The Classic Tales Podcasts and Audiobooks

During the month of November, we have all been enjoying stories from The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle .  These are the first three stories in the series, Silver Blaze , The Yellow Face , and The Stockbroker's Clerk .  B.J. knew we hadn't had mysteries in a while, and we needed a break from all the horror stories.  I am delighted, as I truly enjoy following Holmes and Watson on their adventures.  All of these stories are masterfully written.  They are complex, witty and often break the pattern of a basic mystery. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was born in 1859 in Scotland.  He was a multi-faceted man.  After a rough childhood dealing with an alcoholic and insane father, he was educated at a Jesuit school in England, where he had trouble adjusting to the rigid lifestyle. About these experiences, he wrote, "Perhaps it was good for me that the times were hard, for I was wild, full blooded and a trifle reckless. But the situation c...

B.J. Harrison and The Classic Tales continue the Halloween Fright Extravaganza this week with a Bram Stoker 's short story called "The Squaw."  B.J. found this story when he picked up a book of short stories on a recent trip to the Shakespearean Festival with his wife.  I wonder if they slept that night. It is a story of a couple in the midst of their honeymoon who join forces with a colorful American cowboy in their tour of Germany. Jokes turn into accidents, and accidents engender thoughts of hate and revenge in the mind of a black cat. By the time the party tours the medieval torture chamber, tensions run very high, indeed. You know Bram Stoker best as the author of Dracula , the vampire who wanted to move from Transylvania to England.  But if you are a fellow avid listener of The Classic Tales, you also know him as from his short tale,  Dracula's Gues t . Dracula's Guest was originally slated to appear in the novel, but was cut and later released a...

 This week, B.J. and  The Classic Tales continue their spooky story Halloween fest with M.R. James ' ghost story "Casting The Runes." English writer M.R. James broke the mold of the Gothic ghost story by making the settings and devices much more realistic.  The stories took place in small villages, and there was often an item of ancient power (often a book) that set the story rolling.  This use of ancient objects led James' stories to be called "antiquarian ghost stories." Montague Rhodes James was a scholar and provost of King's College in Cambridge and then of Eaton College.  His academic life revolved around the medieval era.  It was through his studies that he came to choose that time period as a setting for his stories, and how he became fascinated by evil and magical objects which he would then  feature in his ghost stories. As I mentioned earlier, James wanted his stories to be believable. He said he wanted to "put the reader into th...

This week, B.J. and The Classic Tales Podcast continue its run of scary to terrifying stories in honor of Halloween with O. Henry's "The Furnished Room."  It is a dark story of search and suicide. His stories are known mostly for the plot twists, which work great in horror fiction. O. Henry was an American writer of the early 20th century.  He was also a pharmacist, a banker and an  embezzler *.  B.J. chose this story because it is generally held to be Henry's best horror tale.  About the writing and style he said: "his command of language is extensively demonstrated, generating a wonderful atmosphere."  This story, published in O. Henry's second collection of stories Four Million , was hailed by fellow writer and humorist Stephen Leacock as possibly the darkest story he ever wrote and his best work. If you enjoyed this story, make sure you catch up with the past couple of weeks at The Classic Tales Podcast which feature H.P. Lovecraft and Am...