The Peasant Marey' by Fyodor Dostoyevsky; and 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit', 'The Tale of Benjamin Bunny' and 'The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies' by Beatrix Potter. Read in English, unabridged.

In this volume we enter the hidden world of cats and discover their ways of life and how cat mothers teach their kittens important wisdom and lessons of life. The humorous tales are told through the eyes of the animal and reveal a great deal about human people as well as cat people. In the second half of this volume we meet a mysterious countryman who lives in deep forest and is able to talk to birds in their own language. We follow him on his meditative journey and learn more about animal life, nature, and Gamayune, a prophetic bird of Russian folklore. Read in English, unabridged.

Subtle humour is one of the key elements in Chekhov's imaginative stories. But as an artist, Chekhov is more complicated. He paints life with all its nuances and shades of grey. His stories are full of characters who give us invaluable insight into universal wisdom of everyday life - civilised professionals, enlightened misfits, philanthropic gentry, rich landowners and impoverished royalty holding candles for reason, justice and passion.

Some of the most iconic tales made it into this volume of Fairy Tales for Adults. These stories with universal appeal for generations of all ages bring some of the most memorable characters together. They seem both familiar and mysterious every time one comes in contact with them. The eternal wisdom and charm keeps these stories alive for hundreds of years.

Santa Claus lives in the Laughing Valley, where stands the big, rambling castle in which his toys are manufactured. His workmen, selected from the ryls, knooks, pixies and fairies, live with him, and everyone is as busy as can be from one year's end to another. One would think that our good old Santa Claus, who devotes his days to making children happy, would have no enemies on all the Earth; and, as a matter of fact, for a long period of time he encountered nothing but love wherever he might go.

Once upon a time there were three little kittens, and their names were Mittens, Tom Kitten, and Moppet. They had dear little fur coats of their own; and they tumbled about the doorstep and played in the dust. But one day their mother - Mrs. Tabitha Twitchit - expected friends to tea; so she fetched the kittens indoors, to wash and dress them, before the fine company arrived.

In the time of swords and periwigs and full-skirted coats with flowered lappets - when gentlemen wore ruffles and gold laced waistcoats of paduasoy and taffeta - there lived a tailor in Gloucester. He sat in the window of a little shop in Westgate Street, cross legged on a table, from morning till dark. All day long while the light lasted he sewed and snippeted, piecing out his satin and pompadour and lutestring; stuffs had strange names and were very expensive in the days of the tailor of Gloucester.

Once upon a time there was a pussycat called Ribby, who invited a little dog called Duchess to tea.

Once upon a time there was a frog called Mr. Jeremy Fisher; he lived in a little damp house amongst the buttercups at the edge of a pond. The water was all slippy-sloppy in the larder and in the back passage. But Mr. Jeremy liked getting his feet wet; nobody ever scolded him, and he never caught a cold!

From Marilyn to Streisand and all the celebs in-between. Film producers and studio executives know the nitty-gritty behind the scenes. Award-winning writer, producer, and executive Ken Rotcop now tells all about the comical, dramatic, and tragic celebrities he befriended. Look through the mirror on the wall to see the stars as they were without their masks, including Marilyn Monroe, Peter O’Toole, Mel Brooks, Peter Faulk, Monty Hall, Regis Philbin, Mickey Mantel, John Barrymore, Jr., Baron Hilton, and Jack Klugman.

A timeless observation of the human condition from one of the best story writers in the history of world literature. Chekhov’s stream-of-consciousness technique that revolutionised modern literature and his characteristic mix of humour and poignancy unite the 11 stories featured in this collection: "A Tragic Actor", "In a Strange Land", "Oh the Public", "The Looking Glass", "Her Husband", "Overdoing It", "Talent", "Anyuta", "The Helpmate", "Ivan Matveyich", and "Polinka".

An iconic collection of fairy tales from the master of storytelling, Charles Perrault, including some of his best work: 'Little Red Riding Hood', 'The Sleeping Beauty', 'Puss in Boots', 'Little Thumb', 'Cinderella', 'Blue Beard', and 'Beauty and the Beast'. Read in English, unabridged.