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The Greatest Gift
- A Christmas Tale
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 50 mins
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Publisher's summary
The heartwarming story that became the Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life, now available in audio for the first time!
For almost 70 years, people the world over have fallen in love with Frank Capra’s classic Christmas movie It’s a Wonderful Life. But few of those fans know that Capra’s film was based on a short story by author Philip Van Doren Stern, which came to Stern in a dream one night.
Unable at first to find a publisher for his evocative tale about a man named George Pratt who ponders suicide until he receives an opportunity to see what the world would be like without him, Stern ultimately published the story in a small pamphlet and sent it out as his 1943 Christmas card. One of those 200 cards found its way into the hands of Frank Capra, who shared it with Jimmy Stewart, and the film that resulted became the holiday tradition we cherish today.
Now fans of It’s a Wonderful Life, or anyone who loves the spirit of Christmas, can own the story that started it all in a charming audio edition that’s perfect for holiday giving. It includes an Afterword by Stern’s daughter, Marguerite Stern Robinson, that tells the story of how her father’s Christmas card became the movie beloved by generations of people around the world.
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By: Harry Bernstein
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Half a Lifelong Romance
- A Novel
- By: Eileen Chang
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Manzhen is a young worker in a Shanghai factory where she meets Shijun, the son of wealthy merchants. Despite family complications, they fall in love and begin to dream of a shared life together - until circumstances force them apart. When they are reunited after many years, can they start their relationship again? Or is it destined to be the romance of only half a lifetime?
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super
- By Marcus Aurelius on 10-05-17
By: Eileen Chang
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The Dracula Tape
- The New Dracula, Book 1
- By: Fred Saberhagen
- Narrated by: Robin Bloodworth
- Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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The never-before-told story behind the legend of Count Dracula! The story of the Count’s greatest love, Mina Harker, and the bloodthirsty vampire hunters whose cruel pursuit drove the master of the night to actions ever more ruthless. The Count Dracula sets the record straight.…
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FINALLY!
- By Amanda Pike on 03-03-13
By: Fred Saberhagen
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The Wonder of All Things
- By: Jason Mott
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 8 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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On an ordinary day, at an air show like that in any small town across the country, a plane crashes into a crowd of spectators, killing and injuring dozens. But when the dust clears, a thirteen-year-old girl named Ava is found huddled beneath a pocket of rubble with her best friend, Wash. He is injured and bleeding, and when Ava places her hands over him, his wounds miraculously disappear. Ava has a unique gift: she can heal others of their physical ailments.
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Innocent love
- By Tina Boyd on 02-13-15
By: Jason Mott
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Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher
- By: Bruce Coville
- Narrated by: Bruce Coville
- Length: 2 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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If Howard Morton and Freddie the Frog Killer were trying to hold you down so that Mary Lou Hutton could kiss you, you might run as fast as Jeremy Thatcher did the day he stumbled into Mr. Elives' Magic Shop. And if you stumbled into that strange shop, you, too, might be asked to make a choice. What would you buy? The Chinese rings? The Skull of Truth? Or the dragon's egg?
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love this book as a kid
- By Jamie wool on 11-16-17
By: Bruce Coville
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District Nurse on Call
- By: Donna Douglas
- Narrated by: Penelope Freeman
- Length: 12 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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West Yorkshire, 1926. After completing her training in Steeple Street, Agnes is looking forward to making her mark as the village's first district nurse, confident she can make a difference in the locals' lives. But when she arrives, she's treated with suspicion, labelled just another servant of the wealthy mine owners. The locals would much rather place their trust in the resident healer, Nella Black.
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Really terrible!
- By Beth B. on 11-02-24
By: Donna Douglas
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The Troupe
- By: Robert Jackson Bennett
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Best-selling author Robert Jackson Bennett has won widespread critical acclaim for his unique brand of darkly inventive fiction. In The Troupe, 16-year-old George Carole joins vaudeville in search of Heironomo Silenus, the man he believes to be his father. But what he discovers casts a dark pall over his world: Silenus' troupe hides a dangerous secret - one that invites death to all in its vicinity.
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Not worth the effort!
- By Howard on 08-12-13
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An Angel for Christmas
- By: Heather Graham
- Narrated by: Christina Traister
- Length: 5 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Christmas has never brought out the best in the MacDougal family. Still, year after year, they gather together in the Blue Ridge Mountains to try to make the season merry and bright. But this year is an especially strained one, with Shayne’s impending divorce, Morwenna’s slavish devotion to work and Bobby’s reluctance to face what life has to offer. They’ve never felt less like a family. Then, in the midst of a snowy sibling shouting match, a mysterious stranger appears.
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Nice Christmas story
- By sandy on 12-29-13
By: Heather Graham
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Dark Crossings
- By: Karen Harper, Marta Perry, Patricia Davids
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Audley, Therese Plummer, Laura Darrell
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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When Benjamin Kline returns to the fold after eight years, Abigail Baughman welcomes him with an open heart. But all is not well in their Amish village. Mysterious happenings put Abby in harm’s way, forcing Ben to run to her rescue. He’s vowed never to let anyone hurt her, and suddenly everything is at risk—their community, their way of life…and their future together.
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wow
- By afrikanqueent on 07-02-18
By: Karen Harper, and others
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The Great Gatsby
- By: F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Narrated by: Tim Robbins
- Length: 5 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Set against a backdrop of jazz music, bootlegging, and lavish parties, The Great Gatsby is the story of Midwesterner Nick Carraway’s curious introduction to the decadent world of his mysterious, wealthy neighbor Jay Gatsby, whose thirst for riches is matched only by his tragic obsession with the beautiful Daisy Buchanan. This dangerously propulsive tale of glitz and glamour continues to be relevant as listeners long for escapist novels—a chance to flee into Gatsby’s famed mansion and lose oneself in the rush of opulence.
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Alive and Wild! I finished it same day.
- By Brea DeMarquee on 08-27-21
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I'm not interested in starting something deep and meaningful, but what I am interested in is the way your body reacts to mine when we're in the same room. You probably assume the concentration on my face is work-related, when in reality, I'm figuring out which I want more: to nail you against the wall, or to bend you over my desk.
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What listeners say about The Greatest Gift
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Clint
- 01-06-23
So WONDERFUL to listen to the original short story
It was so WONDERFUL to listen to the original short story, after watching the movie this Christmas.
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- Diane
- 12-17-19
Wonderful Indeed!
it's such a privilege to be able to hear the origins of one of my most beloved Christmas movies, Its a Wonderful Life! I will for sure be gifting this to people this holiday season.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Rick Martin
- 12-19-22
Needed this
To feel ready for Christmas as an adult. Beautiful timeless American story telling. Only an hour long.
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- Debbie
- 12-13-17
It's a Wonderful Life Primer
The story is good, even better is the afterward, when Marguerite Stern Robinson, the author's daughter, tells how the story came about, was finally published, discovered by Frank Capra and made into the movie. In a time in America when a feel-good story was greatly needed, when many people were feeling like George . . . downtrodden, a failure at life, and broken in spirit . . . along came this story. Don't miss it!
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5 people found this helpful
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- Wendi
- 11-28-15
A must-read for any fan of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE
If you love learning about the story behind the story, this book is well worth the money (or credit). I only wish the story itself and the afterword (by the author's daughter) could have been longer!
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5 people found this helpful
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- Donna Freeman
- 02-24-23
Short and sweet
Totally worth the listen and listening to all of it. The story about the writing is good too.
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- Hebern
- 12-30-15
Great for learning the story behind the movie
Any additional comments?
As a fan of It's A Wonderful Life, it was great to learn the story behind the movie. How the tale evolved and how the short story struggled to find an audience and eventually was made into one of the most popular movies of all-time.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall
- C. Smith
- 12-25-15
fantastic
loved the movie and cherish this story. I didn't discover this u till I became a adult. but now this is a family tradition
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1 person found this helpful
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- Jenny and Mike
- 12-07-22
Listen to the afterward
I love the movie, It's a wonderful life and it was a joy to listen to the story that inspired it. Especially as read by Edward Herman, he will always be one of my favorite readers and actors.
By listening to the afterward, I learned much about the beginnings of the story and the making of the movie. This may have been my favorite part, but one must read or listen to the story first in order to have a real appreciation for the afterward.
I have a friend who claims to have never seen the movie and is determined to never do so, because it has become such an icon. this is sad to me because, It's a wonderful Life is a beautiful story that can inspire any of us to be better, treat others with more respect and find hope in even the most uneventful life.
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- B
- 12-07-22
I recommend this to everyone.
Great performance of a great story. It's become a Christmastime tradition for me. I highly recommend it.
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