Showing results by narrator "Bob Gonzalez" in All Categories

From the creator of the beloved and universally acclaimed television series BoJack Horseman, a fabulously off-beat collection of short stories about love - the best and worst thing in the universe. Equally at home with the surreal and the painfully relatable (and both at once), Bob-Waksberg delivers a killer combination of humor, romance, whimsy, cultural commentary, and crushing emotional vulnerability.

A dark, allegorical, Gothic horror fable in verse telling of seduction, enthrallment, and deep sisterly love by the British Victorian poet, Christina Rossetti. The goblin market men, selling sweet and delicious fruits, inveigle Laura, a young girl, to partake of their tempting wares. Soon, she is lost to the world and her life begins slowly to fade away. Only the courage of her sister, Lizzie, can possibly save her from her fate. Will it be enough?

The Way of Life According to Laotzu is a poetic and highly accessible translation of the Dao De Jing ( Tao Te Ching). In these 81 brief passages, the ancient Chinese sage lays down a philosophical, socio-political, personal view of the universe and guide for action that has inspired generations around the world for centuries.

The sequel to Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Peter Rabbit's cousin, Benjamin Bunny, takes Peter on an adventure to retrieve Peter's shoes and coat from Mr. McGregor's garden scarecrow. As they try to accomplish this, they encounter a cat and Benjamin's father.

This classic legend, rendered in verse and published in 1842 by the masterful British Victorian poet, Robert Browning (when only 30 years old), tells of what happens to the town of Hamelin when its burghers, desperate to rid the town of the rats that were overrunning it, engage a mysterious man dressed in red and yellow, who promises, for a fee, to cleanse the town of the vermin by the magic in the music he can play on his pipe. But when the burghers refuse to pay him the sum he was promised for his service, the piper uses his magic pipe to get even.

In this witty and satirical fable, Voltaire’s hero, Memnon, determines the three tasks he will easily accomplish to become a great philosopher and perfectly happy. In spite of his naive confidence in his willpower and the cooperation of life events, fate has other things in store for him designed to thwart his plans.

The Raven Edition of the works of Edgar Allan Poe (1809 – 1849) presents his complete literary output in five volumes. In addition to 11 prose pieces, volume five contains all of Poe’s verse and also his only play, the unfinished drama, "Politian". Poe’s poetic output consists of 54 pieces, most of them short, but it also includes four longer pieces, The Bells, Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, and perhaps Poe’s most iconic poem, The Raven.

Margery Williams' classic story about a toy rabbit who longs to become real is a treat for listeners of all ages. This full-cast performance brings this timeless tale to vibrant life.

Spoon River Anthology is a collection of poems that describe life - and death - in a small town. Each poem is a monologue delivered by a resident of Spoon River, describing events in their lives, and the circumstances that led to their occasionally untimely end. Edgar Lee Masters wrote this theatrical masterpiece to highlight the typical small town. The fascinating characters and realistic imagery make it easy to see why this is an American classic. 

With charging rhythm and clarion language, in 14 stanzas, the poet conjures the dramatic, moving images of the rousing and pivotal ride of the famed patriot. Rhapsode Bob Gonzalez performs this classic.

A pioneer widower, in appearance decades older than his years, dwells in a modest log cabin with a boarded window on the outskirts of Cincinnati, Ohio. Why this window is boarded his neighbors have no knowledge, but the story's narrator, who heard the tale from his grandfather, reveals the secret of the recluse and his mysterious past. Ambrose Bierce, an author famous for his Civil War and horror stories, here masterfully crafts a tale of suspenseful tension only relieved at the very last sentence.

The French master of the short story with the twist ending, Guy de Maupassant (1850-1893), here lets his main character, an unerring knife-thrower in a carnival act with his wife, tell the tale of his maddening situation. An anonymous English translation.

Flash fiction from the master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe. A wounded gentleman, with his valet, breaks into an abandoned chateau in the Appennine mountains. The walls of the bedroom in which they situate themselves are decorated entirely with paintings. The gentleman's eyes fall upon a portrait of a young girl. He reads in an accompanying book the story of the portrait's creation and the fate of the subject caused by the artist's obsession with representing the girl with lifelike perfection.

A collection of 88 brief poems by ancient masters of Chinese poetry in an anonymous English translation. With titles such as "Contentment", "Wild Geese", "Best Happiness of All", "The Ashes of My House", "Jade Flower Palace", "We Will Grow Old Together", "The Poet Dreams", and "At Midnight", the subjects range across love in all forms, the ravages of war, the glories of nature, the sorrow of homelessness, the death of a loved one, peaceful reveries of hermits, the meditations of the wise, delicate art forms, and the entertainments at court.

O. Henry was the pen name of William Sydney Porter (1862-1910). He was a master of the short story with a surprise ending. In this story, part of the collection titled The Four Million, two old friends have made a promise to meet at a certain New York City corner after 20 years of separation. Will they each honor the agreement? What will they learn of their lives since they last saw each other?

This is the poet's final version of this poem. Coleridge is a master of mellifluous poetic phrasing - hypnotic and incantatory - and uses it deftly to weave a spellbinding tale of sin and redemption. How a ship was driven by storms towards the South Pole; and how then she made her course to the tropical Latitude of the Great Pacific Ocean; and of the strange things that happened; and in what manner the Ancient Mariner came back to his own country.

Mr. Jeremy Fisher, an adventurous frog, decides to go fishing in the rain at a nearby pond, hoping to catch some minnows to share with his friends, Mr. Alderman Ptolemy Tortoise and Sir Issac Newton. What he catches instead nearly finishes him.

A collection of fables, vignettes, and parables from the fanciful mind of Lord Dunsany. These brief tales feature characters such as Time, Death, Fame, Winter, Spring, the Fog, the North Wind, the blackbird, the god Pan, the river Styx boatman Charon, and others - in fantastical, whimsical, allegorical, and poignant scenarios.

Beatrix Potter's delightful retelling of the famous Aesop fable. In Potter's version, little Timmy Willie, a country mouse, accidentally hops a ride into town in a vegetable hamper. There he meets Johnny Town-Mouse, a sophisticated city resident, and all his friends. Adjusting to the great differences between his home life and the city living conditions proves challenging for little Timmy Willie. Adjusting is similarly challenging when Johnny Town-Mouse comes to visit Timmy Willie in the country.

Beatrix Potter's first storybook and an immediate success. Peter Rabbit is the naughty little son of Mrs. Rabbit and his sisters, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail. Ignoring his mother's orders, Peter invades Mr. McGregor's garden. Soon Mr. McGregor spots him and the chase is on. Will Peter escape with his clothes or even his life?