AudioBooks

WHEN GOD WAS A RABBIT is an incredibly exciting debut from an extraordinary new voice in fiction. Spanning four decades, from 1968 onwards, this is the story of a fabulous but flawed family and the slew of ordinary and extraordinary incidents that shape their everyday lives. It is a story about childhood and growing up, loss of innocence, eccentricity, familial ties and friendships, love and life. Stripped down to its bare bones, it's about the unbreakable bond between a brother and sister.

It is 1948 in an England still shaken by war. At 21 Nevern Street, London, Queenie Bligh takes into her house lodgers who have recently arrived from Jamaica. What else could she do when her husband, Bernard, never returned from his RAF wartime posting to India? Among her tenants are Gilbert and his new wife Hortense. Gilbert Joseph was one of the several thousand Jamaican men who joined the RAF to fight against Hitler. Returning to England after the war he finds himself treated very differently now that he is no longer in a blue un... read more

It is 1948, and England is recovering from a war. But at 21 Nevern Street, London, the conflict has only just begun. Queenie Bligh's neighbours do not approve when she agrees to take in Jamaican lodgers, but Queenie doesn't know when her husband will return, or if he will come back at all. What else can she do? Gilbert Joseph was one of the several thousand Jamaican men who joined the RAF to fight against Hitler. Returning to England as a civilian he finds himself treated very differently. It's desperation that makes him remember a... read more

It's 3 a.m. and Elizabeth Gilbert is sobbing on the bathroom floor. She's in her thirties, she has a husband, a house, they're trying for a baby - and she doesn't want any of it. A bitter divorce and a turbulent love affair later, she emerges battered and bewildered and realises it is time to pursue her own journey in search of three things she has been missing: pleasure, devotion and balance. So she travels to Rome, where she learns Italian from handsome, brown-eyed identical twins and gains twenty-five pounds, an ashram in India,... read more

Ten classics on CD Pride & Prejudice Wuthering Heights Frankenstein Great Expectations Northanger Abbey Crime & Punishment Middlemarch Oliver Twist The Mayor of Casterbridge Jane Eyre

Survivor, genius, perfumer, killer: this is Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. He is abandoned on the filthy streets of Paris as a child, but grows up to discover he has an extraordinary gift: a sense of smell more powerful than any other human's. Soon, he is creating the most sublime fragrances in all the city. Yet there is one odour he cannot capture. It is exquisite, magical: the scent of a young virgin. And to get it he must kill. And kill. And kill... MP3-CD Unabridged. Approx 8.5 hours.

Charlie Cook is reading a book about a pirate captain, who is reading a book about Goldilocks, who is reading about a knight, who is reading about a frog. There are pirates and ghosts, knights and dragons, crocodiles and aiens all waiting. Funny, playful and full of surprises, there is something for everyone in Charlie's amazing book. Performed by Imelda Staunton and Steve Pacey.

Two stories. One Grail. Discover the secret of the Labyrinth...When Dr Alice Tanner discovers two skeletons during an archaeological dig in southern France, she unearths a link with a horrific and brutal past. But it's not just the sight of the shattered bones that makes her uneasy; there's an overwhelming sense of evil in the tomb that Alice finds hard to shake off, even in the bright French sunshine. Puzzled by the words carved inside the chamber, Alice has an uneasy feeling that she has disturbed something which was meant to rem... read more

"One of the smartest, funniest and most sweet-natured people I ever encountered! Her voice lit up Radio 4's News Quiz, she was brilliant on QI and she tirelessly travelled the UK as one of the most respected and loved comics on the circuit." Stephen Fry Stephen Fry spoke for much of middle England when he responded to the news of Linda Smith's tragic death of cancer, aged 48. Linda was the brilliant mainstay of Radio 4s The News Quiz, Just a Minute, and I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue for many years. She was just establishing her ca... read more

5XCD Nature or nurture: what makes a monster? Tackling the ultimate tabooo - that a mother can't dislike her own child - a brutally compelling book that encourages the reader to engage with a most contested moral dilemma Like all fine novels, this is not a book of sociological generalisations. It is a book about individuals: in this case a suburban family of four. Kevin Khatchadourian killed several of his fellow high-school students, a cafeteria worker and a teacher, shortly before his sixteenth birthday. He is visited in pri... read more

Marie Antoinette's dramatic life-story continues to arouse mixed emotions. To many people, she is still 'la reine mechante', whose extravagance and frivolity helped to bring down the French monarchy; her indifference to popular suffering epitomised by the (apocryphal) words: 'let them eat cake'. Others are equally passionate in her defence: to them, she is a victim of misogyny. Antonia Fraser examines her influence over the king, Louis XVI, the accusations and sexual slurs made against her, her patronage of the arts which enhanced ... read more

When ruined artist, Butcher Bones, moves to the country fate plays a wild card Artist, Butcher Bones and his idiot-savant brother Hugh, recount their adventures after Butcher's plummeting prices and spiralling drink problem force them to retreat to northern NSW where the formerly famous artist is reduced to acting as caretaker for his patron, and nurse to his brother. One night a mysterious American beauty, Marlene, turns up claiming that the brothers' neighbour owns an original Jacques Leibovitz and she sets in motion a chain o... read more

Alessandra is not quite fifteen when her prosperous merchant father brings a young painter back with him from Holland to adorn the walls of the new family chapel. She is fascinated by his talents and envious of his abilities and opportunities to paint to the glory of God. Soon her love of art and her lively independence are luring her into closer involvement with all sorts of taboo areas of life. On excursions into the streets of night-time Florence she observes a terrible evil stalking the city and witnesses the rise of the fiery ... read more

Television soundtracks of Alan Bennett's poignant, observant monologues. This second group of monologues from Alan Bennett retains the gripping stories, intensity of delivery and masterly style of the originals. The suburban normality of the world his characters inhabit once again belies their lives of secrets, revelations, fears, crimes and passions. They tell their stories, and in doing so reveal more than they know of the humour, passion and sadness of their lives. Alongside the original pieces, these superb monologues form o... read more

Michael is a violinist from Rochdale. He plays in a trio in Vienna with Julia, a pianist, and they are much taken with each other. But the trio splits up and they go their separate ways. One day in London, from the top of a double-decker bus, Michael catches a glimpse of Julia. They eventually meet up, and she tells him that she is contentedly married and has a child. Michael persuades her to visit Vienna and Venice with him. He discovers that Julia has become deaf, though her deafness comes and goes. When Michael reads a letter fr... read more

Studious biographer Margaret Lea is shocked when she receives a letter from renowned novelist, Vida Winter. The inimitable Winter is aging and ill, and she beseeches Margaret to come to her home and hear her story. It is the unforgettable tale of the doomed and beautiful Angelfield family, and Lea is immediately as captivated by the account as she is by her extraordinary storyteller. But she is also skeptical, and becomes determined to discover how much of this tragic story is real. As Margaret gets closer to ascertaining the truth... read more

An atmospheric, vibrant and moving first novel from an exciting new author. On the brink of a life-changing decision, Alexis Fielding longs to find out about her mother's past. But Sofia has never spoken of it. All she admits to is growing up in a small Cretan village before moving to London. When Alexis decides to visit Crete, however, Sofia gives her daughter a letter to take to an old friend, and promises that through her she will learn more. Arriving in Plaka, Alexis is astonished to see that it lies a stone's throw from the ti... read more

Move over Grumpy Old Men - it's time for the Grumpy Old Women to have their say in this hilarious guide, read by the narrator of the BBC TV series Alison Steadman. Ok, enough is enough. Grumpy Old Men have had their turn at complaining and now the Grumpy Old Women are taking over. It's about time the world knew what struggles and trials they have to go through. Not only do they multi-task in double figures every day, they have to learn to cope with their changing bodies (it's just not possible to wear kitten heels and sexy clothes ... read more

The television soundtracks of Alan Bennett's poignant, observant monologues: tales of loneliness and eccentricity. This title features: A Chip in the Sugar with Alan Bennett, A Lady of Letters with Patricia Routledge, Bed Among the Lentils with Anna Massey, Soldiering On with Stephanie Cole, Her Big Chance with Julie Walters, and A Cream Cracker Under the Settee with Thora Hird. Alan Bennett' six monologues are poignant, funny and written with the author's powerful insight into human nature. As a TV series, a book, a stage p... read more

William Thornhill is sentenced in 1806 to be transported to New South Wales for the term of his natural life. With his wife Sal and children in tow, he arrives in a harsh land that feels at first like a death sentence. But among the convicts there is a whisper that freedom can be bought, an opportunity to start afresh. Winner of ABIA Australian Book of the Year 2006 Shortlisted for Booker Prize for Fiction 2006 Running time 10 hours 43 minutes on 2 x MP3s.