The Happy Prince and Other Stories by Oscar Wilde, Read by Simon Jones

Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens.

With a gentleman’s grace and a finely tuned ear for character voices, narrator Simon Jones does a wonderful job bringing to life this collection of children’s fairy tales by one of the English language’s greatest wits. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Robin Whitten discuss Jones’s skill with this collection and beyond, and how he makes the classics so listenable, fresh, and enjoyable—even if you think you might already be familiar with these stories. Although written for children, Wilde’s unique twists on children’s literature are a little edgier, a bit more playful, a trifle wiser, and more fun than your average fairy-tale fare. Published by Alison Larkin Presents.

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