Short Nonfiction Collection, Vol. 057


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(5 stars; 1 reviews)

Fifteen short nonfiction works in the public domain, independently chosen by the readers. Natural cataclysm is the subject of several readings: the 1899 Alaskan earthquake, which uplifted cliffs at Yakutat Bay 47 feet; a terrifying forest fire in Northern Wisconsin in 1899; the fiery sunsets which followed the volcanic eruption of Krakatoa in 1883; a storm at sea which sank the English frigate Anson in 1807; and the explosion of a hydrogen-filled dirigible over Chicago in 1919. Natural beauty, also a topic, includes a guide to the Antrim coast of Ireland, observations on Black Walnut trees and the communal life of Yellow-Jacket wasps, and an essay on how to paint reflections. Two colloquies of Erasmus explore a young woman's choice to become a nun and the "preposterous judgments" of people who value the names of things more than the Things themselves. Progress--envisioned as the age of electricity; changes in burglary; and Nostradamus' prognostications for the future round out the volume. -summary by Sue Anderson

Elizabeth G. Peckham was the co-author of "Communal Life of Yellow-Jacket Wasps"
Fifty Quatrains of Nostradamus was translated by Theophilus de Garencières
(4 hr 23 min)

Chapters

The Black Walnut 4:50 Read by April6090
Can Radio Ignite Balloons 17:47 Read by Availle
Communal Life of Yellow-Jacket Wasps 21:11 Read by Sue Anderson
Fifty Quatrains from Nostradamus 14:49 Read by Craig Campbell
A Forest Fire in Northern Wisconsin 16:22 Read by Phil Schempf
The Great Alaskan Earthquakes of 1899, Part 1 28:38 Read by J. M. Smallheer
The Great Alaskan Earthquakes of 1899, Part 2 10:42 Read by J. M. Smallheer
A Guide to the Giant's Causeway, Ireland 36:13 Read by Colleen McMahon
The Krakatoa Sunsets 16:15 Read by Sue Anderson
The Loss of His Majesty's Frigate Anson 21:38 Read by Lynne T
Modern Burglar's Strange Evolution 6:57 Read by Colleen McMahon
Of Things and Words 17:07 Read by Craig Campbell
Painting Reflections 16:20 Read by Sue Anderson
Progress 4:31 Read by April6090
The Virgin Averse to Matrimony 30:11 Read by Craig Campbell