Jack London
The call of the Wild

Buck is living the good life in the soft South, when he is snatched and transported to the savagery of the Northland. There, the Klondike gold rush has brought out rough basic instincts of survival in men - and dogs. He adjusts to the gruelling regime of a sled dog, which almost kills him, but he survives to find a new and fulfiling way of life. The Call of the Wild is not only a classic tale, but also an enduring masterpiece of the inescapable laws of nature. This popular classic is now available in unabridged form in a new reading by William Roberts.

About the author
Jack London (1876-1916) was one of the first American authors who managed to forge a career out of his writing. London had a traumatic entrance into the world as his deserted mother attempted to commit suicide and left him, for a long duration. in the care of an ex-slave. In his early years. London was variously an oyster-pirate. a member of the California Fish Patrol. a travelling hobo and a factory worker. London earnestly immersed himself in books and learning and successfully developed as a writer in order to free himself from poverty. London was a highly contradictory character: publicly. he articulated his socialist beliefs. but in his professional life, he was clearly impelled by capitalist motives.

Edgar Allan Poe
The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym

The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, Poe's only full novel, is one of his most unusual works.A riveting story in the first person. it tells of a disastrous sea voyage involving storms. mutiny. starvation, thirst and a mysterious conclusion. Jorge Luis Borges and Baudelaire were among those who rated it highly.The recording is timed to mark the 200th anniversary of Poe's birth.

About the author
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) was a writer of short stories, a poet, a literary critic, and is now regarded as a master of the gothic genre and the forefather of the modern detective story. Poe was forced to endure the loss of loved ones throughout his life, beginning with the early death of his parents and siblings. A fascination with death features strongly in his work and he was known for having a dark temperament and an alcohol addiction. Remembered today for his literary genius. Poe was primarily revered for his critical writings in his own time. Poe edited a number of journals and even founded one of his own, entitled The Stylus in 1840. Poe was greatly interested in puzzles and enigmas and popularised the art of cryptography. Ironically. his own death was cloaked in mystery. Poe was found lying unconscious in a street in clothes that were not his own.To this day. the cause of his death remains unknown.

Amid a background of wars and revolution, the 19th century produced many of the world's best-loved composers including Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin and Tchaikovsky. Discover Music of the Romantic Era charts the course of music through these turbulent but exhilarating times with 40 music excerpts. Lighthearted but authoritative, it tells the fascinating, often scandalous, life stories of the 19th century's greatest composers and describes how they created musical history.

About the author
David McCleery studied music at Manchester University before embarking on a career of arts administration. After various jobs with orchestras, artists' agencies and festivals, he joined Chester Music and Novello music publishers where he developed a keen interest in working with composers, including John Tavener, Richard Rodney Bennett and Thea Musgrave.That interest continues today, although he has moved to the field of media music and works for a management company for film and television composers. When time permits, he undertakes freelance writing projects. For Naxos, he has written A Portrait of John Tavener, as well as the Romantic and Twentieth-Century editions of the 'Discover' series.