Showing results by narrator "Susie Berneis" in All Categories

Both Thomas Edison and Henry Ford started off as insatiably curious tinkerers. That curiosity led them to become inventors - with very different results. As Edison invented hit after commercial hit, gaining fame and fortune, Henry struggled to make a single invention (an affordable car) work. Witnessing Thomas' glorious career from afar, a frustrated Henry wondered about the secret to his success.

When a rare $5,000 bill arrives in the mail, interior decorator Madison Night knows it's a message from her past. In happier times, she once joked that she could be bought for $5,000 - how could she deny a bill with her name on it? Suspecting the bill indicates trouble, she consults a numismatist. They set up a meet, but upon arrival she finds an abandoned office, a scared dog...and a dead body in the kitchen. The twist? The victim isn't the numismatist; it's a John Doe.

Interior Decorator Madison Night has her hands full with a demanding client and a product endorsement, but when the news shifts from reports of recently abducted women to the discovery of a dead body, she can't deny the danger. Evidence from the scene links the flirtatious Lt. Tex Allen to the crime, taking him off the case. As more abductees are either released or killed, Tex struggles with his suspension, on the brink of turning vigilante. Madison's own life is complicated by the return of her hunky handyman, Hudson James.

Everybody knows about the Founding Fathers and the Declaration of Independence in 1776. But the founders weren't the only ones who believed that everyone had a right to freedom. Mumbet, a Massachusetts slave, believed it too. She longed to be free, but how? Would anyone help her in her fight for freedom? Could she win against her owner, the richest man in town? Mumbet was determined to try.

All politicians adopt a public persona that they believe contributes to electoral success. Although those personas might reflect the character of the politician, they reveal only a part of the man: We know far less about the characteristics politicians reveal when they are out of the public eye, and Winston Churchill is no exception.

Linda Grant, beset by medical bills and other pressing obligations, tells her children that they will not be celebrating Christmas this year. Older Keith takes the news in stride, while younger Teddy angrily insists he will have his Christmas turkey one way or another. When the neighborhood schoolteacher drops by to extend an invitation to Christmas dinner from Cornelia Millar, Linda's estranged cousin, it begins to look as if Christmas will happen after all.

In Christmas at Red Butte, Theodora, the jolliest, bravest girl of 16 in all Saskatchewan pawns a precious locket so she can afford to buy toys for the poor family that has kindly taken her in after her own parents died. A heartwarming Christmas story for all generations by Anne of Green Gables author Lucy Maud Montgomery.

Thomas Jefferson is perhaps best known for writing the Declaration of Independence--but there's so much more to discover. This energetic man was interested in everything. He played violin, spoke seven languages, and was a scientist, naturalist, botanist, mathematician, and architect. He designed his magnificent home, Monticello, which is full of objects he collected from around the world. Our first foodie, he grew more than 15 kinds of peas and advocated a mostly vegetarian diet.

When a lawyer turns up dead and Tally's cousin is implicated in the crime, Tally must clear her cousin's name before everyone's happiness melts away.

In Aunt Cyrilla's Christmas Basket, Lucy Rose tries to talk her folksy Aunt Cyrilla out of bringing her big, bulgy, funny-looking basket to the city to deliver Christmas goodies to their relatives in the city. When their train is stranded during a snow storm, Aunt Cyrilla and her fellow passengers team up to provide a proper Christmas morning for the little ones in their care.

Ben Franklin loved to swim and, at the age of 11, he was determined to swim like a fish - fins and all! This fascinating and lively account of young Ben's earliest invention follows the budding scientist's journey as he tests and retests his swim fins. That first big splash led Ben to even more innovations and inventions.

Poppy has big dreams - lots of them! But following her dreams isn't as easy as it sounds. It's a good thing Poppy's friends and family - who love her no matter what - encourage her to keep believing in herself and making her dreams come true. Kristi Yamaguchui is an ice skating Olympic gold medalist and world champion who knows about dreaming big. The motto "Always Dream" serves as Kristi's personal inspiration as well as the name of her charitable foundation for children.

September 1800, Maine. Will Rees is beseeched by Tobias, an old friend abducted by slave catchers years before, to travel south to Virginia to help transport his pregnant wife, Ruth, back north. Though he's reluctant, Will's wife, Lydia, convinces him to go...on the condition she accompanies them. Upon arriving in a small community of absconded slaves hiding within the Great Dismal Swamp, Will and Lydia are met with distrust. Tensions are high and a fight breaks out between Tobias and Scipio, a philanderer with a bounty on his head known for conning men out of money.

In "A Country Christmas", Louisa May Alcott tells the story of Sophie, a debutante from the city who travels to rural Vermont to spend Christmas with her cousins Saul and Ruth. Though apprehensive at first, Sophie learns that the charms of celebrating Christmas in the country are many.

Bertie Ross has a few more deliveries to make for Sampson's store before the New Year's holiday. After a delivery at the Forbes' house, Dr. Forbes' daughters invite cold-looking Bertie in to get warm and ask why he isn't wearing mittens. Explaining that he lent them to his sickly brother William John, the sisters hatch a plan to provide a proper New Year's celebration with the Ross brothers and provide them with a little holiday warmth in the meantime.

Bernie's college roommate, Ellen Hadley, is burning the candle at both ends. And after her children forget her birthday and her husband forgets their anniversary, her Mother's Day expectations are understandably modest. When Bernie jokingly suggests Ellen fake her own kidnapping to set her family straight, she never imagines the stunt will find Ellen in a hotel room next to a dead body.

Accused of murder and trying to keep her ice-cream business afloat, Tallulah Jones is forced to unearth her small town's darkest secrets in order to clear her name.

A short poem that evokes the ambience and spiritual joy of the season, "A Song for a Christmas Tree" is an ode to the wonders of the Christmas season.

Poor Groundhog just can't sleep. He tosses. He turns. Finally, he gets out of bed and goes exploring. Outside his burrow, he finds amazing sights he has never seen before: glowing jack-o'-lanterns, gobbling turkeys, and sparkling holiday lights. But shouldn't Groundhog be in bed? With no sleep, how will he be able to get up for his big day?

Tallulah Jones is met with another string of murders begging to be investigated, but doing so plunges her into a world of petty rivalries with a sprinkle of adultery.