Read the Damn Book; the Classics, Serialised
Read the Damn Book is a collection of all the classic books you feel you should read but don't have time.
Join professional audiobook narrator, Jen Smith, as she reads the most well known books in the world, in easy to listen to short chapters.
Season 1 - The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Season 2 - The Picture of Dorian Gray
Season 3 - Persuasion - coming soon!
Jen@jensmithnarrator.co.uk
Episodes
31 episodes
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XX
Dorian visits the locked room to see the portrait, but after realizing that his decision to reform has not altered the painting, Dorian strikes it with a knife. Dorian’s servants break into the room and discover the body of an old, wrinkled man...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 21
•
14:43
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XIX
Dorian expresses his desire to reform himself and be virtuous. Lord Henry dismisses Dorian’s intentions and changes the subject to Alan Campbell’s suicide, as well as the mystery surrounding Basil’s disappearance, at which point Dorian makes Lo...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 20
•
25:40
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XVIII
Dorian joins a shooting party, and when entranced by the gracefulness of a hare, Dorian begs the party not to shoot it. However, when the hare is shot, they hear the cry of a man. The man dies instantly. Dorian rides to a farm where the body is...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 19
•
23:37
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XVII
Dorian faints, and he recalls seeing the face of James Vane pressed against the window.
•
Season 2
•
Episode 18
•
14:43
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XVI
A woman at the opium den addresses Dorian as “Prince Charming.” Upon hearing this, James Vane recalls that “Prince Charming” was Sibyl’s nickname for Dorian and he seizes Dorian from behind. Dorian explains that the man James is looking for was...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 17
•
23:13
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XV
Dorian leaves a party early, heads home to burn Basil’s belongings, and draws out a canister of opium. At midnight, Dorian goes to a London neighbourhood popular for their opium dens.
•
Season 2
•
Episode 16
•
23:13
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XIV
The following morning, an estranged friend of Dorian’s, Alan Campbell, arrives, and reluctantly agrees to help Dorian dispose of Basil’s body using his knowledge of chemistry.
•
Season 2
•
Episode 15
•
32:41
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XIII
Dorian reveals the portrait to Basil, who is horrified by the change that his work has undergone, and he curses the painting and begs Dorian to pray for forgiveness. Dorian stabs Basil repeatedly and hides his belongings in a secret compartment...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 14
•
18:54
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XII
Dorian encounters Basil, who warns Dorian of the many rumors being spread around him, and questions Dorian as to why so many of his friendships have ended. Dorian offers to show Basil the diary of his daily life, certain that it will answer all...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 13
•
20:00
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter XI
After years pass, Dorian maintains his youth and beauty as his soul corrupts. Dorian keeps up with contemporary ideas and devotes himself to the study of beautiful things. All the while, Dorian worries that someone will steal the painting.
•
Season 2
•
Episode 12
•
53:58
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter X
Dorian locks the portrait in a room, musing that if no one sees the painting’s deterioration, then it bears no importance. Dorian becomes entranced by a book Lord Henry lent him that confuses the boundaries between vice and virtue.
•
Season 2
•
Episode 11
•
22:23
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter IX
When Basil arrives to offer condolences, Dorian does not express any remorse. Basil attempts to remove the screen covering Dorian’s painting, at which point Dorian stops him and insists that the portrait never be seen in public. After Basil lea...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 10
•
27:11
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter VIII
The face on Dorian’s portrait has indeed changed, and while he tries to come up with a rational explanation, Lord Henry arrives with the news that Sibyl has committed suicide. Lord Henry convinces Dorian not to go to the police or wallow in gui...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 9
•
38:00
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter VII
The men attend the theatre to watch Sibyl’s play, but Sibyl gives a disappointing performance. Dorian confronts Sibyl backstage, and she says that before meeting Dorian she was able to inhabit other characters, but now that she has met Dorian a...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 8
•
31:57
.png)
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter VI
Lord Henry tells Basil of Dorian’s plan to marry Sibyl, a fact that worries Basil because Dorian would be marrying beneath his social position. When Dorian enters and tells the story of his engagement, Lord Henry defends his point of view conce...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 7
•
20:54
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter V
Sibyl is enraptured by her union to Dorian, but her family has doubts about Dorian’s intentions. While on a walk with her brother James, Sibyl spots Dorian, but Dorian quickly disappears. James pledges that if Dorian ever hurts Sibyl, he will k...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 6
•
36:37
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter IV
Dorian shares the news with Lord Henry that he has fallen in love with an actress named Sibyl Vane, and Lord Henry agrees to accompany Dorian to see her play the lead in Romeo and Juliet. After Dorian departs, Lord Henry congratulates ...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 5
•
45:14
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter III
Lord Henry learns about Dorian’s tragic past and becomes fascinated with Dorian, setting his sights on influencing him. Lord Henry goes to dine at the home of Lady Agatha where several guests, including Dorian, have gathered. Lord Henry appalls...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 4
•
37:42
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter II
While Dorian sits for Basil’s painting, Lord Henry discusses his personal philosophy. Lord Henry speaks with Dorian about the fading qualities of youth and beauty, urging Dorian to live life to the fullest. Dorian curses the fact that while his...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 3
•
48:31
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Chapter I
The novel begins in the London home of Basil Hallward, an artist who shares his latest painting with the clever and scandalous Lord Henry. Basil describes how he met Dorian Gray and since has become an object of obsession for Basil. As Lord Hen...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 2
•
39:12
The Picture of Dorian Gray - The Preface
The Preface is a series of epigrams highlighting Wilde’s aesthetic philosophy.
•
Season 2
•
Episode 1
•
5:04
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - 10 - Henry Jekyll's Full Statement of Case
Poole, Jekyll’s butler, urges Utterson to check in on Jekyll, but when the men approach the laboratory, an unfamiliar voice responds. Poole and Jekyll, after realizing that the man in the laboratory must be Hyde, decide to break into the labora...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 10
•
56:53
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - 9 - Dr Lanyon's Narrative
Lanyon’s letter explains how he received a note from Jekyll instructing him to retrieve a drawer and its contents from his laboratory and to wait for a man at midnight, who would then reveal everything to Lanyon. Hyde visits Lanyon and concocts...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 9
•
24:02
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - 8 - The Last Night
Poole, Jekyll’s butler, urges Utterson to check in on Jekyll, but when the men approach the laboratory, an unfamiliar voice responds. Poole and Jekyll, after realizing that the man in the laboratory must be Hyde, decide to break into the labora...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 8
•
38:03
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - 7 - Incident at the Window
Utterson and Enfield take their Sunday stroll and are discussing the murder case and the disappearance of Hyde when they stumble upon Jekyll. Utterson and Enfield invite Jekyll to go on a walk with them to lift his mood, but Jekyll refuses. Sud...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 7
•
5:50