NLS: Talking Book Topics

by Anthony Read and David Fisher

read by Michele Schaeffer

5 cassettes

Traces India's transition to democratic self-rule after the British departure in 1947 and chronicles the internal struggles that followed. Examines the inability of the leaders--Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Mohammad Jinnah, and Lord Mountbatten--to coordinate efforts to bring the numerous ethnic and religious groups together. 1997.

by Norman Lewis

read by David Cutler

2 cassettes

Memoirs of a British travel writer emphasizing places visited and people encountered. His peripatetic lifestyle and five-decade search for unspoiled locales include trips to a remote Guatemalan coffee farm, a Welsh island fort, Havana (where he meets Hemingway), and Goa. 1996.

by Anthony R. Birley

read by Ted Stoddard

4 cassettes

Biography of the Roman emperor Hadrian (A.D. 76-138), who traveled extensively throughout his empire and constructed massive walls to identify its boundaries. Hadrian promoted Greek cultural influences and attacked Judaea when the Jews resisted Hellenic tradition. Investigates his personal life with his lover Antinous, a Bithynian youth whose death devastated the emperor. 1997.

by Jack Olsen

read by Barbara Pinolini

2 cassettes

Narrative of the investigation of a band of gypsies who preyed on elderly retirees and ultimately murdered them for monetary gain. Aided by a female private detective from San Francisco, Fay "Rat Dog" Faron, the police tracked the Tene Bimbos for five years before charging them with murder. Strong language and violence. 1998.

by Adrian Desmond

read by Gary Telles

7 cassettes in 2 containers

Biography of the nineteenth-century scientist who coined the term "agnostic" and stirred the working class with the theory of evolution. Thomas Huxley supported Charles Darwin in his struggles in the 1860s and shocked Victorian society with his scandalous views. Discusses the social milieu of the time and the increasing importance of scientists. 1997.

by Malin Dollinger and others

read by Gregory Gorton

9 cassettes in 2 containers

Synopses of common cancers and how they are treated. Discusses how appropriate therapies are chosen and offers patients coping mechanisms for dealing with the physical and emotional effects of the disease and the treatments. Explores quality-of-life issues and advances in research, diagnosis, and treatment. 1997.

by Paul Raeburn

read by Jake Williams

2 cassettes

A National Geographic chronicle of Mars exploration. Focuses on the Viking missions of the 1970s, whose primary goal was the search for life, and on the July 4, 1997, Pathfinder landing on Mars's surface. Explains the design, engineering, and results of the projects. Discusses plans for future missions. For senior high and older readers. 1998.

by Andrew Feldman

read by Mark Ashby

1 cassette

Director of sports medicine at St. Vincent's Hospital in New York provides instructions on self-diagnosing injuries, determining if medical care or self-treatment is called for, and performing self-treatments and exercises. 1999.

by American Diabetes Association

read by Michael Consoli

3 cassettes

This guide to managing diabetes explains the two types of the disorder, their causes and symptoms, and the importance of maintaining overall good health. The contributors also discuss handling emergencies, planning meals, selecting diabetic tools, controlling costs, and evaluating health care providers. 1997.

by Edward Klein

read by Jill Ferris

3 cassettes

Biography of former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy from the time of her husband's assassination until her own death in 1994 at age sixty-four. Reconstructs her life with various suitors, including her second husband Aristotle Onassis and longtime friend Maurice Templesman. Describes her relationships with and hopes for her children. 1998.

by John Taliaferro

read by Constance Crawford

4 cassettes

Biography of the American entrepreneur and pulp-fiction writer who published Tarzan of the Apes in 1912, when he was thirty-six. Describes how he capitalized on his creation, turning Tarzan into a popular twentieth-century icon. Recalls his private life--his two marriages and his children--and his career. 1999.

by William Poundstone

read by Ray Childs

4 cassettes

Biography of the celebrity scientist who sought evidence of extraterrestrial life. Discusses how the topic's appeal made Sagan rich and famous. Covers his scientific and media career; details his personal life and how he used his political influence to support the space program and publicize his concerns. 1999.

by Rosemary Clooney

read by Anne Hancock

3 cassettes

Seventyish Clooney discusses her singing career (which began in her teens with her sister), love affairs and famous friends, marriage and five children with philandering movie star José Ferrer, and her 1968 pill-induced breakdown. The nineties brought both marriage to an old flame and a career comeback that included multiple Grammy nominations. 1999.

by Zane Grey and Helen Cody Wetmore

read by Don Feldheim

2 cassettes

An account of the adventurous life of Buffalo Bill Cody as narrated by the sister of the legendary Western figure. Traces his childhood in rural Iowa through his years as a mule driver on the Kansas plains, Pony Express rider, Indian fighter, and performer in the world-famous Wild West Show. 1996.

by Serena Vitale

read by Mark Ashby

2 cassettes

While focusing on the 1837 duel that ended the Russian poet's life, Vitale portrays nineteenth-century St. Petersburg society. Uses research based on diaries, documents, and letters to chronicle events leading up to the combat. Profiles adventurer Georges d'Anthès, who killed Pushkin, and the woman whose charms provoked the event, Pushkin's wife, Natalya. 1999.

by Diane Rehm

read by Kimberly Schraf

2 cassettes

National Public Radio talk show host describes her life and career, including a somewhat troubled childhood with her Washington, D.C., Christian Arab family. Later, as her successful D.C. show went national, Rehm began a battle with a puzzling malady that causes tremors in her voice. 1999.

by John Lukacs

read by Rick Rohan

3 cassettes

Ordinary characters and a few notable historical figures appear in a series of vignettes portraying the decline in manners, especially in the United States; each chapter covers one year, from 1901 to 1969. A dialog following each scenario allows the author to debate his views with an alter ego. 1998.

by Hillary Davis

read by Barbara Pinolini

2 cassettes

A former equity portfolio manager takes the reader inside the world of traders in the financial markets. Describes their motivations, their ethics, and the dynamic, competitive arena in which they work. Explains how traders influence the price of everything we buy. Projects future trends in the field. 1998.

by Mary S. Lovell

read by Patricia Kilgarriff

7 cassettes in 2 containers

Dual biography of Richard Burton, a nineteenth-century writer, explorer, and translator, and his wife, Isabel. Traces their youth in Europe, his translation of the erotic literature The Arabian Nights and Kama Sutra into English, and expeditions in East Africa, India, and Egypt. Discusses the supportive relationship between the couple. 1998.

by Paul Hofmann

read by Bill Wallace

2 cassettes

A former New York Times bureau chief who lived in Rome off and on for over five decades portrays events of one year in the mid-1990s. Vignettes depict city residents' nonchalant attitude toward the pope, the erratic mail service, the growing number of young pensioners, and a local opera company. 1997.

by Judith Thurman

read by Gabriella Cavallero

5 cassettes

A biography of the provocative early-twentieth-century French author. Provides psychological insights into Colette's marriages, music hall career, affairs with women and younger men, and literary works, such as Gigi (RC 12794) and Sido (RC 32504). Bestseller 1999.

by Philip J. Deloria

read by Bill Wallace

2 cassettes

Explores Anglo Americans' penchant for emulating Native Americans--adopting their attire, traditions, and images. Traces this pattern from the Boston Tea Party to the formation of various cultural organizations throughout U.S. history. Avers that such "Indian play" was essential to the development of a national identity. 1998.

by Linda Pastan

read by Gabriella Cavallero

1 cassette

A collection of short poems that probe the experiences, thoughts, and feelings of everyday life. The title poem is a deft work on the theme of Henri Rousseau's painting by that name. 1998.

by Patrick Marnham

read by Peter Gil

3 cassettes

Biography of the early twentieth-century Mexican muralist. Describes his friendship with Picasso in Paris, his communist leanings, and his series of love affairs, including his tumultuous relationship with Frida Kahlo. Discusses his devotion to his art and his tendency to embellish his past. 1998.

by Ray Robinson

read by Michael Scherer

2 cassettes

Robinson briefly touches on Knute Rockne's childhood and playing years, then focuses on the Norwegian-born football coach's career at Notre Dame from 1918 to 1930. Describes Rockne as a "complicated, (and) enormously ambitious man," who was a master of player motivation. 1999.

by George Santayana

read by David Elias

2 cassettes

Essays by a Spanish-born philosopher on the culture of his adopted homeland, the United States. Santayana coins the term "genteel tradition" to describe a divided American mentality--progressive in practical affairs but conservative in religion, literature, and "the higher things of the mind." 1967.

by Edwin P. Hoyt

read by Robert Sams

2 cassettes

An account of Japan's kamikaze special attack forces that were formed to defend their homeland against the approaching Allies in October 1944. Explains how the belief that their self-sacrifice would ensure an eternal reward enabled the young aviators to inflict damage on three hundred warships and to kill or wound fifteen thousand troops. 1983.

by Michael Pauls and Dana Facaros

read by Gary Telles

1 cassette

Since more families are considering Mars for their vacations, the authors have developed a humorous yet factual guide to educate tourists (and others) about the Red Planet. Describes Martian geography, the history of Mars in myth and popular culture, and its space-age exploration. For senior high and older readers. 1997.

by Earl A. Grollman and Max Malikow

read by Candy Shannon

1 cassette

Grief counselors present a thorough discussion of suicide specifically for teenagers. Examines survivors' feelings and how to cope with those reactions, why people commit suicide and how to help someone suicidal, religious issues, and popular misconceptions. Lists additional resources. For junior and senior high readers. 1999.

by Barry Gough

read by Bill Wallace

2 cassettes

portrait of the intrepid Scottish explorer who ventured across North America in 1793, driven by dreams of wealth from the fur trade. His efforts to establish British control over northwestern trade routes inspired both the 1803 Louisiana Purchase and the 1805 Lewis and Clark expedition. 1997.

by Harvey Levenstein

read by Bill Wallace

3 cassettes

Examines the changes in the types of American travelers and their motives for touring France during the first 150 years of U.S. history. Initially an experience reserved for the wealthy, tourism becomes increasingly open to the middle class as cultural interests are gradually supplanted by recreational travel. 1998.

by Diane Wood Middlebrook

read by Catherine Byers

2 cassettes

Describes the life and career of jazz musician Billy Tipton, who passed as a man during her entire career, fooling friends, numerous wives, and adopted sons. Born Dorothy in 1914, Tipton used her Billy identity from age nineteen until her death in 1989. Some strong language and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1998.

by Cameron Crowe

read by Gary Telles

3 cassettes

Crowe, himself a movie director, recounts the interviews he conducted with Billy Wilder over a period of more than a year, when Wilder was already in his nineties. Topics include movie stars, screenwriting, set designs, studios, behind-the-scenes stories, and films of the late twentieth century. Bestseller 1999.

by William B. Karesh

read by Michael Russotto

2 cassettes

Autobiography of a veterinarian for the Wildlife Conservation Society who travels throughout the world for the association and for other government agencies. He describes the animals he treats as well as the occupational hazards of disease, attack--both human and animal--and deadly predators. 1999.

by Andrew Heiskell

read by Michael Scherer

2 cassettes

A media tycoon recounts his path from obscurity to the chairmanship of Time Inc. Traces his nomadic youth in Europe, his arrival in America during the depression, and his meteoric ascent in the publishing industry. Offers candid insights into the risky and intensely competitive magazine business. 1998.

by Tom King

read by Michael Scherer

4 cassettes

Discusses the show business mogul's career, which began in the William Morris mail room and grew to include pivotal roles in the record industry, Broadway, and the movies. Also examines the billionaire's personal life, including a 1970s relationship with Cher and the public announcement of his homosexuality in 1992. Strong language. Bestseller 2000.

by Leo Marks

read by George Holmes

4 cassettes

Witty memoir of a British cryptographer's exploits during World War II. Describes how, as a brash youth, he revitalized the Special Operations Executive--a unit for secret agents parachuting into Europe--by devising a code issued on lightweight silk. Discusses other inhouse efforts to simplify and expedite messages from those in the field. 1998.

by Robert W. Gutman

read by Dennis Rooney

8 cassettes in 2 containers

Presents the Austrian composer's life and music within the political and social context of eighteenth-century Europe. Describes his early tours as a child prodigy and his evolution as a performer and composer. Analyzes Mozart's work and its reception by his contemporaries. 1999.

by Bob Rahn

read by Rick Rohan

2 cassettes

Memoir of an experimental test pilot who flew attack and fighter aircraft for twenty-two years before joining the aerospace program. Rahn's lifetime interest in aviation began in 1927 when Charles Lindbergh visited his hometown. Recounts numerous inspiring and hair-raising experiences aloft. 1997.

by Stuart A. Herrington

read by Steven Carpenter

3 cassettes

A U.S. Army colonel recounts his real-life espionage investigations during the Cold War. His counterintelligence duties in West Berlin resulted in two major cases: the exposure and capture of Soviet spies Clyde Conrad and James Hall. 1999.

by David Morgan

read by David Cutler

2 cassettes

Thirty years after the comedy group was formed, its members look back on their collaborations. Strong language. 1999.

by Katherine Ketcham and William F. Asbury

read by Gregory Gorton

3 cassettes

Using scientific research, the authors make the case that alcoholism is a medical disease resulting from abnormalities in brain chemistry. Explains how to diagnose the condition and proposes that treatment programs include psychological and spiritual elements. Investigates fallacies promoted by the liquor industry. Foreword by former Senator George McGovern. 2000.

by Lyndall Gordon

read by Faith Potts

4 cassettes

portraits of two women--both meeting untimely deaths--who exerted lasting influence on James's literary work. One is his free-spirited cousin Mary (Minny) Temple, who died of tuberculosis at age twenty-four in 1870. The second is Constance Fenimore Woolson, an American writer James knew from 1879 to her death in 1894 in Venice. 1998.

by Alvin Silverstein and others

read by Rick Rohan

1 cassette

A concise account of the AIDS virus, similar to the authors' previous title, AIDS: Deadly Threat (RC 25945). Includes a definition and research update on the disease, as well as information about the history, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of the illness. For senior high and older readers. 1999.

by Stephen L. Sass

read by Mark Ashby

2 cassettes

Chronicles the role of physical substances in the evolution of human civilization, asserting that "materials not only affect the destinies of nations but define the periods within which they rise and fall." Traces developments from the military use of iron during biblical times to the reliance on silicon in the information age. 1998.

by David Howarth

read by Ted Stoddard

2 cassettes

Chronicles a daring covert landing of Allied commandos in German-occupied Norway in 1943. The small force of invaders was soon betrayed and, except for one, Jan Baalsrud, killed by the Nazis. Recounts Baalsrud's his harrowing escape, aided by courageous Norwegian villagers, to neutral Sweden. Violence. 1955.

by Victor Croizat

read by Michael Scherer

2 cassettes

Memoir of a Marine Corps officer who served his country in war and diplomacy for twenty-six years. Recounts the Pacific island assaults in World War II using amphibious craft that he helped develop, his years in diplomatic liaison around the world, and his time in Vietnam before retiring in 1966. 1997.

by Caroline Fraser

read by Mary Kane

4 cassettes

Fraser, a former Christian Scientist, offers a history of the Church of Christ, Scientist. Following a biographical account of founder Mary Baker Eddy, whose doctrine states that "man is a perfect manifestation of a perfect God," Fraser traces the church's development from a small, peculiar sect to a politically powerful religion, now in decline. 1999.

by Ted Williams

read by Rick Rohan

2 cassettes (Reissue)

Autobiography of top-hitting baseball player Ted Williams, beginning with his childhood in San Diego and his first contract--at age seventeen--with the minor-league Padres in 1936 for $150 per month. Reminisces about his career with the Boston Red Sox, his military service, and his years as a manager. 1969.

by William Berger

read by Gordon Gould

3 cassettes

After a summary of Richard Wagner's life, the author examines his mature operas. Provides a guide to performances of such works as The Flying Dutchman, Lohengrin, Tristan und Isolde, and Der Ring des Nibelungen. Concludes with commentary on Wagner's influence on everyday culture. 1998.

by Henry Louis Gates

read by Ken Kliban

2 cassettes

A Harvard professor's travels on the African continent, exploring ideas about archaeology, ancient civilizations, history, and cultural identity. Discusses the heritage of Nubia, Ethiopia, and Timbuktu and the impact of Swahili as a unifying factor in East Africa. Concludes his travelog in South Africa and Zimbabwe. 1999.

by Marina Warner

read by Frank Coffee

3 cassettes

Examines art, folktales, and myths for themes of terror usually manifest in male figures such as bogeys, giants, ogres, and cannibals. Develops into "a cultural exploration of fear, its vehicles, and its ambiguous charge of pleasure and pain." Spans material dating from ancient Greece to modern Hollywood. 1998.

by John Ramsey and Patsy Ramsey

read by Kristin Allison

3 cassettes

John and Patsy Ramsey describe their ordeal following the murder of their daughter, JonBenét, on Christmas Day 1996. They discuss the events following the discovery of a ransom note, the police investigation, and the accusations made by the media condemning them, and they offer possible theories about what actually happened. Bestseller 2000.

by David McCumber

read by Chuck Benson

3 cassettes

A journalist's memoir of his year spent working as a hired hand on a central Montana ranch. At forty-four the author quit his job, divorced, and returned to the land of his grandfather to experience the life of a cowboy. 1999.

by Sophocles

read by John Horton

1 cassette

Modern translation by Herbert Golder and Richard Pevear of a lesser-known Sophocles tragedy in which the valiant hero Aias is betrayed by his comrades, who secretly confer the dead Achilles' armor on Aias's rival, Odysseus. The shamed Aias sees no honorable course but suicide. 1999.

by Kenneth R. Pelletier

read by Butch Hoover

4 cassettes

Director of Stanford's complementary and alternative medicine program discusses pros and cons of various therapies including traditional Chinese medicine, Western herbal medicine, naturopathy, homeopathy, chiropractic, dietary supplements, Ayurvedic medicine, yoga, spirituality, and more. Advises which therapies work best for specific conditions. 2000.

by Julian Whitaker

read by Butch Hoover

2 cassettes

Outlines a program designed to reduce high blood pressure without medication or with less medication. Components include reducing body fat, taking supplements, stopping smoking and drinking, eating low-glycemic foods, drinking more water, exercising, and trying alternative therapies, including acupuncture. Includes recipes. 2000.

by Leslie R. Schover and Anthony J. Thomas

read by John Richardson

3 cassettes

A clinical psychologist and a urologist, both specializing in infertility, describe the male reproductive system and the workup of tests for those experiencing infertility. Discusses various diagnoses and their treatments, assisted reproductive technology, donor sperm, adoption, living without children, and coping with infertility. 2000.

by John Wilson and others

read by Madelyn Buzzard

2 cassettes

Five expert fishermen present a guide to many aspects of their sport--types of tackle and bait, various techniques, popular species, and how to "read the water." Emphasizes English approaches but notes comparisons with North American waters. Includes tips on finding good spots. 1997.

edited by David Halberstam

read by Bruce Huntey

6 cassettes

A selection of more than fifty articles describing twentieth-century sporting events. Includes authors Gay Talese, Tom Wolfe, Mike Royko, Ring Lardner, Jimmy Breslin, John Updike, and George Plimpton. Profiles athletes such as Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Mohammad Ali, Joe DiMaggio, and Jackie Robinson. Some strong language. 1999.

by William Goldman

read by Ray Hagen

3 cassettes

Screenwriter Goldman continues his revelations about Hollywood moviemaking begun in Adventures in the Screen Trade (RC 21633). Critically analyzes films and discusses the pros and cons of the screenwriter's life. Some strong language. Bestseller 2000.

by Meg Cox

read by Laura Giannarelli

3 cassettes

When starting her family, the author researched rituals of kinship, which she presents here in three sections covering: the psychology, history, and sociology of rituals and how they benefit children; the wide variety of family traditions that exist; and the creation and change of such practices. 1998.

by Elizabeth Hess

read by Nanette Savard

2 cassettes

Explores behind the scenes in an animal shelter in upstate New York. Discusses the interaction between animals and humans and evaluates the interworking between those who discard and those who care for these creatures. Observes that families with infants and people with limited time should not adopt pets. 1998.

by Edward J. Renehan

read by Peter Gil

2 cassettes

portrait of a privileged and patriotic leading family whose men served and sacrificed in America's conflicts. Chronicles Theodore Roosevelt's derring-do in the Spanish-American War and the valiant service of his four sons in World War I, resulting in the death of one and serious injury to two others. 1998.

by Tom Shachtman

read by Mark Ashby

2 cassettes

Historical survey of Western scientists' efforts to control cold. Discusses Boyle's experiments in the seventeenth century, the invention of the sealed glass thermometer, the work of Fahrenheit and Celsius, the discovery of refrigeration, twentieth-century research on attaining absolute zero, and related topics of superconductivity and superfluidity. 1999.

by Tennessee Williams

read by Kimberly Schraf

3 cassettes

Three classic plays by the Pulitzer Prize-winning dramatist. In Sweet Bird of Youth, a gigolo returns to his southern hometown. The Night of the Iguana is set in a run-down Mexican tourist hotel. In The Rose Tattoo, a Sicilian widow finds love. Some violence and some strong language. 1961.

by Robert D. Ballard and Rick Archbold

read by Ted Stoddard

2 cassettes

Fifty-six years after the fateful World War II sea and air conflict, underwater explorer Ballard returns in search of the lost ships. Describes the events of June 4, 1942, and the author's discovery of sunken remains. 1999.

by Dean Baker and Mark Weisbrot

read by Bob Moore

2 cassettes

Challenges the widespread belief that the Social Security system is a demographic "time bomb" that will become insolvent by 2034. Assuming continued economic growth at the 1998 rate, the authors argue, the fund will never run short of money. They suggest that some "reformers" have ulterior motives. 1999.

by Roland Dallas

read by David Elias

2 cassettes

Biography of the late king of Jordan, including his family origins, his four marriages, and the major events of his forty-six-year reign up to his death from cancer in 1999. Describes Hussein's achievements--which include a stable economy, strong public institutions, and peace--along with his failures. 1999.

edited by Patricia Foster and Mary Swander

read by Kimberly Schraf

2 cassettes

Explores strategies of recovery for people with chronic illnesses or long-term injuries from accidents. The writers, including such literary artists as Jane Smiley, Dennis Covington, and Andrew Sullivan, discuss disability and recovery in the context of personal experience. Examines the notion that healing through imagination is an act of courage. 1998.

by Marsha Bertrand

read by Gregory Gorton

2 cassettes

Examines economic fraud, a billion-dollar business that victimizes more people than violent crime. Describes Ponzi and pyramid schemes, affinity fraud, and scams involving technology, stocks, commodities, and franchises. Discusses con artists' techniques, how to prevent being duped, and how to react if targeted. 2000.

by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

read by Bob Moore

2 cassettes

Inspired by General Colin Powell, ex-basketball star Abdul-Jabbar volunteers to assist in coaching a high school team on the White Mountain Apache Reservation in Arizona. Over time he learns about the Native American culture and the problems facing many of the young people he encounters. For senior high and older readers. 2000.

by Paul Krugman

read by Ted Stoddard

2 cassettes

A nontechnical analysis of the late-1990s recessions that rocked various Asian and Latin American economies. Argues that the crisis countries were initially victimized by the flight of panicked foreign investors, then further harmed by IMF-imposed restrictions. Prescribes guidelines for restraining capital in a global marketplace. 1999.

by Lawrence Weschler

read by Michael Scherer

1 cassette

portrait of artist J.S.G. Boggs, who was known in the 1980s and 1990s for sketching banknotes and attempting to exchange his handiwork at face value for goods and services. Recounts Boggs's clashes with U.S., British, and other treasury officials. Provides a brief history of money and private citizens' efforts at replication. 1999.

by Eric Newby

read by Graeme Malcolm

2 cassettes

The wry account of an Englishman who leaves the London fashion industry for the adventure of hiking into Nuristan, a remote corner of Afghanistan. Accompanied by a Foreign Service friend, he takes a four-day beginner's course in mountain climbing in Wales before departing on their expedition. 1958.

by Lori Arviso Alvord and Elizabeth Cohen Van Pelt

read by Catherine Byers

2 cassettes

Raised on the reservation near Gallup, New Mexico, half-Navajo Alvord graduated from Dartmouth and then went to Stanford for her medical degree. She describes her career as the first Navajo woman surgeon and her belief that integrating tribal ways into orthodox Western medicine improves healing. 1999.

by Henry David Thoreau

read by Peter Johnson

4 cassettes

Botanical observations and reflections by the author of Walden (RC 15949). Describes the plants, fruits, and nuts of the New England woodlands that Thoreau was examining at the time of his death in 1862. Long unpublished because of editorial difficulties. 2000.

by Bill Bryson

read by John Stratton

3 cassettes

The author of A Walk in the Woods (RC 46519) now chronicles his exploration of Australia. This good-humored traveler relates his outback adventures with anecdotes about the history and local inhabitants. Describes the harsh terrain and hostile wildlife, including crocodiles, poisonous snakes, and attacking seashells. Some strong language. Bestseller 2000.

by Jonathan Weiner

read by Ken Kliban

2 cassettes

Biography of biologist Seymour Benzer, whose groundbreaking work revolutionized the study of genetics. Experimenting on fruit flies at the California Institute of Technology, Benzer and his students developed ideas about the relation between genes and behavior that had far-reaching implications for ethical and social thought as well as biology. 1999.

by T.S. Wiley

read by Bill Wallace

2 cassettes

Diabetes researcher, anthropologist, and medical theorist contends that lack of sleep causes obesity, illness, and, ultimately, death. He recommends that, for at least the colder seven months of the year, people follow nature's cycles by sleeping more than nine hours a night and eating a nutritious, low-carbohydrate diet. 2000.

by Boy Scouts of America

read by Ralph Lowenstein

2 cassettes

This official guide for leaders of Boy Scout troops describes the qualifications and training required for the job as well as the methods, values, and aims of the organization. Explains leadership techniques, program features, awards, uniforms, finances, community service, and other elements of the Scouting program. 1998.

by Philippe Vigand and Stéphane Vigand

read by Nick Sullivan

1 cassette

Chronicles the struggles of a young French couple after Philippe develops a condition known as locked-in syndrome as a result of a ruptured brain artery. Describes their rehabilitation efforts, including the use of a blinking alphabet and a computer. Stéphane reflects on her decision to remain married and on the birth of their child. 1999.

by Andrew Billingsley

read by Bob Moore

2 cassettes

Account of the socially and politically active role of churches in the black community. Asserts that these churches have been a major force in advancing equality and justice for African Americans. Evaluates their effectiveness in relation to family issues, youth development, the elderly, and health care. 1999.

by Emma Ford

read by Vanessa Maroney

2 cassettes

Memoir of an English childhood spent in the country, where the author adored animals and became interested in the training of birds of prey. Ford describes how she learned the ancient sport of falconry in Kent and, along with her husband, opened the British School of Falconry while still a teenager. 1996.

by Kary Mullis

read by Roy Avers

2 cassettes

Reminiscences of the maverick Nobel laureate who invented the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a procedure that revolutionized research on genetic material. Recounts his precocious youth, his involvement in the O.J. Simpson murder trial, and his encounter with aliens. Refutes some widely held theories, including global warming. Some strong language. 1998.

by Clara Belle Hooks Eschmann

read by Janis Gray

2 cassettes

Eschmann, who has lived in Georgia all her life, reminisces and shares favorite recipes. Beginning with the reopening of school in the fall, she carries the reader through a year of activities such as making pull candy, waiting for Santa, having Valentine's Day parties, choosing Easter dresses, picking wildflowers, and attending church picnics. 1998.

by Susan B. Roberts and Melvin B. Heyman

read by Kerry Cundiff

3 cassettes

Authors explain how foods eaten in childhood can have lasting effects on the body's growth and functions--a science called metabolic programming. Avers that a proper youthful diet influences physical and intellectual development, prevents allergies and obesity, teaches children to enjoy healthy foods, and protects against other health problems. 1999.

by Alvin Yudkoff

read by Gary Tipton

3 cassettes

Chronicles the personal life and career of Gene Kelly, beginning with his childhood as part of a family dance troupe in Pittsburgh. Follows his move to Broadway in the 1930s, his first marriage, and his transition to work in films in Hollywood, where he became a sought-after choreographer, actor, and director. 1999.

by Brock Yates

read by Ray Foushee

2 cassettes

An editor of Car and Driver magazine examines the myth and reality behind Harley-Davidson motorcycles, beginning with the company's first machine in 1903. Traces the evolution of bikers' clubs, their image in film, and their eventual revival. Also examines the competition from Japan that almost destroyed the company. Some strong language. 1999.

by Deborah C. Harding

read by Patricia McDermott

1 cassette

Provides the description, history, magical qualities, and folklore for the herbs basil, calendula, chamomile, chives, garlic, lemon balm, mint, oregano, parsley, and thyme. Offers tips on growing, harvesting, and storing them. Lists remedial, culinary, cosmetic, aromatic, ornamental, and other uses for each plant. Includes recipes. 2000.

by James Gleick

read by Barry Bernson

2 cassettes

Examination of why people always seem to be in such a rush, and a look at the technology that has put us in this position. In brief chapters, Gleick explores such topics as the "close" button on an elevator, the television remote-control, the computer, the cell phone, and multitasking. 1999.

by Phyllis Curott

read by Sharon Murray

3 cassettes

Explores the concept, history, and contemporary practice of witchcraft, or Wicca, through a personal encounter with "goddess spirituality"--an ancient belief system that seeks to enhance life through divine empowerment. Chronicles the author's ascent to high priestess; asserts that world harmony is the overriding goal. Some descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1998.

by Leah Komaiko

read by Ann Hodapp

1 cassette

An author of children's books recalls her decision, at forty-four, to conquer her fear of aging by volunteering to help an elderly person. Describes being paired with a ninety-four-year-old blind woman in a nursing home. Conversations from the hundreds of hours they spent together illustrate their deepening friendship. 1999.

by Dillon Banerjee

read by Carol Dines

2 cassettes

Returned Peace Corps volunteer answers questions he had when he joined in the 1990s. Topics include assessing program requirements, packing for the two-year stint, training, living among the locals, managing money, handling medical and safety concerns, maintaining contact with home, and socializing. Appendixes include restrictions related to medical conditions. 2000.

by Roger D. Blackwell

read by Jack Fox

2 cassettes

Details 1990s trends in retail industry and advises merchants to initiate consumer-driven policies in the twenty-first century. Explores customers' knowledge and improved access to information about merchandise availability and competitive prices. Avers that the author's strategies have helped maximize profits for such companies as Wal-Mart, Kinko's, and The Gap. 1997.

by Gerald A. Melchiode

read by Jack Fox

2 cassettes

A psychiatrist involved with early Viagra studies describes the medication as being of "vast indisputable importance." However, he emphasizes the advisability of exploring the underlying causes of sexual dysfunction, rather than stopping at the temporary fix of Viagra. Some explicit descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Karen Zeinert

read by Carol Dines

1 cassette

Surveys the issue of suicide, including its history, causes, and psychology. Includes information about the right-to-die debate, assisted suicide, and survivors of the deceased. For junior and senior high readers. 1999.

edited by Richard Ford

read by Randy Atcher

2 cassettes

Seventeen sports stories of the year highlighting different aspects of athletics including a female perspective on shooting hoops, the rivalry between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, Canadian junior league hockey, and Michael Jordan's last game. Includes writers David Halberstam, the late Shirley Povich, John McPhee, and David Mamet. 1999.

by David B. Sicilia and Jeffrey L. Cruikshank

read by Butch Hoover

2 cassettes

Analyzes the writings and speeches of Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve System since 1987; assesses the impact of his words on American and global financial markets. Probes his philosophy on economic and social issues; provides tips for investors, policymakers, and the public on how to anticipate the effects of his pronouncements. 2000.

by Douglas Frantz and Catherine Collins

read by Jack Fox

3 cassettes

portrays the authors' experiences after moving their family to the Florida town created by the Walt Disney Company. Celebration was built on the five cornerstones of education, wellness, technology, the sense of place, and community; its first residents arrived in 1996. Assesses its successes and failures, including problems in construction and schooling. 1999.

by Anthony Burgess

read by Fred Major

3 cassettes

Essays from the 1980s and early 1990s offer a look into Burgess's life from his childhood in Manchester through his expatriate years in France. Includes reflections on the British Royals, a comical account of a trip to Puerto Rico, a piece about Wagner's "Ring," and comments on first novels. 1998.

by Robert C. Marsh

read by Roy Avers

3 cassettes

Music critic Marsh presents a biography of the American conductor along with reports of conversations between them over a period of nearly twenty-five years. Levine expresses his opinions on composers, favorite pieces, live performances, and other musical topics. Contains a Levine discography from 1970 to 1998. 1998.

by Rod Smolla

read by Gregory Gorton

2 cassettes

Account of prosecuting the publishers of a how-to book, Hit Man, after its instructions were followed in a triple homicide. Recalls that Lawrence Horn's ex-wife, brain-damaged son, and the boy's nurse were killed by Horn's hit man in 1993. Smolla represented the victims' families to prove the publisher criminally exploited First Amendment freedoms. Some strong language. 1999.

by Gabor Maté

read by Jim Leary

3 cassettes

Canadian doctor advises parents of children with attention deficit disorder to address issues of psychological security, family relationships, lifestyle, and self-esteem, rather than to rely on medication for controlling the child's behavior. Posits that ADD is a problem of society and human development, rather than a medical ailment. 1999.

by T.D. Jakes

read by Bill Wallace

2 cassettes

A Christian minister and author of The Lady, Her Lover, and Her Lord (RC 50543) offers advice on realizing one's full potential by setting goals and jettisoning toxic relationships. Encourages readers to take control of their futures by minimizing their load and developing a winning life plan. 1999.

edited by Farah J. Griffin and Cheryl J. Fish

read by Jeremy Gage

3 cassettes

A collection of nineteenth- and twentieth-century travel writings by African American writers who have journeyed abroad in search of opportunity, insight, pleasure, and adventure. Includes excerpts from nurse Mary Seacole's Crimean War memoir and W.E.B. DuBois's reflections on Ghana. With contributions by Langston Hughes, James Baldwin, June Jordan, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Ntozake Shange. 1998.

by Ben Green

read by Jake Williams

3 cassettes

Traces the life of Harry T. Moore as a Florida schoolteacher, NAACP coordinator, Progressive Voter's League executive secretary, and educator of African Americans concerning their constitutional rights. Recalls his murder in 1951 when a bomb was planted in his home. Violence. 1999.

by Maxine Hong Kingston

read by Catherine Byers

2 cassettes (Reissue)

Girlhood recollections of a Chinese American in California, where her parents had settled and operated a laundry. Her mother's "talk-stories" filled the girl's head with mythic Chinese figures and traditions as she coped with daily life in America. Some strong language. National Book Critics Circle Award. 1976.

by Barry Scheck and others

read by Jake Williams

2 cassettes

Civil rights attorneys Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld team up with columnist Jim Dwyer to give detailed accounts of innocent people imprisoned for years. The two lawyers draw on their experiences with the Innocence Project, which seeks the release of the wrongly convicted through DNA testing. Includes a list of proposed reforms. 2000.

by James M. Murphy

read by Carol Dines

1 cassette

A psychiatrist and minister offers a teen suicide-prevention guide for teenagers, parents, and teachers. The author explains some of the causes and consequences, and suggests ways of dealing with problems such as stress, depression, and "mistaken thinking." For senior high and older readers. 1999.

by Amity Shlaes

read by Janis Gray

2 cassettes

An antitax polemic decrying laws that enabled government to take nearly 40 percent of a two-income family's earnings in 1998. Examines various bases for taxation, such as income, marriage, home ownership, birth, and death. Calls for fundamental reforms, constitutional limits on federal taxes, and reducing the burden on the rich. 1999.

by Orr Kelly and Mary Davies Kelly

read by Roy Avers

2 cassettes

A genealogist and her historian husband chronicle the military service of two teenage brothers--his great uncles--in the Civil War. Traces their Union regiments' battle histories, depicting the valor and arduous existence of the common soldier, the horrific conditions in hospitals and POW camps, and the often incompetent leadership. Violence. 1998.

by Doris M. Willoughby and Sharon L. Monthei

read by Lou Harpenau

4 cassettes

In this companion to Handbook for Itinerant and Resource Teachers of Blind and Visually Impaired Students (RC 30434), the authors provide sample exercises for teaching cane travel to students from preschool through high school. Covers general techniques as well as specifics for outdoor travel and use of public transportation. 1998.

by William S. Ellis

read by Butch Hoover

2 cassettes

Explores the history of glass, its technology and manufacture, and its creative use as an art form. Traces the origins of glass from Mesopotamia to Murano, Italy, and into the modern age. Discusses how the scientific development of the material's versatile properties has expanded its uses. 1998.

by Sara Palmer and others

read by Patricia McDermott

3 cassettes

Three professionals in rehabilitation medicine and psychology describe the trauma of spinal cord injury; what to expect during the therapeutic process; and how to meet the psychological, medical, and social challenges of living with the disability. Patients' stories are used to illustrate each aspect. Some descriptions of sex. 2000.

edited by Roderick Townley

read by Fred Major

2 cassettes

Twenty-six poets reflect on the "generative relationship" between dreams and poetry. Most quote complete works or fragments of poems in their essays. Writers include Laurel Blossom, Edward Hirsch, David Ignatow, Maxine Kumin, Denise Levertov, Paul Mariani, Joyce Carol Oates, and Richard Wilbur, among others. 1998.

by Wade Davis

read by Butch Hoover

2 cassettes

Anthropologist and ethnobotanist Davis describes the pleasures of living among indigenous peoples who preserve their traditional ways. He meets the Penan in the forests of Borneo, the Vodoun acolytes in Haiti, and wandering holy men in the Sahara among others who demonstrate different approaches to interacting with the Earth. 1998.

by Gina De Angelis

read by Randy Davidson

1 cassette

Discusses high-tech crimes by hackers, crackers, and phone phreaks using computers to engage in fraud, embezzlement, espionage, cybersex, and child pornography. Explains how to minimize one's vulnerability to such offenses and how to maximize personal privacy and security. For junior and senior high readers. 2000.

by James C. Simmons

read by Roy Avers

2 cassettes

Eight true tales about the experiences of people who were stranded in remote locations because of shipwreck, treacherous companions, or personal choice. Describes their survival strategies and their lives after rescue. Includes Alexander Selkirk, the model for Defoe's Crusoe, and Herman Melville, who sojourned in the Marquesas in the South Pacific. 1993.

by Michael Castleman and others

read by Kerry Cundiff

3 cassettes

Presents research on the causes, diagnosis, and treatments for Alzheimer's disease, as well as how to reduce the risks. Also deals extensively with the caretaker's role, the medicine and support systems that are available, and how to select and pay for residential care. 1999.

by David Rains Wallace

read by Roy Avers

3 cassettes

Account of the historical feud between two nineteenth-century American paleontologists--Othniel Charles Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope. After the Civil War both men amassed large collections of dinosaur bones discovered in the West, but their intense rivalry led to muckraking and scandal rather than scientific cooperation. 1999.

by Mark Caldwell

read by Richard Hauenstein

2 cassettes

An inquiry into the generally perceived deterioration of etiquette and civility in daily life. Discusses proper conduct for various situations including weddings, funerals, the workplace, and the Internet. Argues that manners evolve continuously and have been doing so for centuries. 1999.

by John A. Butler

read by Lou Harpenau

2 cassettes

An account of the January 1950 grounding of the USS Missouri, the ship aboard which the Japanese surrendered in World War II. At the time the mishap was a major news event--and naval embarrassment. Reconstructs the cause of the Chesapeake Bay stranding and the subsequent salvaging effort. 1995.

by Dan Wetzel and Don Yaeger

read by Barry Bernson

2 cassettes

Outspoken report on the questionable practices of sneaker companies Nike and adidas in their search for athletes to promote their products. Describes how, after basketball superstar Michael Jordan made millions for Nike, both companies began reaching out to schools, coaches, and young players, offering equipment and money in return for loyalty. 2000.

by Jackie Daly

read by Sharon Murray

2 cassettes

One of Tammy Wynette's four daughters recounts her mother's career in country-western music, her five marriages, her addictions, and her untimely and mysterious death. 2000.

by Marjorie Sandor

read by Ann Hodapp

1 cassette

In twenty linked stories, Sandor creates a memory picture of her life from childhood to motherhood. She writes of receiving her first book, being the youngest of four children, going fly-fishing, gardening, and becoming a wife and then a single mother. 1999.

by Vladimir Putin

read by Fred Major

1 cassette

A portrait of the Russian president that includes transcripts of interviews with three journalists, who also talked with Putin's wife and teenage daughters and his friends. Recalls his working-class childhood, legal training, career as a KGB officer, and dramatic rise to prominence in the post-Communist era. 2000.

by Mark Rowh

read by Jill Ferris

1 cassette

Explores the world of craftsmen and artisans whose livelihoods involve creating hand-forged objects from wood, metal, glass, fabrics, or in the graphic arts. Offers suggestions on pursuing a career outside of the mainstream. For junior and senior high and older readers. 1994.

by Jochen Hemmleb and others

read by Graeme Malcolm

2 cassettes

Presents research and findings from the 1999 Mount Everest expedition in search of remains from the ill-fated 1924 climb by George Mallory and Sandy Irvine. Discusses the latter-day group's reconstruction of Mallory's route, the dramatic discovery of his body, and the conclusions reached from forensic examination. 1999.

by Steve Stone

read by Jim Zeiger

2 cassettes

Wacky anecdotes about the late legendary baseball broadcaster Harry Caray by his partner and fellow announcer of fifteen years. Recalls Caray's life as the Chicago Cubs' biggest fan, who enjoyed life in the fast lane. Foreword by Bob Costas. 1999.

by Eugenia Price

read by Madelyn Buzzard

1 cassette (Reissue)

Drawing on personal experience and her thorough knowledge of the Bible, Eugenia Price searches for what she considers to be the core of Christianity. She explores faith, prayer, spiritual growth, service, and giving, and concludes that the real bedrock is God's eternal love. 1983.

by Plato

read by Ralph Lowenstein

3 cassettes (Reissue)

Classic dialogues between Socrates and his friends concerning justice in man and the state, the Platonic theory of ideas, and concepts of nature, poetry, and philosophy. 1980.

by Anthony Bourdain

read by Christopher Walker

2 cassettes

An executive chef, who recognized his passion for food as a nine-year-old on a family trip to France, discusses his love affair with cooking. He also describes the less glamorous side, where heavy drinking, drugs, sex, and crime among the cooks go hand-in-hand with pots and pans. Strong language. Bestseller 2000.

by Miguel Ruiz

read by Jim Johnston

1 cassette

These four agreements, or steps, are based on the wisdom of the Toltec, a pre-Colombian society that embraced the spiritual knowledge and practices of their ancestors. Ruiz asserts that these four beliefs can guide one in developing a code of conduct that leads to personal freedom. Bestseller 1997.

edited by Marc Maurer

read by Nanette Savard

1 cassette

This collection of vignettes "tells what blindness is and, perhaps equally important, what it is not." In the title article math professor Abraham Nemeth, the originator of the braille code for mathematics and sciences, describes his English teacher's frustration because Nemeth could not feel the color of a piece of paper. 2000.

by Joseph I. Lieberman

read by Ted Stoddard

1 cassette

U.S. senator from Connecticut encourages qualified, intelligent, dedicated people to enter public service or run for political office as an opportunity to make a difference in how government performs. Draws on his own experiences to demonstrate "the nature, complexities, possibilities, and satisfactions of public life." 2000.

by Bob Greene

read by Terence Aselford

2 cassettes

Based on interviews with his father's hero--the B-29 pilot who dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, in August 1945--a syndicated columnist delivers a tribute to a passing generation. Explores the values of World War II veterans and their commitment to patriotism, courage, and a sense of duty. Bestseller 2000.

edited by Marc Maurer

read by Nanette Savard

1 cassette

In this collection of personal accounts, members of the National Federation of the Blind discuss the importance of being given the opportunity to try, as well as the value of training and belief. In the title article Maurer discusses how key it is to recognize the significance of small triumphs and successes. 2000.

by Blind and Physically Handicapped National Library Service for the

read by Annie Wauters

3 cassettes

Essays examining the history and future of braille include such topics as the development of the literary, Nemeth, and music codes; braille production; legal issues; library service; and literacy and computer access concerns. Edited by Judith Dixon, with a foreword by Frank Kurt Cylke and a preface by Kenneth Jernigan. 2000.

by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

read by Steven Carpenter

9 cassettes in 2 containers

Using historical and fictional characters, this second volume of the Russian epic depicts the oppressive atmosphere pervading the country in the months before the revolution. Flashbacks illuminate key events between August 1914 and November 1916, depicting the rise of dissent and providing background information on the militant Kadets who spurred the unrest. 1999.

by Ramsey Campbell

read by Anne Flosnik

4 cassettes

Thirty-nine short stories covering thirty years of the British author's tales of the supernatural. In "Call First," a library worker becomes curious about a patron and enters his house uninvited. In "Boiled Alive," a man finds himself the subject of a short video. Some violence. 1993.

by Henry James

read by Ted Stoddard

7 cassettes in 2 containers

Seventeen short stories first published in periodicals. Chronicling events in the stratified Victorian society James observed, they depict conflict between classes and cultures and restrictions on women's behavior. In "The Chaperon" a young girl, whose father has died, tries to help her divorced and shunned mother reenter society. 1999.

by Milena McGraw

read by David Cutler

4 cassettes

England, 1939. Young Wayne Luthie leads a squadron of pilots, known as the Wonders, as they learn to fly Spitfires. Luthie reminisces about his childhood in India, his uncles who died in World War I, his capture after Dunkirk, and falling in love with a WAAF. Then the Germans attack Britain. Some violence. 1998.

by Christopher Stasheff

read by Michael Scherer

2 cassettes

Magnus D'Armand, son of the Warlock of Gramarye, is a secret wizard wanting to outshine his father. After consulting with the brain of his spaceship, Magnus, disguised as Gar Pike, travels to Petrarch where the civilization needs help in fighting off a group of warring princes. Prequel to A Wizard in Bedlam (RC 48801). 1995.

by Christopher Stasheff

read by Michael Scherer

2 cassettes

Over five centuries ago a revolt by the churls on Planet Melange failed. Now they are planning another revolt, and this time they will be led by churl Dirk Dulain, who, upon returning to the planet, gains the aid of the Giant Gar. Sequel to A Wizard in Mind (RC 48800). Some strong language. 1979.

by Christopher Stasheff

read by Michael Scherer

2 cassettes

As Magnus D'Armand, known as Gar, continues his quest to help people living under oppressive governments, he travels to Planet Maltroit with his new friend Dirk Dulaine. Here they come upon Coll, a serf being pursued by nobles because he dared to defend his sister's honor. Sequel to A Wizard in Bedlam (RC 48801). 1994.

by Rumer Godden

read by Anne Flosnik

2 cassettes

Thirteen-year-old Cecil, sixteen-year-old Joss, their younger siblings, and their mother arrive in France for a summer holiday. When their mother is hospitalized, the children are left on their own. Eliot, a mysterious Englishman, takes them under his wing, and the girls fall in love--until the police arrive. For senior high and older readers. 1958.

by R.A. Salvatore

read by Michael Scherer

4 cassettes

In Corona the demon dactyl awakens after years of slumber and begins destroying the people. The only survivors, Elbryan and Pony, are separated in the attack. Reunited years later and aided by an ex-monk who has collected magical gemstones, they begin hunting down the demon. Prequel to The Demon Spirit (RC 49338). 1996.

by R.A. Salvatore

read by Michael Scherer

4 cassettes

In this sequel to The Demon Awakens (RC 49337), Elbryan and Pony realize that although Avelyn sacrificed his life to destroy the demon dactyl, the demon's powers have not completely vanished. The demon's spirit now dwells within Father Abbot Markwart. Some violence. 1998.

by Kathleen Eagle

read by Lindsay Ellison

3 cassettes

Helen Ketterling left the Bad River Sioux Reservation thirteen years ago when she learned she was carrying Reese Blue Sky's son. She did not want to ruin her lover's promising basketball career. Now returned, both are hiding secrets that jeopardize a relationship. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 1999.

by Kay Hooper

read by Anne Hancock

2 cassettes

When Rachel was nineteen her fiancé, Tom, was presumed killed while flying his plane to South America. Now, ten years later, after her parents have also died in a plane crash, Rachel is shocked to meet a mysterious man who is Tom's double. Some strong language, some violence, and some descriptions of sex. 1998.

by Amy Ephron

read by Constance Crawford

1 cassette

In 1897 newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst sends reporter Karl Decker to Havana to interview and somehow rescue Evangelina, the imprisoned daughter of a revolutionary. Although Decker is married, the two fall in love as they plan the escape. Based on a true story. Some violence. 1999.

by Gore Vidal

read by Dan Bloom

3 cassettes

Senator James Burden Day has ambitions of replacing Franklin Roosevelt as president in 1940. Clay Overbury, Day's congressional aide, has his own political plans. Newspaper tycoon Blaise Sanford has personal thoughts on Washington politics. The aspirations of these men and their children become intertwined from the New Deal to the McCarthy era. 1967.

by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

read by Annie Wauters

3 cassettes

Collection of stories about urban life, six set in India and eight in New York City. In "Expiation," the eldest brother in a large East Indian family tells of his unconditional affection for the youngest brother, who becomes a criminal. In "The Temptress," a transplanted Indian matron finds a niche in New York. 1998.

by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

read by Corrie James

2 cassettes

An English girl in India recounts the story of Olivia, her grandfather's first wife, who was seduced by the Nawab, an Indian prince, in 1923. The parallels between the two women's experiences explore the English attraction to the exotic Indian culture. Booker Prize winner. 1975.

by Robert Louis Stevenson

read by John Horton

4 cassettes

Short stories and other fiction that encompass the brief life of the author. Includes his well-known "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." The ghost story "Trawn Janet" is set in Scotland. A romantic tale of chivalry, "The Sire de Malétroit's Door," takes place in medieval England. 1997.

by Leo Tolstoy

read by Suzanne Toren

7 cassettes in 2 containers (Reissue)

In the 1870s in Russia, Anna flaunts convention by having an adulterous affair with Count Vronsky. Preferring the allure of romance to her stifling marriage with Alexis Karenin, Anna's happiness disintegrates as she loses her peace of mind. Originally published in 1877. Translated by Louise and Aylmer Maude. 1999.

by Chang-rae Lee

read by David Hartley-Margolin

3 cassettes

Now in his seventies and retired, Doc Hata still resides in his large home of thirty years in Bedley Run, New York. A polite and unassuming man, he harbors secrets of his past as a medic in the Japanese Army during World War II. Some strong language. 1999.

by A.B. Yehoshua

read by Bill Wallace

3 cassettes

In the year 999 Jewish merchant Ben Attar, his nephew Abulafia, and his Muslim partner manage a thriving commerce between Africa and Europe. When Abulafia's wife denounces Ben Attar's bigamy, their business becomes imperiled. Ben Attar sails into the heart of Europe, aiming to vindicate himself and rescue his livelihood. Descriptions of sex. 1999.

by T.V. Olsen

read by Michael Skinner

2 cassettes

Christopher Fallon is engaged as a field guide by Sir Wilbur Tennington to travel to Peru in search of secret Incan treasure. Accompanying them are professor Luis Valera and his beautiful student, Marcelina O'Day. There they are plagued by bad weather, headhunters, and rival claimants. Some violence. 1998.

by John Steinbeck

read by Steven Carpenter

4 cassettes (Reissue)

This saga of two California families spans from the post-Civil War era to the end of World War I. The Trasks, a mixture of gentleness and brutality, contrast with the Hamiltons, the author's own forebears, a well-adjusted, more tranquil family. 1952.

by Gene Hackman and Daniel Lenihan

read by Timothy Lynch

3 cassettes

1805. A swashbuckling tale about seventeen-year-old Jack O'Reilly, whose parents are murdered in Cuba where the family had planned to settle. Jack escapes the island on a ship, vowing someday to wreak vengeance. Three years later Jack, now a leader of pirates, returns to Cuba to make good on his pledge. Violence. 1999.

by Julián Ríos

read by Ted Stoddard

2 cassettes

Abandoned by his lover, the protagonist writes to her recounting his past romances with a series of women, set forth in alphabetical order. Using wordplay and multilingual puns, he describes each partner as a particular storied heroine, leaving the reader to determine the literary source. Translated from Spanish. 1998.

by Alexander Kent

read by Jim Zeiger

2 cassettes

Only sixteen but already a veteran of four years in the king's navy, Richard Bolitho joins his second ship in 1771. Its mission--to investigate the brutal slave trade on Africa's west coast--proves much more perilous than he expected. Prequel to Stand into Danger (RC 49765). Some violence. 1978.

by Dashiell Hammett

read by Robert Sams

4 cassettes

Twenty short crime stories from the 1920s and 1930s written by the former Pinkerton detective who became famous for his characters Continental Op and Sam Spade. Among these works, written originally for magazines, is the prototype for the novel The Thin Man (RC 16349). Some violence. 1999.

by Roger McDonald

read by Jim Zeiger

2 cassettes

In 1828 thirteen-year-old Syms Covington leaves his Bedford, England, home for the sea. Two years later he ships aboard the HMS Beagle to assist Charles Darwin in collecting animal specimens. Toward life's end, Covington comes to regret his complicity with the evolutionist. Violence and some descriptions of sex. 1998.

by Wilbur Smith

read by David Hartley-Margolin

6 cassettes

In this sequel to Birds of Prey (RC 48319) Hal Courtney takes three of his four sons on a voyage to deter a pirate from looting ships off the coast of Africa. The Courtneys meet disaster when the youngest is kidnapped by Arabs. Violence and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Lisa See

read by Gabriella Cavallero

3 cassettes

In this sequel to Flower Net (RC 45063) Chinese inspector Liu Hulan helps a childhood friend whose daughter died suspiciously. Coincidentally, Hulan's lover, American attorney David Stark, has taken a job in China and is involved with the factory where the daughter worked. Some violence and some strong language. 1999.

by Paul Preuss

read by Richard Davidson

3 cassettes

Cretan physicist and archaeologist Dimitris Minakis, who has invented a secret time-reversing device, lures scientist Peter Slater and his wife, Anne-Marie, to the island in order to convince Peter to work with him. Anne-Marie, in turn, uses Dimitris to regain custody of her young son. Some descriptions of sex. 1997.

by R.A. Salvatore

read by Chuck Benson

3 cassettes

Twenty-one years after the destruction of the Death Star by the Rebel Alliance, tension is mounting in the Republic. Leia pursues diplomatic negotiations, Luke deals with rogue Jedi Knights, and Han Solo again engages in battle; and a new generation of characters and creatures appears. A Star Wars novel. 1999.

by Gilbert Morris

read by Mitzi Friedlander

3 cassettes

In this sequel to The Shadow Portrait (RC 49918), Annie Rogers goes to New York hoping to become a missionary in Africa. Instead she is the secretary to the flamboyant Jeanine Quintana. John Winslow remains in Africa, visiting relatives. Eventually Annie and John meet, but not before they almost perish on the Titanic. 1999.

by Elisabeth Ogilvie

read by Mitzi Friedlander

2 cassettes (Reissue)

After Rosa Fleming's husband deserts her, she returns to the isolated fishing village of Bennett's Island, Maine, to run the family's lobster business and, she hopes, to restore her self-confidence. Once there, she reconnects with friends from her past--including Edwin, a deaf artist. Sequel to The Seasons Hereafter (RC 49922). 1973.

by Vu Trân

read by Annie Wauters

1 cassette

Five stories depicting the history of strife in Vietnam and the suffering of its emigrants. "The Coral Reef" is based on the author's own harrowing escape from his homeland when an overcrowded boat runs aground. Some descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1999.

by Fred Saberhagen

read by Erik Sandvold

3 cassettes

In a battle between ancient classical gods, Apollo is killed and a young woman, Sal, carries off his face. Just before she dies, Sal entrusts her treasure to fifteen-year-old Jeremy Redthorn, a farm laborer. Soon Jeremy's life is transformed. Prequel to Ariadne's Web (RC 49938). For senior high and older readers. 1998.

read by John Horton

6 cassettes

Centuries-old tales that circulated in Arabic long before they were translated into English by Victorian-era explorer Richard Burton in the 1880s. This Modern Library edition was compiled by Bennett Cerf as a representative selection of adventures that so enthralled King Shahryar he let his wife, Shahrazad, live to complete them, one by one. 1932.

by Janette Oke

read by Laura Giannarelli

2 cassettes

In this sequel to A Searching Heart (RC 47433) Virginia and Jonathan marry, and Virginia looks forward to a quiet wedded life. But trials and disappointments await the couple as first Jonathan's grandmother moves in, then the troubled daughter of Virginia's dear friend Jenny. For senior high and older readers. 1999.

by Tim Gautreaux

read by Kimberly Schraf

2 cassettes

Eleven stories about life in rural Louisiana depicting a bibulous priest, a Creole princess, and a one-armed feminist hitchhiker, among others. In the title piece, an aging welder baby-sits for his unmarried daughters' four young children. During the day the befuddled granddad learns all about modern amoral lifestyles. Some strong language. 1999.

by Philippa Gregory

read by Barbara Caruso

4 cassettes

England, 1603. John Tradescant is gardener and confidant to Sir Robert Cecil and, later, to Lord Buckingham. Because he is a trusted employee of men close to James I and then Charles I, Tradescant is able to help safeguard the realm. Prequel to Virgin Earth (RC 50011). 1998.

by Elizabeth Nunez

read by Pam Ward

2 cassettes

Sara is one of three young women from the West Indies integrating a white college in Wisconsin in 1963. Her love for Sam, an African American involved in the civil rights movement, causes her to examine her beliefs and attitudes during that historic year. 1998.

edited by Caledonia Kearns

read by Terry Donnelly

3 cassettes

A collection of twenty-four short stories and excerpts from novels by twentieth-century writers of Irish American heritage. Includes several new authors and some already well-known ones such as Mary McCarthy, Maureen Howard, Tess Gallagher, Alice McDermott, Anna Quindlen, and Mary Gordon. 1997.

by Sebastian Faulks

read by Graeme Malcolm

3 cassettes

1942. Scotswoman Charlotte Gray travels to London to assist in the war effort. There she falls in love with Peter Gregory, a pilot, before being sent to France to join the underground, where she experiences deprivation and tragedy. Some descriptions of sex and some violence. 1998.

by Aaron Elkins

read by L.J. Ganser

2 cassettes

Austria, 1945. A lone truck carrying artworks stolen by Nazis disappears in the snow. Fifty-odd years later, one of the paintings appears in a Boston pawn shop. Art historian Ben Revere joins in an investigation that leads to Europe and the Mafia. Some violence and some strong language. 1999.

by Harriet Beecher Stowe

read by L.J. Ganser

4 cassettes (Reissue)

First published in 1852, abolitionist Stowe depicts the moral injustice of slavery and the evils of materialism. Tom saves little Eva's life, and years later she tries to help him gain his freedom. Eventually, Tom's protection of runaway Eliza costs him his life at the hands of the brutal ex-Yankee Simon Legree. 1965.

by Kim Stanley Robinson

read by John Stratton

3 cassettes

Collection of stories set in the universe of the Mars trilogy--Red Mars (RC 36318), Green Mars (RC 42050), and Blue Mars (RC 43603); also several poems and a copy of the Constitution of Mars. Some selections offer new perspectives on an old narrative; others expand on events in the trilogy. Some descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Lynn Morris and Gilbert Morris

read by Suzanne Toren

2 cassettes

Late 1800s. Doctors Cheney Duvall and Walker Baird have come to Hawaii from San Francisco to warn Shiloh Irons to stop trying to prove he is part of the Winslow family. Instead, the two visitors provide the catalyst for uncovering secrets from the past. Sequel to In the Twilight, In the Evening (RC 45835). 1998.

by André Schwarz-Bart

read by Robert Blumenfeld

3 cassettes

The author's friend, Ernie Levy, and his predecessors have borne the burden of religious persecution since Rabbi Yom Tov Levy was killed in York, England, in 1185. Generations later, Ernie is the last of thirty-six Jews known as the "just men" when he faces death in Auschwitz during World War II. 1960.

edited by Gardner Dozois

read by Richard Hauenstein

7 cassettes in 2 containers

Following a survey of the science fiction market in 1998, Dozois offers twenty-five stories by such authors as Tanith Lee, Bruce Sterling, Ursula K. LeGuin, Ian McDonald, Michael Swanwick, Stephen Baxter, Gwyneth Jones, and Ian R. MacLeod. Some descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1999.

by Judith Tarr and Harry Turtledove

read by Madelyn Buzzard

5 cassettes

Nicole, a harried lawyer and single mother, wishes on a plaque of Roman gods that she could live in a simpler time. The gods comply by sending her back to second-century Roman-controlled Austria to assume the life of a tavern keeper. After pestilence, starvation, invasion, and filth, Nicole is overwhelmed. 1999.

by Fyodor Dostoevsky

read by Fred Major

5 cassettes

An impoverished student, Raskolnikov, convinces himself that he is above the law and murders an elderly pawnbroker. But his subsequent guilt is overwhelming. Acclaimed 1992 translation into English by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky from the 1866 Russian original. Some violence. 1993.

by Jennifer Crusie

read by Jill Fox

3 cassettes

Taking a break from taping weddings, sisters Sophie and Amy Dempsey travel to Temptation, Ohio, to film an audition video for an actress acquaintance. As Sophie falls for the mayor and Amy for the police chief, the video threatens to turn pornographic. Explicit descriptions of sex and strong language. 2000.

by Cornell Woolrich

read by Fred Major

4 cassettes

Seven classic mystery stories from the 1940s, including "Rear Window," on which Alfred Hitchcock's film was based. In "Post-Mortem," a widow looking for a winning lottery ticket has her first husband's body exhumed. In "Three O'Clock," a man sneaks home to murder his wife but ends up a victim instead. Some violence. 1984.

by Adolfo Bioy Casares

read by Peter Gil

2 cassettes

In the title novella, first published in 1940, a fugitive from justice escapes to a remote island, where he enters into a dreamlike existence along with other "intruders." He falls in love and gradually uncovers the eerie secret of his strange new world. Also includes six short stories first published in 1948. 1964.

by Dana Stabenow

read by Nanette Savard

2 cassettes

Recently demoted Alaska state trooper Liam Campbell deplanes at his new post and finds a dead body on the tarmac; his former lover, pilot Wy Chouinard, is bent over the corpse. Strong language, violence, and explicit descriptions of sex. 1998.

by Rex Beach

read by Nanette Savard

3 cassettes

The spoiled son of a wealthy father, Kirk Anthony finished college but still has no profession. While out carousing with other young men, he is drugged, robbed, and substituted for a criminal on a ship headed for Panama. Arriving without funds, he must fend for himself for the first time in his life. 1911.

by Haruki Murakami

read by Robert Sams

2 cassettes

When Hajime is thirty-seven, moderately successful, and married with two daughters, his childhood sweetheart, Shimamoto, reappears in his life. She tantalizes him and disrupts his equanimity while remaining mysteriously uncommunicative about details of her daily existence. Hajime's longing for her becomes obsessive. Some explicit descriptions of sex. 1998.

by Robert W. Chambers

read by Peter Gil

2 cassettes

An American of Belgian descent, Kervyn Guild is captured by the Germans while visiting his family's homeland. Guild is informed he can free himself and the other hostages if he travels to England to bring back the daughter of General von Reiter, who is unable to get her out. Some violence. 1915.

by Robert J. Randisi

read by Rick Rohan

1 cassette

Kansas, 1883. Lancaster, a gunfighter, is confronted by a man who mistakenly believes himself to be Lancaster's target. In the showdown, a girl is accidentally killed. The guilt-ridden Lancaster gives up on life and loses himself in the bottle, until another child in distress presents him with an opportunity for personal redemption. 1999.

by Rex Beach

read by Nanette Savard

2 cassettes

Two novellas from an early-twentieth-century author. In Don Careless, a Bolivian playboy pays court to a beautiful heiress on a bet. In Birds of Prey, scandalous behavior on a wealthy country estate causes local tongues to wag. 1928.

by Chinua Achebe

read by Peter Jay Fernandez

1 cassette

The bribery trial of Obi Okonkwo, a young Nigerian civil servant of "education and brilliant promise," is cause for consternation among the Umuofians who sent him to England on scholarship. Obi recounts his struggles with conscience and the circumstances that led to his arrest. 1960.

by Nicci French

read by Anne Flosnik

2 cassettes

London teacher Zoe is the first to receive the anonymous messages--almost love letters, but the writer threatens to kill her. The police don't take them seriously until Jenny receives some, too. Then Nadia, the last target, realizes that local officials are no help at all. Some violence and some strong language. 2000.

by Joe Klein

read by Margaret Strom

4 cassettes

As Senator Charlie Martin's reelection is being challenged by a wealthy, unscrupulous opponent, Charlie falls in love with a beautiful woman who abhors politics. The senator discovers a secret from his Vietnam days, which causes him to question his career. Companion to Primary Colors (RC 41822). Strong language. 2000.

by Cynthia Rylant

read by Phil Regensdorf

1 cassette

Seven tales of recently deceased persons who are not quite ready to give up Earth and enter Heaven. God places these embodied spirits in the Heavenly Village, a wayside where they can "finish their stories" before ascending to perfect happiness. For junior and senior high and older readers. 1999.

by James Patterson

read by Bob Moore

2 cassettes

When terrorists target Wall Street, federal agent Arch Carroll joins SEC chief of enforcement Caitlin Dillon to determine who is behind the mayhem. But their investigation endangers the motherless Carroll children. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. Bestseller 1986.

by Joan Johnston

read by Barbara Pinolini

2 cassettes

Two Texas ranching families, the Blackthornes and the Creeds, have feuded for generations. Away at college, Trace Blackthorne and Callie Creed became secret lovers, until an accident sent Callie back home and out of Trace's life. Eleven years later he returns. Explicit descriptions of sex and strong language. 2000.

by Florence L. Barclay

read by Vanessa Maroney

2 cassettes

When Lady Ingleby collapses after learning of her husband's death, her doctor suggests she recuperate in the country. Using the name "Mrs. O'Mara" to hide her identity, she meets and falls in love with Jim Airth, who is also using a pseudonym. But love falters when their true identities are revealed. 1910.

by M.T. Anderson

read by Rick Rohan

1 cassette

Anthony, nice guy and doormat, seeks revenge after he sees his girlfriend, Diana, kissing cool guy Turner at a party. Anthony takes a job at the fast food restaurant where Turner is a supervisor and concocts a scheme involving rivalry with their competitor, Burger Queen. For senior high readers. 1999.

by William McIlvanney

read by Tom Martin

2 cassettes

Glasgow detective Jack Laidlaw investigates the murder of eighteen-year-old Jennifer Lawson--apparently by a confused bisexual boy named Tommy Bryson. Other people are soon after Tommy for revenge; meanwhile, Laidlaw's marriage is slowly disintegrating. Some violence and some strong language. 1977.

by Johanna Lindsey

read by Barbara Caruso

2 cassettes

Duncan MacTavish, twenty-one, grew up in Scotland believing he would become laird of his family's lands. Now he learns he will also inherit his English grandfather's title and be married to an English lady who has been chosen for him. But another woman catches Duncan's attention. Some descriptions of sex. Bestseller 2000.

by Max Brand

read by Bob Askey

2 cassettes

Raised by Yaqui Indians, Juan Oro is taken prisoner in battle by Spaniard Don Fontana, who soon discovers that his captive is actually a white youth. Juan is then apprenticed to an outlaw, whom Fontana wants killed. Will Juan be the assassin? Violence. 1925.

by Judith Ivory

read by Kristin Allison

2 cassettes

London, 1898. On a bet, linguist Edwina Bollash has six weeks to transform a Cornish rat catcher into a proper gentleman who can pass as a viscount at her cousin's annual ball. But the tall and handsome Mick Tremore charms his way into her heart. Some explicit descriptions of sex. 1999.

by William McIlvanney

read by Tom Martin

2 cassettes

Scotland's Detective Inspector Jack Laidlaw takes a busman's holiday to investigate his brother Scott's "accidental" death. Through a blur of grief and excessive drinking, Jack begins to sort out clues from Scott's wife, his colleagues and chums, his lover, and his eerie paintings. Some explicit descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1991.

by Thomas Perry

read by Martha Harmon Pardee

3 cassettes

Once again, Jane Whitefield is called away from her life as a doctor's wife to help someone disappear. This time it is the young housekeeper for Bernie the Elephant, a Mafia money launderer. Thinking Bernie dead, the mobsters believe the girl can lead them to their missing loot. Some violence. 1999.

by C.S. Friedman

read by Kristin Allison

3 cassettes

Human mutants, disowned long ago by earthlings, remain on various abandoned colonies. The Guerans, one such group, can travel faster than light--but now a virus is taking over their minds. Jamisia, a teenaged girl raised in a laboratory and troubled by multiple personalities, holds the key to their survival. Some violence and some strong language. 1998.

by Joe Haldeman

read by Michael Skinner

2 cassettes

2043. The Ngumi War has been going on for over eight years, when burned-out "soldierboy" Julian Class and his older lover, Dr. Amelia Harding, make a scientific discovery that could set the universe back to square one. Violence, some descriptions of sex, and some strong language. Nebula Award. 1997.

by Dennis Lehane

read by Gregory Gorton

2 cassettes

Boston private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro stumble upon a decades-long string of horrifying murders committed by a pair of serial killers. Worse, the crimes originated in the sleuths' old neighborhood and involve people they've known all their lives. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1996.

by Gillian Roberts

read by Annie Wauters

2 cassettes

Schoolteacher-sleuth Amanda Pepper and her niece hope to see Amanda's colleague Vincent Devaney marching in the annual Mummers' parade in Philadelphia. When Vincent becomes a suspect after one of the revelers is shot, he tells the cops he was with Amanda. But he's not telling the truth. 1996.

by Margaret Bacon

read by Anne Flosnik

2 cassettes

Describes the lives of childhood friends Judith and Alice from England's Yorkshire Dales. After Judith's mother abandons her family, the girls separate but are buoyed by their occasional meetings. Judith becomes a London barrister, while Alice turns her family farm into a bed and breakfast. Some violence. 1999.

by Ivan Doig

read by Roy Avers

2 cassettes

Environmental reporter Mitch Rozier and caterer Lexa McCaskill, both Montana natives, are living together frugally but happily in Seattle when Mitch's dying father summons them home. Along with Lexa's photographer sister, Mariah, they must confront their memories, their disappointments, and the wilderness. Sequel to Ride with Me, Mariah Montana (RC 32683). 1999.

by David Gates

read by John Polk

2 cassettes

Ten tales about transient relationships and defining moments. In the title story a tête-à-tête between a divorced father and his much younger, married lover about her possible pregnancy becomes the pivotal exchange for the future of their intimacy. Some strong language. 1999.

edited by Edward L. Ferman and Gordon Van Gelder

read by John Polk

3 cassettes

Twenty-one selections published between 1993 and 1998 in the magazine known as F&SF. Ranging from speculative science fiction to fairy tales, from alternate histories to supernatural horror tales, they include award winners by Esther Friesner, Maureen McHugh, Bruce Holland Rogers, Ursula Le Guin, and Elizabeth Hand. 1999.

by Ursula Hegi

read by Mitzi Friedlander

3 cassettes

Multigenerational family saga follows Stefan Blau, who at thirteen comes to America from Germany to fulfill a dream. His development of an opulent apartment building on the shore of a New Hampshire lake dominates his family life. His granddaughter, Emma, shares his obsession. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 2000.

by Piers Anthony

read by Madelyn Buzzard

4 cassettes

The story of humanity is told through the experiences of a single family reincarnated throughout history. Focuses on aspects of the arts--healing, drama, storytelling, and seduction, among others. Cautions that the same gifts and instincts that developed civilization could also cause its destruction. Sequel to Hope of Earth (RC 45123). Descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Jane Candia Coleman

read by Terry Hayes Sales

2 cassettes

The first of these two fictionalized accounts describes Mary Katherine Horony, Doc Holliday's companion. The second introduces young Viola Howell, who pleads with New Mexico's governor to dismiss the cattle rustling charges against her father and John Slaughter, the man she loves. Some violence and some strong language. 1999.

by Max Brand

read by Roy Avers

2 cassettes

Saddle bum Whistling Dan lives off the land with his wolf Black Bart and stallion Satan, even though he was raised on a ranch alongside Kate Cumberland. As they share many adventures, Kate falls in love with Dan but wonders if he will ever settle down. Some violence. 1919.

by Richard Stark

read by John Polk

2 cassettes

Although Parker is suspicious of the motives of a retired New York civil servant who wants him to rob a riverboat casino on the Hudson, he rounds up three partners to commit the crime. Afterwards, Parker and his gang realize that they have been set up. Violence and strong language. 1998.

by Elizabeth Adler

read by Madelyn Buzzard

2 cassettes

Lawyer/professor Marla Cwitowitz is looking for excitement. She gets plenty by teaming up with her private-investigator boyfriend, Al Giraud, who is hired to prove the innocence of a faithful husband accused of murdering a real-estate agent. Some explicit descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1999.

by Scott Ciencin

read by Jack Fox

2 cassettes

Thirteen-year-old nerd Bertram Phillips invents a science project that accidently transports him and three other students back sixty-seven million years to the late Cretaceous age. Bertram, Mike, Candayce, and Janine have been transformed into different types of dinosaurs. Returning home is another problem. For junior and senior high readers. 1999.

by Maynard F. Thomson

read by Jill Fox

3 cassettes

When her lover and skating partner, Clay, suffers a career-ending injury, Maggie returns to her childhood coach in her mother's homeland of Japan. Training for the Olympics, Maggie vows to beat the woman responsible for Clay's accident. Strong language and some descriptions of sex. For senior high and older readers. 1999.

by Sharon Sala

read by Sharon Murray

2 cassettes

Construction worker Clay LeGrand's wife, Frankie, disappears on their first anniversary, and Denver police assume Clay killed her. Two years later, Frankie appears in their house, with evidence of a concussion and no memory of having been gone. Some explicit descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1999.

edited by Mark Olson and Priscilla Olson

read by Richard Hauenstein

5 cassettes

Complete collection of Henderson's stories about the People, originally published in the 1950s and 1960s. The sequence covers a long time span, recounting the experiences of the People--aliens with special powers who resemble human beings but are morally superior--stranded on Earth and struggling to survive. 1995.

by Carl Deuker

read by Chris Parente

1 cassette

Nick Abbot works hard in his backyard basketball court to make the high school varsity team. Neighbor Trent Dawson--a tough kid and dirty player--makes Nick's life miserable until they both realize that teamwork and friendship mean the difference between success and failure. For junior and senior high readers. 2000.

by Linda Lael Miller

read by Jill Fox

2 cassettes

Jubilee, Washington Territory; 1889. Fifteen years ago Luke Shardlow rescued Charity Barnham from a creek and she granted him one wish. Now Luke, a bounty hunter, returns to Jubilee and kindles a spark of romance with Charity. But she is promised to another. Some descriptions of sex and some violence. 2000.

by John Kennedy Toole

read by Bruce Huntey

3 cassettes (Reissue)

Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about slovenly, obese Ignatius Reilly, who is forced to seek employment in New Orleans after his tipsy mother has a car accident. Reilly, a medievalist who hates everything modern, runs through a succession of jobs in which he wreaks havoc. Some strong language. 1980.

by Nanci Kincaid

read by Sharon Murray

3 cassettes

Dixie marries Alabama high school quarterback Mac Gibbs just after he fails to make the pros. Dixie and the other football women--wives, mothers, and girlfriends--describe coping with men who live and breathe the sport. Mac ends up coaching at a major university, but the marriage falls apart. Some strong language. 1998.

by Dale Brown

read by Gary Tipton

3 cassettes

When a joint U.S.-Japan-South Korea military exercise goes awry, war erupts between the two Koreas and South Korea emerges victorious with a formidable arsenal of high-tech weapons. Hostilities escalate, and veteran Patrick McLanahan is ordered to intervene with a task force of American bombers. Sequel to Fatal Terrain (RC 45110). 1999.

by Isaac Asimov

read by Roy Avers

3 cassettes

A collection of eighteen short stories and sixteen essays about robots. As explained in the introduction, Asimov began writing about these "advanced machines" in 1939 when he was nineteen, but the majority of the essays appeared after 1974 when the microchip made robotics practical. 1990.

by Elizabeth Hand

read by Ann Hodapp

2 cassettes

At age twelve, Lit observed a grotesque painting at the mansion of her godfather, Axel Kern. Now seventeen, Lit anticipates attending a lavish Halloween party at Kern's, but she is unprepared for the dark forces that will be at work there. Strong language, some explicit descriptions of sex, and some violence. 1999.

by Philip Caputo

read by Brian Conn

4 cassettes

Maine, June 1901. For reasons unknown to his three teenage sons, wealthy Cyrus Braithwaite orders the boys to board the family sloop and put to sea until September. During their eventful cruise south the young sailors encounter heavy weather, romance, and peril before reaching safe harbor. Some descriptions of sex and some violence. 1999.

by Archer Mayor

read by John Polk

3 cassettes

When Lieutenant Joe Gunther of the Brattleboro, Vermont, police department investigates a body on the railroad tracks, he has no inkling that the case would lead to a powerful politician. Another murder and an abandoned vehicle also become entwined with the original crime. Some violence and some strong language. 1999.

by Anchee Min

read by Mitzi Friedlander

3 cassettes

Fictionalized portrait of Jiang Ching, wife of Chairman Mao Zedong. Skilled at reinventing herself, the former opera singer and actress takes full advantage of her husband's rise to power. Some explicit descriptions of sex. Bestseller 2000.

by H.G. Wells

read by David Elias

1 cassette (Reissue)

Late Victorian fantasy classic in which scientific arrogance leads to horrifying consequences. In 1887 Edward Prendick is shipwrecked, rescued, and later abandoned on a mysterious island inhabited by grotesque creatures under the control of Dr. Moreau. 1996 foreword by Peter Straub. Some violence. 1896.

by Jeannine Kadow

read by Michele Schaeffer

3 cassettes

Anchorwoman Lacie Wagner's hands were badly burned in the accident that killed her father when she was a child. Now her worst fears are realized when she learns her adolescent daughter was burned to death by someone who is after Lacie. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Robert Barnard

read by Anne Flosnik

2 cassettes

After a body is found in the trunk of a car outside the local Indian restaurant in Haworth, Yorkshire, Detective Constable Charlie Peace and his boss, Mike Oddie, concentrate their investigation on a local artists' colony where once-famous painter Ranulph Byatt holds court. Some violence. 1998.

by Gillian Roberts

read by Annie Wauters

2 cassettes

As Amanda Pepper's school library receives a large donation from the wealthy Roederer family, Reverend Harvey Spiers and his Moral Ecologists are organizing a book-banning crusade in Philadelphia. But when both Neddy Roederer and Reverend Spiers are murdered, everyone (including both victims' teenage sons) becomes a suspect. Some violence. 1998.

by Greg Bear

read by Chuck Benson

2 cassettes

Obi-Wan Kenobi accepts the task of training twelve-year-old Anakin Skywalker, the former slave who many Jedi believe will bring balance to the Force. Obi-Wan and Anakin travel to the planet Zonama Sekot, where Anakin faces his dark destiny. A Star Wars novel. For senior high and older readers. Bestseller 2000.

by Joseph F. Girzone

read by Gordon Gould

2 cassettes

After almost two decades away from Philadelphia, Joshua is welcomed back by a few old friends. But the pious man stays there only briefly, then walks west to San Francisco, where he must convince residents that an earthquake is imminent. Sequel to Joshua and the City (RC 40799). 1999.

by Anne McCaffrey

read by Kristin Allison

2 cassettes

In this sequel to Lyon's Pride (RC 39612) and final volume about the Rowan clan, the Rowan family, in alliance with the alien Mrdini, has two goals to keep the peace: to help the Mrdini control population growth and to prevent the advances of the predatory Hivers. 1999.

by M.C. Beaton

read by John Horton

1 cassette

Christmas is at hand in the remote Highland village of Lochdubh. This year, P.C. Hamish Macbeth is set to work through the holiday, while his family vacations without him. On his own, Hamish cracks several cases, including the disappearance of an elderly woman's cat and the theft of a nearby community's town lights. 1999.

by James Ellroy

read by Chuck Benson

2 cassettes

Pieces first published in GQ magazine by the crime writer. Ellroy relates his mother's murder in 1958 as well as other crimes against women, including Nicole Simpson's murder. Depicts some corrupted characters on the dark side of Los Angeles. Violence, strong language, and some descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Dennis Lehane

read by Chuck Benson

2 cassettes

Boston private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro are hired by two senators to investigate missing government files taken by their African American cleaning lady. Only they soon discover that the stolen goods are more racy than office work, and the cleaning lady turns up dead. Violence and strong language. 1994.

by Rhys Bowen

read by Graeme Malcolm

1 cassette

Evan Evans, constable of the village of Llanfair in North Wales, investigates the connection between the murders of two outsiders and a plan for bringing tourism to this remote outpost. Evans's interest in newly arrived single mother Annie Pigeon and her daughter, Jenny, also leaves the local single ladies seething. 1998.

by Patrick McCabe

read by Graeme Malcolm

1 cassette

The memoirs of Patrick "Pussy" Braden, a transvestite prostitute born in Tyreelin, Ireland, written at the behest of his prison psychiatrist. Records Paddy's brutally comic adventures in London in the 1970s, with an I.R.A. bombing campaign in full swing. Some descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. 1998.

by Fred Grove

read by Bob Askey

2 cassettes

Confederate captain Jesse Wilder is captured by Union forces and becomes an Indian-fighter to avoid prison. Years later as a mercenary he agrees to help a mother recover her son who was abducted by Apaches. The perilous rescue mission tests Wilder's cunning and courage to the limit. 1999.

by Richard Beard

read by Richard Hauenstein

2 cassettes

The lives of warehouse worker Spencer Kelly and teacher Hazel Burns were destined to intersect. On their common birthday, November 1, 1993, they court, mate, and face a common threat when a crazed student, who is obsessed with Hazel, challenges Spencer for her hand. 1998.

by Sue Henry

read by Gary Tipton

2 cassettes

Jessie Arnold decides to run in the thousand-mile Yukon Quest dog race while her boyfriend, state trooper Alex Jensen, is in Idaho. But she is soon embroiled in murder when a fellow musher is kidnapped and Jessie must deliver the ransom. Some violence and some strong language. 1999.

by Van Reid

read by Mitzi Friedlander

3 cassettes

portland, Maine; 1896. In this sequel to Cordelia Underwood (RC 48332), the Moosepath League gang comes to the rescue of society writer Mollie Peer, who has discovered that a little ragamuffin named Bird is being abused by a sinister character. From there the group stumbles upon a smuggling ring. 1999.

by Ingrid Tomey

read by John Polk

1 cassette

Fifteen-year-old Webb talks his doting grandfather into letting him drive and then crashes the car, seriously injuring a little girl. Later his grandfather claims to have been the driver, and Webb, not remembering the accident, at first believes him. For junior and senior high readers. 1999.

by Robert Daley

read by Roy Avers

3 cassettes

Le Lignon, France; 1944. After his U.S. fighter plane is downed, Lieutenant Davey Gannon is carried unconscious to the church rectory and nursed back to health by Rachel, the pastor's adopted daughter. The two fall in love and escape to England. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 1999.

by Malcolm Bosse

read by Chris Parente

1 cassette

In 1920 Borneo a young Iban tribesman's dream instructs him to find a life-changing big fish with the help of a shunned girl. They kidnap a fifteen-year-old English boy from his inspector uncle's crew, thinking his mother's locket is magical. A deep friendship develops. For junior and senior high readers. 1993.

by John L'Heureux

read by Bruce Huntey

2 cassettes

In the eyes of the world psychiatrist Philip Tate stands at the pinnacle of success, both personally and professionally. But when he succumbs to a compulsive weakness for housebreaking, events get out of control and lead to his destruction. Descriptions of sex, violence, and strong language. 1999.

by Orson Scott Card

read by Randy Davidson

2 cassettes

North Carolina, 1997. Bellamy mansion, built in 1874, has fallen into disrepair. Then master craftsman Don Lark, trying to escape his past, buys the property, intending to renovate and resell it. But he doesn't count on owning a house that seems to be alive with evils of old. 1998.

by Thom Jones

read by Fred Major

2 cassettes

Twelve short stories about boxers, soldiers, cancer patients, and others down on their luck. In the title piece, Kid Dynamite, a losing welterweight boxer, persists in training just to remain in the world he knows. Strong language, some explicit descriptions of sex, and some violence. 1999.

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

read by Madelyn Buzzard

2 cassettes

First Lady Cornelia Case has always lived in the political spotlight, so when her husband is assassinated she looks forward to a more private life. But the new president has other ideas, and when Cornelia attempts to escape the spotlight, the results surprise everyone. Strong language and some explicit descriptions of sex. 2000.

by Lurlene McDaniel

read by Jill Fox

1 cassette

Katie O'Roark is thrilled to land a summer job at a camp for children with medical problems, which she once attended--until she discovers that her old boyfriend, Josh Martel, is also working there. But when Josh has a terrible accident, Katie prays for help. For junior and senior high readers. 1999.

by Kevin Baker

read by Richard Hauenstein

4 cassettes

Tale of a young Eastern European stowaway who encounters love, jealousy, and betrayal in the squalid tenements of turn-of-the-century New York City. Set against the tumult of Tammany Hall politics and the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire, which hastened labor reform. Some strong language. 1999.

by Alice Hoffman

read by Jill Fox

1 cassette

Stories of Gretel Samuelson's youthful years on Long Island. Her best friend and neighbor, Jill, marries young and pregnant; her divorced mother battles cancer; her brother's promising future fades with drug use; and her older cousin longs for a family life. Some strong language. 1999.

by R.E. Klein

read by Fred Major

1 cassette

Paul Sant is in the process of buying a surf mat when the entire earth is suddenly covered by a giant tidal wave. He survives with just a few others to form a new nonviolent community in a world that has changed completely. Then the devil shows up. 1998.

by Ward Just

read by Richard Hauenstein

2 cassettes

Political scientist Sydney Parade is in Vietnam as part of the Llewellyn Group, a foreign-aid organization led by Dicky Rostok. Parade arrives with the idealistic goal of helping the local residents, but his assignment to gather information eventually threatens to harm those he befriends. Some violence. 1999.

by Suzanne Lyon

read by Roy Avers

2 cassettes

In this fictional version of the outlaw's career and personal life, Lyon provides personality and character traits for the man behind the legend. The story elaborates on known facts: his adventures as leader of the Wild Bunch, his friendships with men and women, and Cassidy's probable identities after returning from Bolivia. Some strong language. 1999.

by Steven F. Havill

read by Chuck Benson

2 cassettes

Undersheriff Bill Gastner of New Mexico--last seen in Before She Dies (RC 47950)--returns to Posadas County after his house is burglarized and a woman's body is discovered buried on his land. Before long, two toddlers are kidnapped and another body is uncovered. Some violence. 1998.

by Diane Haeger

read by Martha Harmon Pardee

3 cassettes

England, 1785. George, the Prince of Wales, falls in love with Catholic widow Maria Fitzherbert and secretly marries her. It later befalls him to wed Caroline of Brunswick, who becomes his Protestant queen. Maria, however, remains the love of his life. Some descriptions of sex. 2000.

by Ronan Bennett

read by Graeme Malcolm

2 cassettes

The Congo, 1959. Irish writer James Gillespie arrives on the eve of independence to win over his ex-lover, Inès Sabiani, an Italian Communist journalist. Inès supports native leader Patrice Lumumba, while James becomes friendly with CIA operative Mark Stipe. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1997.

by Dan Cushman

read by Bob Askey

2 cassettes

Two western short stories featuring ex-Confederate officer William Calhoun Warren, a.k.a. "The Pecos Kid," and his sidekicks Hernandez Flanagan and Big Jim Swing. In "Riders of the Gunsmoke Rim" a developer tries to force out small ranchers. In "The Deadwood Drive" a cattle run turns deadly. Some violence. 1999.

by Andrew Miller

read by Graeme Malcolm

2 cassettes

Elderly Giacomo Casanova begins burning old love letters until he finds some from Marie Charpillon. Suddenly, memory "like a thousand petal blooms" unfolds as he recalls his 1763 arrival in London and the events that followed as he became completely infatuated with Charpillon--to the detriment of his own life. 1998.

by Margaret Truman

read by Martha Harmon Pardee

2 cassettes

A well-dressed corpse in Washington's Foggy Bottom may be connected to three suspicious commuter plane crashes. Lovers Max Pauling and Jessica Mumford, both of the State Department, are pursuing the investigation when Jessica's ex-husband turns up, fleeing the right-wing extremist faction in which he'd been operating undercover. Some violence and some strong language. 2000.

by Catherine Anderson

read by Kristin Allison

3 cassettes

Maggie Stanley, repeatedly abused by her stepfather, escapes her Idaho home with her baby and hides in a boxcar. Desperately ill and fearing for her son's life, she allows herself to be rescued by Rafe Kendrick, a wealthy rancher running away from his past. Strong language and some explicit descriptions of sex. 1999.

by Jack Driscoll

read by Martha Harmon Pardee

2 cassettes

Middle-aged parole officer Perry Lafond has always considered himself happily married to Marcia, a teacher. But when Marcia begins fertility injections, Perry feels ambivalent about starting a family. His involvement with a parolee's wife contributes to his midlife crisis. Strong language. Pushcart's Editors' Book Award. 1998.

by W.E.B. Griffin

read by Roy Avers

3 cassettes

Philippines; December, 1942. Renegade general ignores the U.S. Army's surrender and begins rounding up like-minded soldiers. Stateside, OSS agents discover his plan and devise ways to support it. Meanwhile, in Budapest and Cairo, other OSS missions are taking place. Strong language. Bestseller 1987.

by Phillip Margolin

read by Jack Fox

2 cassettes

As the Portland, Oregon, police search for a serial killer, their main suspect is Dr. Vincent Cardoni--several mutilated bodies are found on his property. Cardoni's wife, Dr. Castle, is also under scrutiny. While attorney Amanda Jaffe defends Cardoni, he mysteriously disappears. Years later, the crimes begin again. Violence and strong language. Bestseller 2000.

by Aimee Bender

read by Margaret Strom

2 cassettes

Quirky nineteen-year-old protagonist Mona Gray is systematically eliminating everything she loves from her life except mathematics. Accepting a position as an elementary school math teacher, she shares her love of numbers with second graders. And they help her open her heart. Bestseller 2000.

by Myla Goldberg

read by Kimberly Schraf

3 cassettes

Typical fifth-grader Eliza Naumann surprises everyone by winning her school spelling bee. Over the next year her father, Saul, devotes study time to Eliza, further excluding his son, Aaron, and wife, Miriam. Through incantation, mysticism, and mental illness, each member follows a separate path as the family slowly disintegrates. Bestseller 2000.

by Anne Rivers Siddons

read by Colleen Delany

2 cassettes

Lytton, Georgia; 1961. Peyton McKenzie is on the brink of womanhood when her older cousin, Nora, arrives in town. Peyton has always considered herself a loser, but Nora helps her see herself in a different light. However, it soon becomes apparent that Nora has her own problems. Strong language. 2000.

by Dick Francis

read by Bob Askey

2 cassettes

After glassblower Gerard Logan watches his friend, jockey Martin Stukely, die in a race, he is handed a mysterious videotape. Soon afterwards the tape is stolen, leaving Logan, Detective Constable Catherine Dodd, and a gang of thugs searching for the crucial clue. Bestseller 2000.

by Jayne Ann Krentz

read by Ann Hodapp

2 cassettes

Eclipse Bay, Oregon. Although their families had feuded for generations, Hannah Harte once helped Rafe Madison avoid jail. Now Hannah's aunt has left them joint ownership of her home. Some explicit descriptions of sex and some strong language. Bestseller 2000.

by Steve Martin

read by Steven Carpenter

1 cassette

Artistic Mirabelle has an uninspiring job behind the glove counter at Neiman Marcus in Los Angeles, but what she really craves is love. Then smitten Seattle millionaire Ray Porter sends Mirabelle the gloves he purchased from her, beginning an unconventional relationship. Strong language and some explicit descriptions of sex. Bestseller 2000.

by John Grisham

read by Chuck Benson

2 cassettes

Arkansas, 1952. Seven-year-old Luke Chandler, who lives with his parents and grandparents in a house that has never been painted, recounts the events during cotton-picking season. As Luke faces the daily grind of harvesting, he witnesses a murder, a birth, and a storm that changes his family's life. Some violence. Bestseller 2001.

by Susan E. Quinlan

read by Gillian Wilson

1 cassette

Fourteen scientific puzzles about the natural world that have been investigated by ecologists. In "The Case of the Mummified Pigs," a scientist experiments with dead piglets in cages left out in the woods to find out what happens as time passes. For grades 4-7. 1995.

by Stan Hoig

read by Dan Bloom

1 cassette

Chronicles the events that led to the 1838 enforced removal of the Cherokees from their native Southeastern habitat to the Indian Territory, now the state of Oklahoma. Contains many first-person accounts of the misery and losses endured during the journey. For grades 6-9. 1996.

by Kathleen Krull

read by Terence Aselford

1 cassette

Accounts of twelve visionaries--people who predict the future--presented in chronological order from the oracles of ancient Greece to twentieth-century figures. Covers the sibyls of Rome, Mayan astrologers, Nostradamus, Hildegard of Bingen, Leonardo da Vinci, Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Nicholas Black Elk, Jeane Dixon, Edgar Cayce, and Marshall McLuhan. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Deborah Kent

read by Rick Foucheux

1 cassette

A chronicle of milestones in the ongoing fight for disability rights in the United States; includes the 1940 establishment of the National Federation of the Blind and the passing of both the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. For grades 4-7. 1996.

by Russell Freedman

read by Kristin Allison

1 cassette

Biography of the "greatest woman athlete of all time," who broke records in golf, track and field, and other sports in an era when there were few opportunities for female players. Discusses her childhood and her career after winning three medals in the 1932 Olympics. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Robert Gardner

read by Catherine Byers

1 cassette

Describes twenty-six experiments relating to the study of matter and energy. Suggests an appropriate site for each procedure, such as a living room, bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, or playground. Projects include finding your center of gravity, demonstrating Newton's third law in your bathtub, and vibrating rulers and strings. For grades 6-9. 1999.

by Paul P. Sipiera and Diane M. Sipiera

read by Rick Rohan

1 cassette

Explains how and why the four seasons occur and why they are opposite in the northern and southern hemispheres. Briefly discusses seasons on other planets. For grades 2-4. 1998.

by Lynda Jones

read by Anne Flosnik

1 cassette

Includes recipes and hands-on activities to give a taste of what it is like to be a part of various feasts or ceremonies in different countries. Celebrations include Chinese New Year, Mardi Gras, Mexico's El Día de los Reyes, Carnevale in Venice, Barbados Crop-Over, and others. For grades 3-6. 2000.

by Rosa Parks

read by Robin Miles

1 cassette

Famous activist describes her role in the civil rights movement. In 1955, fed up with unequal treatment, Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white man. Her arrest led to a year-long boycott by blacks of Montgomery, Alabama, buses. For grades 2-4. 1997.

by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

read by Mitzi Friedlander

1 cassette

Examines the nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century workplace, the treatment working children received, and the conditions that drove them to rebel. Describes a protest in a Massachusetts mill, coal mine strikes in Pennsylvania, and sweatshop problems in New York, among other situations in which children were exploited. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Alan Brown and Andrew Langley

read by Celeste Lawson

1 cassette

An introduction to world religions, presented by a group of young people who speak for the traditions of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Shinto, and Taoism. The boys and girls tell about the holy writings, places of worship, customs, special foods, and celebrations of each religion. For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1999.

by Milton Meltzer

read by Barbara Pinolini

1 cassette

A portrait of the twentieth-century American poet and writer who won two Pulitzer Prizes. Discusses Sandburg's working-class background, his belief in socialism, and the influences on his writing. Describes how his admiration for Abraham Lincoln grew into a six-volume biography. For grades 6-9. 1999.

by Richard Ferrie

read by Jacinda Bronaugh

1 cassette

Examines the events surrounding the Revolutionary War battle that led to the defeat of the British at Yorktown, Virginia, in 1781. Explains how General George Washington won the war even when his army was falling apart and the country was collapsing. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 1999.

by Robert Barlas

read by Ray Childs

1 cassette

Introduces the geography, history, government, economy, religion, arts and leisure, festivals, food, and people of this archipelago lying in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida. For grades 5-8. 2000.

by Savion Glover and Bruce Weber

read by L.J. Ganser

1 cassette

portrait of the young tap dancer born in 1973 who speaks with his feet and who choreographed the Tony Award-winning Broadway show Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk. Discusses his love of rhythm and some of the great tap dancers with whom he's worked. For grades 5-8. 2000.

by Jacqueline Drobis Meisel

read by Graeme Malcolm

1 cassette

Discusses the history, geography, people, and culture of Australia--the only country that is also a continent. Includes a list of pertinent facts and a glossary. For grades 4-7. 1997.

by Mike Fillon

read by Saidah Arrika Ekulona

1 cassette

Traces the athletic careers of African American sisters Venus and Serena Williams, beginning when their father first taught them to play tennis as preschoolers. Recounts tournaments they won while still in their teens and describes their family life and values. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 1999.

by Rebecca Stefoff

read by Jonathan Davis

1 cassette

Surveys the history, geography, people, and culture of Israel's West Bank and Gaza Strip. Explains the conflict between the Palestinian Arabs and the Israelis, and traces the past transfers of political control over the land. For grades 5-8. 1999.

retold by Caitlín Matthews

read by Suzanne Toren

1 cassette

A treasury of stories about solstice celebrations--festivities that occur when the sun is farthest from the equator. Includes Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and twelfth night; describes many of the customs that accompany these holidays. For grades 3-6. 1999.

by Barbara Hehner

read by Lou Harpenau

1 cassette

Traces the events of the Apollo 11 mission in 1969. Describes the Saturn V rocket, the lunar module, and the roles of the astronauts--Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, the first men who walked on the Moon's surface; and Michael Collins, pilot of the command module. For grades 3-6. 1999.

by Madeline Goodstein

read by Lou Harpenau

1 cassette

Over thirty projects involving sports balls, which demonstrate principles of physics. Answers the questions: why does a tennis ball have fuzz? why does a baseball need stitches? and why does a golf ball have dimples? For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Joan D'Amico and Karen Eich Drummond

read by Kerry Cundiff

1 cassette

A culinary tour of the fifty states, featuring representative recipes, food festivals, and fun facts about specialty items grown or invented within each area. Discusses basic kitchen safety and cooking terms. For grades 5-8 and older readers. 2000.

by Jeff Kisseloff

read by Lou Harpenau

1 cassette

Explores the history of baseball, the role of statistics, and changes in game rules and ball fields in order to determine the greatest hitter. Summarizes the careers of thirty-two outstanding sluggers to help you decide. For grades 5-8. 2000.

by Mark Stewart

read by Jack Fox

2 cassettes

Discusses the origins and evolution of the game of football, as well as major events and key personalities in its history. The game began in England as rugby, but developed its distinctive American style when it became popular among colleges in the United States. Includes lists of winners. For grades 5-8. 1998.

by Kenneth LaFreniere

read by Mark Ashby

1 cassette

Biography of Cuban-born baseball player Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez, who was a star pitcher on the island's national team. When he was banished from sports after his brother defected, Orlando also decided to flee and later joined the New York Yankees. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Vicki Cobb

read by Carol Dines

1 cassette

Describes experiments with food to demonstrate various principles of chemistry and physics, and also to produce an eatable result. Includes recipes for rock candy, grape jelly, cupcakes, and pretzels. Revised and updated from the 1972 edition. For grades 5-8. 1994.

by John F. Grabowski

read by Nick Sullivan

1 cassette

portrays the lives of the five young men in the band 'N Sync and their road to success since the group's formation in 1995. Describes their early establishment in the European pop-music world and their lucky break into the American scene at Disney World. For grades 6-9. 2000.

by Sharifah Enayat Ali

read by Bob Moore

1 cassette

Describes the geography, economy, and culture of the nation of Afghanistan--a country on the crossroads between Europe and the Far East. Traces its history up to 1992, when the communist regime was overthrown and an Islamic state was established. For grades 5-8. 1995.

by Kari Bodnarchuk

read by Terence Aselford

1 cassette

Describes the centuries-long ethnic conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi peoples and its continuing effect on events in this African country. Chronicles the crisis of the mid-1990s and the resulting refugee crisis. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 2000.

by Rebecca Stefoff

read by David Elias

1 cassette

An overview of the history, geography, economy, government, people, and culture of the Asian island country of Japan. Traces its growth from a feudal society to the internationally important high-tech industrial nation that emerged following the Second World War. For grades 5-8. 1999.

edited by Christine Normandin

read by Pam Ward

1 cassette

Five folktales from the Kwakiutl, Native Americans of the northwest coast of the United States. Recounts a mythical time when the world was full of magic and some animals and humans could transform themselves into other species. Companion to Echoes of the Elders (RC 45968). For grades 3-6. 1998.

retold by Mercedes Dorson and Jeanne Wilmot

read by Gabriella Cavallero

1 cassette

Ten folktales reveal the Amazon Indians' desire to live in harmony with nature. Many are creation or origin myths that feature jungle animals and birds, humans with animal ancestors, and even humans changed into plants. An explanatory comment follows each tale. For grades 5-8 and older readers. 1997.

by Tamora Pierce

read by Margaret Strom

2 cassettes

In this sequel to Wild Magic (RC 48501), Daine, mage Numair, and her wolf-pack travel to Dunlath Valley where they find the valley being ruined by humans, or "two-leggers." Daine uses her magical gifts and unites the animals and humans in an attempt to save their land. For grades 5-8. 1994.

by Tamora Pierce

read by Ann Hodapp

1 cassette

Mages-in-training Sandry, Tris, Briar, and Daja come to the aid of the drought-stricken residents of Gold Ridge Valley. When Daja creates a living vine out of metal, other Traders want the vine, forcing Daja to deal with those who thought her unclean. Sequel to Tris's Book (RC 49334). For grades 5-8. 1998.

by Tamora Pierce

read by Ann Hodapp

2 cassettes

Briar, the plant-mage, along with his fellow mages-in-training and their teachers, has come to Summersea to distribute medicines. There Briar learns that a longtime friend has contracted a plague. Everyone joins a race against time to find a cure. Sequel to Daja's Book (RC 49335). For grades 5-8. 1999.

retold by Judy Sierra

read by Michael Skinner

1 cassette

An international collection of eighteen folktales from the oral tradition. Six themes group cultural variations together: runaway cookies; incredible appetites; the victory of the smallest; chain tales; slowpokes and speedsters; and fooling the big, bad wolf. For grades 3-6. 1996.

by David A. Adler

read by L.J. Ganser

1 cassette

While Andy impatiently waits for his new sibling to be born and his friend Tamika to move in, he befriends a stray kitten at school and offers his multiplying gerbils as carnival prizes. This beginning chapter book is a sequel to The Many Troubles of Andy Russell (RC 49522). For grades 2-4. 1999.

by Susan Butler

read by Corrie James

2 cassettes

The oppressive society that controls Earth after a giant meteor strike wants to institutionalize "defective" people. Leora, with a webbed left hand, fears being sent away. She joins a rebel group planning to overthrow the government and discovers a talent for communicating with a new species, birmbas. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Betsy Sterman

read by Margaret Strom

2 cassettes

Hudson River Valley, 1777. Sixteen-year-old Amity Spencer is living on a farm near Saratoga, when the menfolk rush to defend the colony against a British invasion from Canada. Amity grows suspicious when peddler Cheppa John fails to join the men and disappears. Is he a spy? For grades 6-9. 1998.

by Sara Harrell Banks

read by Steven Carpenter

1 cassette

June 1863. The families of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, know there will soon be fighting in their town. When ex-slave Abraham Small and his charge, Ladysmith, meet a young Confederate soldier, Abraham decides to fight for his beliefs and becomes an ambulance driver for the Union. For grades 4-7. 1999.

by Cynthia DeFelice

read by Marilyn Gleason

1 cassette

Twelve-year-old Frances Barrow's comfortable but dull life changes suddenly when her father kills himself during the Great Depression. Now Frances is to go live with her aunt. When a house servant tells her about the hobo life, Frances puts on boys' clothes, cuts her hair, and hits the rails. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Jane Cutler

read by Terence Aselford

1 cassette

Twelve-year-old Harry Jones is spending six weeks at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair with his cousin Frederick, an anthropologist, who becomes responsible for five African Pygmies on display at the fair. Harry befriends Pygmy Ota Benga and together they come to understand their cultural differences. For grades 5-8. 1998.

by Joyce Hansen

read by Bob Moore

1 cassette

West Africa, 1788. Kofi, a twelve-year-old Ashanti boy, is sold into slavery by his father's own slave. After a few years of servitude in Massachusetts, Kofi manages to escape and is rescued by Paul Cuffe, an African-Indian ship captain who abhors injustice. For grades 5-8. 1994.

by Dan Gutman

read by Erik Sandvold

1 cassette

In this sequel to Honus and Me (RC 49915), an assignment for Black History Month prompts Joe Stoshack to use his time-travel ability to visit Jackie Robinson. In 1947 New York, Jackie faces opposition as he becomes the first black baseball player allowed in the majors. For grades 4-7. 1999.

by Donna Jo Napoli

read by Phil Regensdorf

1 cassette

The traditional tale is transformed into a coming-of-age story about risk taking. Here, an older Jack climbs a beanstalk, steals from a giant, and finds that his treasures have a different value back home. Throughout his struggles, Jack's loyalty to his mother and his true love, Flora, remains steadfast. For grades 6-9. 1999.

by Steve Schuch

read by Pam Ward

1 cassette

Young Glashka's sled dogs lead her to thousands of Beluga whales trapped by the ice freezing over a great bay. An icebreaker clears a path for the whales, but they don't leave until Glashka's dream about music provides a solution for their rescue. For grades K-3. 1999.

selected by Barry Moser

read by Tom Martin

1 cassette

Thirteen classic spooky stories by such authors as H.G. Wells, Madeleine L'Engle, Bram Stoker, Arthur Conan Doyle, and H.P. Lovecraft. In "The Monkey's Paw" a magical talisman delivers three wishes to its owner. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 1998.

by C.S. Lewis

read by Erik Sandvold

7 cassettes in 2 containers

Seven stories presented in the chronological order in which C.S. Lewis intended them to be read. The first is The Magician's Nephew, telling how the journeys between the two worlds began and how the wardrobe came to be a doorway leading into Narnia. For grades 4-7. 1998.

by Claudia Mills

read by Rick Foucheux

1 cassette

Gus feels safer with the training wheels on his bike, even though he has a friend who doesn't need them. Gus's father tries to help him overcome his fear, but it is grandpa who finds the right way to help Gus ride without the extra support. A beginning chapter book. For grades K-3. 1999.

by Jean Craighead George

read by Steven Carpenter

1 cassette (Reissue)

Sam Gribley relates his adventures during the year he lives alone in the Catskill Mountains. He describes his struggle for survival, his dependence on nature, his animal friends, and his ultimate realization that he needs human companionship. For grades 5-8. 1959.

by Jennifer L. Holm

read by Laura Giannarelli

1 cassette

In 1899, twelve-year-old May Amelia lives with her Finnish American family in the small Washington community of Nasel. A tomboy with seven brothers, May becomes anxious about her family's bad luck. Some strong language. For grades 4-7. 1999.

retold by Uma Krishnaswami

read by Kimberly Schraf

1 cassette

Eighteen stories from the Indian subcontinent, drawn from Hindu mythology, Buddhism, oral folk traditions, literary works, and legends. In "Gotami and the Mustard Seed" a young wife asks Buddha for medicine to restore her dead son. His reply leads her to new levels of understanding. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Mildred D. Taylor

read by Samarra Mbenga

2 cassettes (Reissue)

Nine-year-old Cassie Logan recalls a turbulent time in Mississippi during the Great Depression--a year of night riders, burnings, and threats. She describes her African American family's struggle to survive with their dignity and independence intact. Some strong language. For grades 6-9. Newbery Award. 1976.

by Elizabeth Starr Hill

read by Catherine Byers

1 cassette

Chang, a mute Chinese boy, communicates better with his father's cormorants--specially trained fishing birds--than with people. One boy, Jinan, always teases him, but Jinan's sister Mei Mei becomes Chang's friend. She helps him when his beloved cormorant chick is in danger. A beginning chapter book. For grades 2-4. 1999.

by Jerdine Nolen

read by Robin Miles

1 cassette

"Seems like everything good that happens in my house happens in my momma's kitchen," says a young African American girl. The kitchen is where her family visits with great-aunt Caroline, makes big pots of stew and crab-apple jelly, watches Janie, the cat, cause trouble, and tells stories on sleepless nights. For grades K-3. 1999.

by Paula Danziger and Ann M. Martin

read by Annie Wauters

1 cassette

In this sequel to P.S. Longer Letter Later (RC 47287) Tara Starr and Elizabeth are excited to have computers for exchanging e-mail. The girls continue to share important news like boyfriends, Tara's new sister, and Elizabeth's alcoholic father. For grades 5-8. 2000.

by Mary Downing Hahn

read by Rick Rohan

1 cassette

In 1945 Gordy and his mother and siblings leave his abusive father to stay with Grandma. She corrects Gordy's fighting and shoddy schoolwork, and he must apologize for insulting their neighbor William (who has polio). The boys become friends until Gordy forces William to try to walk. Some strong language. For grades 5-8. 1996.

by Lulu Delacre

read by Ilona Dulaski

1 cassette

When Carmen Teresa receives a journal as a present during her family's New Year's party, she records stories told by the guests about growing up in their Latin American homelands. Carmen also includes recipes for their favorite dishes. For grades 4-7. 2000.

by Michael Delaney

read by Chris Parente

1 cassette

Twelve-year-old electronics buff Bennet and his best friend, Pete, build a TV transmitter that overrides a local station's broadcasts. The boys interrupt the governor's campaign speeches to spoof him, using Pete's dog as their mouthpiece. Then Bennet's reporter father figures out what's happening. For grades 4-7. 1996.

by Mavis Jukes

read by Madelyn Buzzard

1 cassette

When fourteen-year-old Ashley gets up the courage to ask her stepmother for a new dress to wear to the country club millennium party, she is horrified to learn she is expected to baby-sit her bratty twin stepsisters that night. But her stepmother's visiting grandmother saves the day. For grades 6-9. 1999.

by Diana Wynne Jones

read by Mitzi Friedlander

2 cassettes

Seven fantasy tales written between 1982 and 1999. The last story, "Nad and Dan adn Quaffy" was inspired by the author's own typos and her habit of drinking coffee--which can be "xiddaw" or "voggrr" (obviously alien beverages), depending on which wrong keys are struck. For grades 6-9. 1999.

by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

read by Kerry Cundiff

1 cassette

In this sequel to Alice on the Outside (RC 48971) Alice and her friends decide to get in shape before beginning high school, but Elizabeth becomes overly obsessed with losing weight. Pamela and Alice also face emotional distress during the summer. For grades 6-9. 2000.

by Paula Danziger

read by Madelyn Buzzard

1 cassette

In this sequel to Amber Brown Sees Red (RC 45328), Amber prepares for Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations with her mother and her mother's fiancé, Max. Meanwhile, Amber doesn't help the growing irritation between her mother and her father when she sneakily gets her ears pierced. For grades 2-4. 1999.

by Ann Cameron

read by Mary Ann Nichols

1 cassette

Gloria Jones sometimes thinks everything has to be done her way. But in these six short stories Gloria, with the help of her friends Huey, Julian, and Latisha, finds there can be many ways to do some things. Gloria learns about friendships, fractions, and making promises. For grades 2-4. 2000.

by Gina Willner-Pardo

read by Joni Siani

1 cassette

Sophie loves being at the pool with her friend Annalise, until two popular girls challenge them to jump off the high dive. Annalise enjoys it, but Sophie is too afraid. She tries to get over her fear by doing something scary each day. Beginning chapter book. For grades 3-6. 1999.

edited by Sidney Lanier

read by Dan Bloom

2 cassettes

Contains tales of chivalry, combat, honor, tournaments, the Holy Grail, and the death of King Arthur. Featuring Arthur, Launcelot, Tristram, Gareth, Galahad, Percival, and the other legendary members of the Round Table. For grades 5-8. 1880.

by Gloria Whelan

read by Yolande Bavan

1 cassette

When Koly turns thirteen, her parents arrange a marriage for her according to the custom in India. But Koly's young husband is seriously ill and may die. She hides a pair of silver earrings--her only possession of value--as a precaution against an uncertain future. For grades 6-9. 2000.

by Julie Anne Peters

read by Ann Hodapp

1 cassette

Studious Antonia agrees to become a peer counselor, but she's horrified to be assigned punker Jazz Luther, whose complaint is her wealthy parents' attitude problem. Meanwhile, Antonia copes with her severely depressed, divorced mother and cares for her two little brothers. A crisis deepens the girls' relationship. For grades 6-9. 2000.

by Julius Lester

read by Ann Hodapp

1 cassette

A fictional version of the biblical story of Moses. An Egyptian princess rescues a Hebrew infant who eventually becomes a prophet of his people, while his sister finds her true self as a priestess to the gods of ancient Egypt. For grades 6-9. 2000.

by Elizabeth Levy

read by Carol Dines

1 cassette

When ballroom dancing is introduced to their school, Rebecca and Scott are teamed up and turn into wonderful dance partners. But Rebecca's friend, Samantha, claims Scott as her new boyfriend just when Rebecca starts to like him as more than a friend. For grades 5-8. 2000.

by Kate DiCamillo

read by Ann Hodapp

1 cassette

Ten-year-old India Opal Buloni and her preacher dad move to a new town in Florida during the summer. Opal is lonely until she adopts a big stray dog she names Winn-Dixie. The two soon make friends with the local librarian, the pet store manager, and a nearly-blind elderly neighbor. For grades 3-6. 2000.

by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

read by Carol Dines

2 cassettes

1951. Twelve-year-old Dani hates living in the dismal desert town of Rattler Springs, Nevada, and plans to run away to California. Then Stormy, a pesky neighborhood boy, and Pixie, the new girl in town, decide to join her. For grades 4-7. 1999.

by Chris Van Allsburg

read by Laura Giannarelli

1 cassette (Reissue)

Left on their own for an afternoon, two bored and restless children find more excitement than they bargained for in a mysterious and thrilling jungle adventure board game. For grades K-3. Caldecott Medal. 1981.

by Judi Barrett

read by Laura Giannarelli

1 cassette (Reissue)

Life is delicious in the town of Chewandswallow, where it rains soup and juice, snows mashed potatoes, and blows storms of hamburgers--until the weather takes a turn for the worse. For grades K-3. 1978.

by Matt Christopher

read by Erik Sandvold

1 cassette

Mac knows he's the best goalie on the Cougar's team and he is critical of his teammates. When caricatures begin to appear in the school paper mocking him, Mac is determined to uncover the anonymous cartoonist. For grades 4-7. 1998.

by Gloria Skurzynski and Alane Ferguson

read by Nick Sullivan

1 cassette

Troy, the Landons' new temporary foster child, still insists his mother would not have abandoned him and that she must be in danger somewhere. He angrily accompanies the Landon children and their parents to Yellowstone National Park, where Mrs. Landon, a wildlife veterinarian, has been sent to investigate a wolf attack. For grades 4-7. 1997.

by Sharon Creech

read by Kristin Allison

1 cassette

Thirteen-year-old Sophie and her cousin Cody record their transatlantic voyage by sailboat to visit Bompie, their grandfather in England. Also on board are three uncles and another cousin. The journey of discovery for all six becomes especially important for Sophie, who was adopted into the family only three years ago. For grades 5-8. 2000.

by Bruce Brooks

read by Erik Sandvold

1 cassette

When his teammates on the coed baseball team continue their losing streak, Whiz uses a printing press to create baseball cards of imaginary star players. But when the fantasy kids mysteriously show up on the field and start winning, all the fun goes out of the game. For grades 4-7. 2000.

by Mildred Pitts Walter

read by Peter Jay Fernandez

1 cassette

Sixth-grader Xander is the school's best artist, but he's lousy at sports, and his tall, skinny frame and big feet have earned him hated nicknames. To please his father, Xander works on eliminating his awkwardness with the help of a new friend. For grades 5-8. 1999.

by Andrew Clements

read by Erik Sandvold

1 cassette

In fifth grade Jack is embarrassed to attend the school where his father is a janitor. When a greeting prompts teasing from his classmates, Jack plans revenge. The prank backfires, but it gives him a chance to learn more about his dad. For grades 3-6. 2000.

by Fred Bowen

read by Erik Sandvold

1 cassette

The seventh-grade basketball team is good, but having no tall players costs the team game after game. Michael and his teammates especially dread their final game against the much-taller eighth graders. Then an old sports magazine gives Michael an idea to give his team an edge. For grades 3-6. 1998.

by Fred Bowen

read by Peter Jay Fernandez

1 cassette

Marcus is the star of his middle school basketball team, but his inability to sink free shots is causing the team to lose games. When he finally learns an odd but successful technique from a school janitor, Marcus is embarrassed to try it in public. For grades 4-7. 1999.

by Diane Gonzales Bertrand

read by Peter Jay Fernandez

1 cassette

When thirteen-year-old Trino becomes friendly with Lisana and her "school type" friends, he begins to see a different way of life outside the barrio. But Trino is still lured by neighborhood losers with the promise of easy money, and he must decide which way to go. For grades 6-9 and older readers. 1999.

by Lewis Carroll

read by Yvonne Tessler

2 cassettes (Reissue)

Extraordinary things happen when a little girl falls down a rabbit hole and encounters the White Rabbit, the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter, and other unusual characters. Alice's second adventure takes her to a land with a peculiar back-to-front order in which everything is reversed. For grades 3-6 and older readers. 1865.

por Frank McCourt

leído por Juan Ramírez

4 cassettes

El autor recuerda su miserable niñez catolica en su pueblo natal de Limerick, Irlandia. Su padre era un hombre locuaz pero desempleado y alcohólico que no brinda ayuda alguna a la familia. La familia sufre hambre, crueldad, enfermedades y la muerte de niños, pero McCourt narra la historia con afecto y sin rencor. Contiene lenguaje injurioso. (Frank McCourt recollects his "miserable Irish Catholic childhood" in the squalor of Limerick. Absent any support from his glib, but shiftless, alcoholic father, the family suffered hunger, cruelty, disease, and the death of children. McCourt recounts his story without rancor. Strong language.) 1997.

por Julia Alvarez

leído por María Pino

3 cassettes

Novela de la República Dominicana bajo el régimen de Rafael Trujillo. En 1960 las cuatro hermanas Mirabal luchaban por la libertad y tres de ellas fueron asesinados. La autora, un refugio de ese conflicto, recrea las vidas de las mujeres, martirizadas por sus creencias y su coraje. (Set in the Dominican Republic under the regime of Rafael Trujillo. In 1960 three of the four Mirabal sisters were murdered for their part in the struggle for freedom. The author, a refugee herself, recreates the everyday lives of the women, martyred for their courage and beliefs.) 1995.

por Billy Graham

leído por Juan Ramírez

2 cassettes

El famoso clérigo evangélico cree que los ángeles hacen un papel más importante en la Biblia que el diablo o los demonios. Graham cree también que Dios manda que los ángeles sirvan de guardianes y protectores a los fieles. (The world-famous clergyman suggests that angels are accorded a more important place in the Bible than the devil or his demons. Graham also believes that God sends angelic beings to watch over and protect His people.) 1976.

recontado por Lucía M. González

leído por María Pino

1 cassette

El señor don Gato va a casarse y está tan alegre que canta de su amor a las estrellas--pero acaba cayendo del techo. Este cuento y cinco más integran esta colección de cuentos folclóricos de América Latina. Para grados K a 3 y lectores mayores. (Señor Don Gato is so thrilled to be marrying that he sings his love to the stars above--and falls off the roof. Five other Latin American folktales complete the collection. For grades K-3 and older readers.) 1997.