Results Publisher "Spoken Realms" in Satire

Stephen Leacock (1869-1944) may be considered the Canadian counterpart to Mark Twain. For many years he was professor of economics at Magill University and published a number of well-regarded texts on economics and political science. However, he is best known today for his many volumes of humorous fiction. During the 1920s he was one of the most widely read authors in the English-speaking world and was considered by Jack Benny and Groucho Marx to be one of the greatest comic writers of all time.

Gogol's phantasmagorical tale about a man whose nose decides to abscond and begin living a life of its own is one of the earliest and most celebrated examples of absurdist literature. Apart from its recondite humor, it is remarkable for Gogol's skill in characterization and his ability to paint a picture of contemporary life in Russia in a few verbal brushstrokes.

Nonsense Novels was first published in 1920 yet a century later remains a huge favorite among Stephen Leacock fans. The British-born Canadian writer was renowned for his humor, and Nonsense Novels epitomizes both this skill and his mastery of the ridiculous. From an ill-fated Middle Ages romance to the dubious skills of a pitiful private eye and the happy outcome of a generations-old Scottish feud, Nonsense Novels is a tremendous listen.

Why can't Millie Lord remember who she is? What is Birdly Laughing? Does Dr. Nottle's Cheese Diet work? Crane Mansions is a novel for grown-up children, a darkly comic and magical world in which the wondering, fantasy, and confusion of children come face-to-face with the schemes, delusions, and machinations of adults.

The full title of Swift's pamphlet is A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People from Being a Burtden to their Parents, or the Country, and for Making them Beneficial to the Publick."The tract is an ironically conceived attempt to "find out a fair, cheap, and easy Method" for converting the starving children of Ireland into "sound and useful members of the Commonwealth." Across the country poor children, predominantly Catholics, are living in squalor because their families are too poor to keep them fed and clothed.

Mark Twain accepted the editorship of an agricultural paper due to a financial need. The humorous trouble was that Twain had no real knowledge of agriculture. Then again Twain never seemed to mind writing about things he knew nothing about. The response from the public was immediate and intense. This short story allows Twain to explain why he had no problem taking on a task that he knew he couldn’t do well.

What if a story by Mark Twain about political economy had nothing to do with politics or economy? This humorous short story has everything to do with the interruptions by a workman the author faced when trying to pen thoughts on politics. There were many reasons Twain frustratingly agreed to something he never would have asked for, but the result were - shocking.

The Importance of Being Earnest is a classic comedy of manners in which two flippant young men, in order to impress their respected beloveds, pretend that their names are "Ernest", which both young ladies believe confers magical qualities on the possessor. It was first performed for the public on February 14, 1895, at the St. James’ Theatre in London, and is regarded by many critics and scholars as being the wittiest play in the English language.

Wickedly narrated by David Stifel, and written in 1729, this satiric essay on how to solve Ireland's chronic poverty is perhaps more shocking today than when it was written. In the 1960s, when Peter O'Toole did a public reading of this piece in Dublin, he very nearly started a riot. Newspapers the following day lambasted O'Toole's "shocking bad taste." Whether shocking satire, or Monty-Pythonesque surrealism, this essay has continually managed to offend people for well over 3 centuries. Enjoy! (and Thank You!)

Bret Harte is best known for his stories of the pioneering days in California, so this humorous parody of English Gothic novels is a delightful departure. Harte sets his unlikely tale in Regency England with all the cliches and plot conventions present in abundance. The two main characters Lady Selina and Edgardo hide their amoral pasts from each other, unaware that they're a perfectly suited couple. In the mix are mysterious villains, dark secrets, past scandals, forbidden romance, hidden panels, murders, ghosts, all ending with the requisite deus ex machina conclusion.

This short story first appeared in the Saturday Evening Post in 1920, and later became part of Flappers and Philosophers. Fitzgerald was the master of exposing the underbelly of the aristocracy and the pompous, and here, Horace the prodigy falls in love with Monica the dancer. Horace puts his lofty goals on hold to pursue a more lucrative career as an acrobat, while Monica writes a book.

When Connecticut mechanic and foreman Hank Morgan is knocked unconscious, he wakes not to the familiar scenes of 19th century America, but to the bewildering sights and sounds of 6th century Camelot. Although confused at first and quickly imprisoned, he soon realizes that his knowledge of the future can transform his fate. Correctly predicting a solar eclipse from inside his prison cell, Morgan terrifies the people of England into releasing him and swiftly establishes himself as the most powerful magician in the land, stronger than Merlin and greatly admired by Arthur himself. 

Cakes and Ale is the novel that William Somerset Maugham said he wished to be remembered for. Published in 1930 and written in the first person singular, Maugham's narrator (and alter-ego) Ashenden exposes the disapproving, moral judgement made by conservative society on the character of Rosie Driffield and opines that it is unjustified.

This delightfully witty 1920s novel sees four dissatisfied London women escape rainy life for a sunny Italian castle, finding personal rejuvenation. The seemingly timid Lotty Wilkins recruits pious Rose Arbuthnot, socially exhausted Lady Caroline Dester, and stuffy spinster Mrs. Fisher to share...

Alexander Pope was fiercely critical of writers whom he considered to have little talent and whom he liked to nominate as dunces. His most encyclopedic examination of these apostles of dullness is the Dunciad, a long satirical saga first published in a three-book version in 1728. A variorium edition followed shortly afterwards in 1729. In 1742, Pope added a fourth book, and a new, complete edition was published in 1743.

Dive into the whimsical and satirical world of James Thurber and E.B. White with the audiobook "Is Sex Necessary? or Why You Feel the Way You Do," narrated by the talented Mike Vendetti. This classic work, first published in 1929, explores the perplexities of love, relationships, and human behavior with humor and wit. Through a series of essays, Thurber and White dissect the absurdities of the sexual revolution, the nature of the American male, and the quirks of feminine types.

Vanity Fair centers on the young Becky Sharp and her dear friend Amelia Sedley during the time of the Napoleonic Wars. Rebecca Sharp is the daughter of an art teacher and a French dancer, being ambitious, intelligent, and strong willed in order to get what she wants out of society. She is often touted as amoral and an anti-heroine. Alternately, her friend Amelia is kind, good natured, and born into wealth. The interwoven fortunes of the two women play out among a backdrop of social skirmishes and human afflictions of pride and ego.

Lem Putt could have chosen to continue building houses, barns and chicken coops and made a decent living. But instead he turned his talents to privy building, and he'll tell you why. It's not just carpentry skills that create an ideal outhouse—you need to know a lot about human nature. Lem is happy to relate here how he chose to specialize.