European Poetry

John Keats was largely unappreciated during his lifetime and died in Rome at the age of 26. Most of his 150 poems were written in just nine extraordinary months in 1819. This selection contains some of his finest works, including the principal "Odes", "La Belle Dame Sans Merci", "Old Meg", and "Much Have I Travelled".

The Knight's Tale of medieval wars and chivalry is the first tale told to the pilgrims as they set out to Canterbury. It concerns Theseus, returning from fighting at Thebes, and two brother knights Palamon and Arcite, imprisoned but yearning for their loves. But the real hero of this recording is Richard Bebb who, with the help of Professor Derek Brewer, the leading expert on Chaucerian pronunciation, make the original Middle English not only comprehensible to the modern ear, but exciting.

At the end of his life, William Blake (1757-1827) gave up hope of being widely understood, but the twentieth century brought to his work a new and intense interest and acclaim.

Although generally considered one of Portugal's greatest poets, Fernando António Nogueira Pessoa (1888-1935) published but one book in Portuguese in his lifetime. That book, Message (Portuguese Mensagem), the esoteric epic at which he labored sporadically for more than 20 years before finally publishing it in the year prior to his death, is undoubtedly essential to an understanding of Pessoa's poetic vision, yet it remains, at least in the English-speaking world, relatively unknown and unread.

Sophisticated wit and intense emotion, religious fervor and erotic sensuality, delight in life’s pleasures and fascination with death, are all to be found in the paradoxical poetry of John Donne. One of the foremost metaphysical poets, Donne’s ingenious metaphors and inspired use of language has earned him affection and reverence in near equal measure to Shakespeare.

Award-winning travel writer Nicholas Jubber journeys across Europe exploring Europe's epic poems, from the Odyssey to Beowulf, the Song of Roland to the Nibelungenlied, and their impact on European identity in these turbulent times. These are the stories that made Europe. Journeying from Turkey to Iceland, award-winning travel writer Nicholas Jubber takes us on a fascinating adventure through our continent's most enduring epic poems to learn how they were shaped by their times and how they have since shaped us.

UNA EXTRAORDINARIA SELECCIÓN DE OBRAS ESENCIALES, EN SU MAYORÍA INÉDITAS, QUE CELEBRAN LA FUERZA, EL TALENTO Y LA DIVERSIDAD DE LAS MUJERES LATINAS, Y TIENDEN PUENTES QUE NOS CONECTAN LAS UNAS CON LAS OTRAS.

Desde la prosa implacable de sor Juana Inés de la Cruz hasta los poderosos cantos de la chamana María Sabina; desde las luchas revolucionarias de Audre Lorde, Lolita Lebrón y Berta Cáceres hasta el activismo de Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; desde los versos pioneros de Cecilia Vicuña, Maryse Condé, Nancy Morejón y Conceição Evaristo hasta la poesía transgresora de Elizabeth Acevedo.

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 audio 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 Noel Coward sure to be enjoyed by faithful fans and new listeners alike.

Amora dares explore the way women love each other - the atrophy and healing of the female spirit in response to sexual desire and identity. These thirty-three short stories and poems, crafted with a deliberate delicacy, each capture the candid, private moments of women in love. Together, these stories and the women who inhabit them reveal an illuminating portrait of the sacred female romance, with all its nuances, complexities, burdens, and triumphs revealed.