Showing results by narrator "Barbara Caruso" in All Categories

Widely hailed as a milestone in American literature, Sinclair Lewis' Main Street vividly describes a country on the verge of massive change, with traditional values being threatened by progress. The novel's heroine, Carol Milford, is a highly educated, ambitious woman who plans to join a newly enlightened society. But after marrying a small-town doctor, she finds herself trapped in the role of a dutiful wife. Carol's desires for social change conflict with the security of her comfortable married life, as she struggles to understand the cost of conformity...and rebellion. As relevant today as it was upon its 1920 publication, Main Street is both a masterful piece of writing and a fascinating microcosm of America's social evolution.

As a young girl Sandy Price dreamed of owning a pony like Misty of Chincoteague. Journeying to Chincoteague for the annual pony penning, a grown Sandy decides to make her dream come true. At the end of the auction she brings home not just one but four beautiful ponies, including Sunshine, a direct descendant of Misty. When Twilight, Sunshine’s foal, first appears from her stall, the fire of the wild ponies of Assateague is in her eyes. She races and rears herself into a lather, bucking at even the temporary confinement when the farrier examines her hooves.

Years ago, Wynn and Elizabeth Delancy adopted Christine and Henry. Now Christine has moved to a nearby city. Working as a secretary in a prosperous company, she is drawn to her employer's handsome son. Henry has joined the Canadian Mounties, where one of his first duties is to help a young widow and her infant. In their new lives, as new relationships grow, can Christine and Henry still draw on the faith they have learned from their parents?

One of the most highly acclaimed and best-selling novels of 1991, Mariette in Ecstasy inspires even the most discriminating listener to some degree of reverence. This captivating story of faith and divine madness may move you to examine your own belief system. Since the tender age of four, Mariette Baptiste has had visions of her Savior. Now, at 17, she is entering the convent to dedicate her life to Him. At first, she is welcomed and admired. Then she begins to bleed from stigmata, and the villagers regard her as a saint.

Joyce Carol Oates paints a haunting tapestry of American life in 22 short stories that take the listener from tempestuous inner cities to isolated rural backwaters. Obsession with loss, fear of betrayal, and sudden violence plague Oates’ characters as she examines the lives of the working poor and follies of the irresponsible rich with searing clarity. George Guidall’s and Barbara Caruso’s masterful performances make this rich collection of stories a must-listen.

In A Promise for Spring by ACF Book of the Year novelist Kim Vogel Sawyer, Geoffrey Garrett leaves his 17-year-old fiancée in England while he establishes his Kansas ranch and builds her a proper house. But when he sends for her five years later in 1874, it's clear her feelings have changed far more than his. Despite his desire to marry and her wish to leave, they forge a compromise. If she remains as the ranch's housekeeper until spring, he will pay for her trip back home.

The prairie fires that sweep the grazing lands, the coming of white men with their guns and diseases, and the quick slaughter of the vast buffalo herds leave Running Fawn's Blackfoot tribe with little choice but to take up residence on the assigned Reserve. All her life, Running Fawn has known only contentment, but now what will become of her hopes and dreams?

Suddenly all alone in 1894 Kansas, Summer Steadman can't find the employment she needs to settle near the fresh graves of her husband and four children. Bitter against the Lord and refusing to eat, she collapses in despair. Remembering his own painful loss, godly widower Peter Ollenbuger offers her food and shelter for tutoring his 10-year-old son.

With humor and honesty, award-winning author Lee Reilly explores the joys and trials of the “ever-single” woman in a world defined by the married. In Women Living Single, she tells the refreshing stories of 30 unmarried women of all ages, struggling alone to live life to its fullest, and succeeding.

Grasshoppers, waterstriders, and fireflies light up the pages of this rib-tickling book of poetry for two voices. Written as spirited duets, the poems ring with the love songs of book lice, the serenades of moths, and a choir of cicadas. Each one is a treat, filled with busy insect life. In addition to the voices of these frisky critters, there are also fascinating tidbits about their lives and habits.

Sixteen delightful holiday short stories by some of your favorite Soho crime authors! This captivating collection of short mysteries and crime capers - which features New York Times best-selling authors, Crime Writers Association Gold and Diamond Dagger winners, and Edgar Award nominees - contains laughs aplenty, the most hardboiled of holiday noir, and heartwarming reminders of the spirit of the season.

At 22, Katherine Mayfield has taken her rightful place as mistress of Mayfield Manor. Her plain Amish childhood is over, and her new world is filled with endless possibilities. Why, then, does Katherine find her thoughts going back to old friendships and the family that raised her? Soon, the beautiful young woman will face choices that may change her faith forever. As Katherine examines her heart and her soul, her questions will encourage you to spend some quiet time with your own meditations.

Sarah Cain is a strictly modern woman living in Oregon and developing a burgeoning career in real estate. Her sister Ivy left to pursue a Plain life in Amish country 12 years ago. But when Ivy dies, Sarah is shocked to learn that she has been appointed guardian of her sister's five children. Lydia, the eldest, senses major difficulties for the new family.

Gwyn Hillerman acts as a nurse at her father's medical practice in 1935 rural Alaska. Her family life has been rough ever since her mother, hating Alaska, took Gwyn's younger sister back to Chicago to live. Dr. Jeremiah Vaughan finds his life suddenly turned upside down when his medical license is stripped away after he loses an affluent patient. In a snowball effect, he then loses his engagement to Gwyn's sister, Sophia. When the government decides to send a group of families to Alaska in hopes of making a better life, Dr. Hillerman sends a letter urging Jeremiah to join his practice.

The dawn of the New Testament era was ushered in by the Sermon on the Mount over two millennia ago. Ellen White's retelling of Christ's familiar words brings out precious treasures new and old. The listener is transported back in time to experience, the inaugural address of Christ's Kingdom, as if for the first time. Christ's benediction to the world, and this telling of it is for everyone.

Charlotte Gleason embarks from England in 1886 with mixed feelings. Although she’s never met her fiancé, she's headed for New York to marry one of America’s wealthiest heirs. Filled with doubts and hoping for a chance at “real life”, she swaps identities with her maid Dora. For Dora, it’s the chance of a lifetime. But for Charlotte, what begins as the whim of a spoiled rich girl becomes a test of survival beyond her darkest dreams.

Journalist Philip Bradley can't forget Rachel Yoder, the blind Amish woman he met while on assignment in Pennsylvania. He is determined to find a cure for her and to get to know her better. But before Rachel can move on in her life, she must first confront traumatic memories. Can their growing love survive the vast gulf between their different worlds and Rachel's agonizing road to recovery?

In a terrible accident, Rachel Yoder loses her husband, her son, and her unborn child. Now, Rachel leads a reclusive life with her young daughter. Her soul is troubled, and her eye-sight has mysteriously dimmed. But the discovery of an old postcard, hidden for years, is about to change Rachel's world.

Because she has disobeyed church rules, Katie Lapp is now Katherine Mayfield. Expelled from her strict Amish home, she sets out to find Laura Mayfield, the birth mother she has never known. But even as Katherine draws near to Laura, evil plans in the works to tear away their happiness and their inheritance.

In The Shunning, beautiful 22-year-old Katie Lapp longs to experience the forbidden things of the outside world, even while she is making plans to forever embrace the traditions of her people. In a few days, Katie will marry Bishop John, a widower with five young children. She should be excited, but instead she feels trapped. Her thoughts in turmoil, she heads to the attic to be alone. As she explores a dusty trunk, she discovers a satin infant gown, much too fancy for an Amish baby.