Behind the Scenes; or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House (AmazonClassics Edition)
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Behind the Scenes; or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House (AmazonClassics Edition)
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Narrated by:
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Robin Eller
About this listen
Born into bondage in 1818, Elizabeth Keckley was able to purchase her freedom only after years of saving. She then went on to build a thriving business as a seamstress, eventually becoming modiste to Mary Todd Lincoln herself. In this dressmaking role, Keckley was a close confidante of Mary Todd, and her 1868 memoir recounted her incredible rise while also providing revelatory insights into everyday life among the Lincolns. The public response was utter shock at the perceived violation of privacy, but today, Keckley’s memoir has a special place in American political history as a poignant reflection on the First Family and a substantial record of the White House during the Civil War.
Revised edition: Previously published as Behind the Scenes or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House, this edition of Behind the Scenes; or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House (AmazonClassics Edition) includes editorial revisions.
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Wonderful author, terrific narrator, splendid book
- By Rahni on 10-01-17
By: Mark Twain
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North and South
- By: Elizabeth Gaskell
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 18 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7,382
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 6,570
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 6,574
Written at the request of Charles Dickens, North and South is a book about rebellion that poses fundamental questions about the nature of social authority and obedience. Gaskell expertly blends individual feeling with social concern and her heroine, Margaret Hale, is one of the most original creations of Victorian literature. When Margaret Hale's father leaves the Church in a crisis of conscience she is forced to leave her comfortable home in the tranquil countryside of Hampshire....
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5 out of 5 stars
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Delightful
- By Sally on 01-04-10
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Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
- By: Frederick Douglass
- Narrated by: Walter Covell
- Length: 3 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 488
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 409
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 407
Frederick Douglass was an American abolitionist, women's suffragist, editor, orator, author, statesman and reformer. He was called both "The Sage of Anacostia" and "The Lion of Anacostia" and is one of the most prominent figures in African-American history and United States history.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great Book!
- By Mama C on 03-05-11
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Dombey and Son
- By: Charles Dickens
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 36 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 123
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 68
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 66
In this carefully crafted novel, Dickens reveals the complexity of London society in the enterprising 1840s as he takes the listener into the business firm and home of one of its most representative patriarchs, Paul Dombey.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Perfect pair
- By Philip on 03-25-08
By: Charles Dickens
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The Lincolns
- Portrait of a Marriage
- By: Daniel Mark Epstein
- Narrated by: Adam Grupper
- Length: 21 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 140
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 88
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Story4 out of 5 stars 88
In 1974 the historian Fawn Brodie predicted that a "sensitive study of the Lincoln marriage will not always defy biographers". Until now, it has. The only book-length treatment of the marriage was published in 1953, when scholars lacked today's resources and were still struggling with deep-seated prejudices about Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln. Now Daniel Mark Epstein has produced an incisive and balanced portrait of the Lincolns.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating!
- By F. Elizabeth Hauser on 12-14-08
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Louisa
- The Extraordinary Life of Mrs. Adams
- By: Louisa Thomas
- Narrated by: Kirsten Potter
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 99
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 82
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Story4 out of 5 stars 85
Born in London to an American father and a British mother on the eve of the Revolutionary War, Louisa Catherine Johnson was raised in circumstances very different from the New England upbringing of future president John Quincy Adams, whose life had been dedicated to public service from the earliest age. And yet John Quincy fell in love with her almost despite himself. Their often tempestuous but deeply close marriage lasted half a century.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Insightful
- By Jean on 05-18-16
By: Louisa Thomas
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The Bondwoman's Narrative
- By: Hannah Crafts, edited by Henry Louis Gates Jr.
- Narrated by: Anna Deavere Smith
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 204
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 119
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 120
An unprecedented historical and literary event, this tale written in the 1850s is the only known novel by a female African American slave, and quite possibly the first novel written by a black woman anywhere. A work recently uncovered by renowned scholar and professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., it is a stirring tale of "passing" and the adventures of a young slave as she makes her way to freedom.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Poor reading of an important book
- By Hilary on 11-15-04
By: Hannah Crafts, and others
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Lady Audley's Secret
- By: Mary Elizabeth Braddon
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
- Abridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 104
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 85
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Story4 out of 5 stars 86
A fast-paced Victorian thriller that will delight audiences today as it did 100 years ago, Lady Audley's Secret has subterfuge, kidnapping, jealousy, and fraud, all thrown into the mix and shaken up for good measure.
A mystery which keeps a listener guessing until the last moments, this production is a must-listen for anyone who enjoys playing detective.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Narrator creates the listen
- By connie on 02-06-12
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Through Five Administrations
- Inside the White House with Presidents Lincoln, Johnson, Grant, Hayes, and Garfield
- By: William H. Crook
- Narrated by: Brian V. Hunt
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 30
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 30
Fifty years of service at the White House in various capacities, including bodyguard to Abraham Lincoln, William H. Crook's memoir brings an astonishing array of personal details of life in the executive mansion. His sensitive observations of Lincoln are especially moving.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Terrible narration
- By Kathy on 06-05-17
By: William H. Crook
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Father Goriot
- By: Honoré de Balzac
- Narrated by: Bill Homewood
- Length: 12 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 71
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 61
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 59
Impoverished young aristocrat Eugene de Rastignac is determined to climb the social ladder and impress himself on Parisian high society. While staying at the Maison Vauquer, a boarding house in Paris's rue Neuve-Sainte-Genevieve, he encounters Jean-Joachim Goriot, a retired vermicelli maker who has spent his entire fortune supporting his two daughters. The boarders strike up a friendship and Goriot learns of Rastignac's feelings for his daughter Delphine. He begins to see Rastignac as the ideal son-in-law, and the perfect substitute for Delphine's domineering husband. But Rastignac has other opportunities too....
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5 out of 5 stars
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Astounding performance
- By Laurence Grey on 04-05-21
By: Honoré de Balzac
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The Woman in White
- By: Wilkie Collins
- Narrated by: Josephine Bailey, Simon Prebble
- Length: 25 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 2,348
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,996
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Story4 out of 5 stars 2,009
One of the greatest mystery thrillers ever written, Wilkie Collins's The Woman in White was a phenomenal best seller in the 1860s, achieving even greater success than works by Charles Dickens. Full of surprise, intrigue, and suspense, this vastly entertaining novel continues to enthrall audiences today.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Gripping novel, excellent production
- By David on 01-18-11
By: Wilkie Collins
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Wives and Daughters
- By: Elizabeth Gaskell
- Narrated by: Nadia May
- Length: 25 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 642
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 494
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 490
Set in English society before the 1832 Reform Bill, Wives and Daughters centers on the story of youthful Molly Gibson, brought up from childhood by her father. When he remarries, a new stepsister enters Molly's quiet life, the loveable, but worldly and troubling, Cynthia. The narrative traces the development of the two girls into womanhood within the gossiping and watchful society of Hollingford.
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5 out of 5 stars
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It's not about the ending!
- By Sandra on 07-25-05
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The Narrative of Sojourner Truth
- By: Olive Gilbert
- Narrated by: Bobbie Frohman
- Length: 3 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 91
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 82
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Story4 out of 5 stars 81
A poignant biography as told to Olive Gilbert by Isabella Bomefree - a slave who later took the name of Sojourner Truth. She recounts the harshness of life under slavery, and after winner her freedom, became a vociferous abolitionist for which she has been long remembered and revered.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Requirement for seminary
- By Steven Small on 12-14-18
By: Olive Gilbert
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The Moonstone
- By: Wilkie Collins
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 20 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 837
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 542
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Story4 out of 5 stars 550
No, the "Moonstone" isn't a celestial relic, it's a gigantic yellow diamond of unearthly beauty that was given to Rachel Verinder as a present on her 18th birthday - and stolen that very night! Betteredge, one of the most beloved butlers in English literature, is the focus of this seminal detective novel, which examines how one family's life is turned upside-down by the theft. And find out why the answers to all of life's problems can be found in the pages of Robinson Crusoe.
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5 out of 5 stars
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One of the best readings ever
- By Catherine on 05-22-03
By: Wilkie Collins
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The Warden
- By: Anthony Trollope
- Narrated by: Flo Gibson
- Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 1
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 1
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Story4 out of 5 stars 1
A kindly warden is accused of misusing church funds. This amusing book examines the making and breaking of reputations.
By: Anthony Trollope
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Sister Carrie
- By: Theodore Dreiser
- Narrated by: C.M. Hebert
- Length: 17 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 247
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 197
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Story4 out of 5 stars 199
Sister Carrie is an epic of urban life, the story of an innocent heroine adrift in an indifferent city. When small-town girl Carrie Meeber sets out for Chicago, she is equipped with nothing but a few dollars, a certain unspoiled beauty and charm, and a pitiful lack of preparation for the complex moral choices she will face. Her story is one of struggle, from sweatshop to stage success, and of the love she inspires in a married man twice her age, whose obsession with her threatens to destroy him.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Why audiobooks matter
- By connie on 12-03-09
By: Theodore Dreiser
What listeners say about Behind the Scenes; or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House (AmazonClassics Edition)
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jeffrey H Shonert
- 01-05-23
You must read Elizabeth Keckly’s story
Elizabeth Keckley tells her story with deep sensitivity and spirituality. She became the stable rock for Mary, Todd, Lincoln, emotionally, shattered, and miserable.
Hey, I could not put this down. Elizabeth Keckley becomes a real saint dealing with the mentally challenged persona of the former First Lady. This is a must read.! I thought the actress portraying Mrs. Kackley was incredibly talented and full of nuance and heart.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nancy Moore
- 10-03-23
Bravo
Written with compassion and kindness. The reader has the perfect voice pitch, was easy to understand her.
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