Author: J. Rick Turner

1Seven Little Australians

By Ethel Turner

This is the story of seven incorrigible children living near Sydney in the 1880’s with their military-man father, and a stepmother who is scarcely older than the oldest child of the family. A favourite amongst generations of children for over a century, this story tells of the cheeky exploits of Meg, Pip, Judy, Bunty, Nell, Baby, and The General (who is the real baby of the family), as well as providing a fascinating insight into Australian family life in a bygone era. (Summary by Ophelia Darcy)

2Van Dyck

By Percy M. Turner

A biography and critique of Van Dyck in The Masterpieces in Colour series. The Plates of the paintings are fully described and the artistic periods in his life's work are given as well as his place in history. (Summary by Susan Morin)

3Frontier in American History

By Frederick Jackson Turner

Frederick Jackson Turner was an extremely influential U.S. historian, who is best known for his "frontier thesis", which proposed that American democracy was profoundly shaped by the existence of an undeveloped frontier area from the founding through the 1880s. He originally put forth his idea in the essay "The Significance of the Frontier in American History", published just three years after the frontier was "officially closed" in 1890. He continued to elaborate on the frontier thesis as well as the influence of sectionalism, and the unique contributions of the Midwest to American democracy. His theory and other writings are still debated by modern day historians. This work, The Frontier in American History, collects a number of Turner's essays and speeches, including "The Significance of the Frontier in American History."

LibriVox volunteers bring you ten recordings of "A Summer Night in the Beehive." The Weekly Poem for August 24, 2014 brings us the night sounds of the meadow in summer.

5High Hander

By William Oliver Turner

Tesno was a troubleshooter. That's why the railroad construction company had hired him. His job was to make sure that nobody interfered with the tunnel that they were digging through that frontier region mountain. Tesno knew one thing for sure--if they had called him in, there must have been plenty interference--and the kind that didn't stop at murder. Frontier towns and frontier wilderness didn't pay much attention to city-made laws. Tesno carried his own law with him and he knew he'd have to make it respected. It was the law of the six-gun and the firm high hand. Take no guff, keep your powder dry, and don't give an inch. One moment of uncertainty, and it would mean his end! - Summary by William O. Turner

The History of Philosophy is the exposition of philosophical opinions and of systems and schools of philosophy. It includes the study of the lives of philosophers, the inquiry into the mutual connection of schools and systems of thought, and the attempt to trace the course of philosophical progress. Topics covered include Ancient Philosophy (Babylon, China, India, Egypt, Greece and Rome) Christian Era Philosophy (St. Anselm, Thomas Aquinas, William of Ockam) and Modern Philosophy (including Descartes, Spinoza, Kant and Hegel.) (Summary by Beth Thomas and the Introduction)

Through personal experience and extensive travel in Mexico in the late 1900s, the author of “Barbarous Mexico” depicts the circumstances that will trigger the Mexican Revolution of 1910. The rampant, government sanctioned, widespread abuse of human rights in the tobacco and corn plantations of Central and Southeastern Mexico created an atmosphere where peasants, and the working class at large, had to choose between their lives and the revolution. Turner presents a gruesome picture of political and ethnic slavery; how President Diaz policies promoted, encouraged and maintained the system; how foreign actors sanctioned the practices; and ends with an encouraging vision of the Mexican people as a whole. (Summary by Mario Pineda)