Ron Reads Boring Books
Are you tired? You will be. Because I will read to you a boring book and it will be worse than you doing nothing. This podcast is not intended to entertain you. It is intended to bore you. The length of each podcast will vary so you cannot plan your listening easily. Some reads will be short. Some will be excruciatingly long. There will be no intro or outro music. The only sound is my voice and other random sounds as they happen. I change my voice as I read the dialog. Also, I have a southern accent and do not read well. Thank you for listening.
Episodes
In this final installment of Aesop's fables, we present "The Wolf and the Lamb," a timeless tale about power, false accusations, and the arbitrary nature of tyranny. The story culminates with the profound dying words of the lamb: "Any excuse will serve a tyrant."
• A wolf spots a lamb drinking from a spring downstream and decides to make it his supper
• The wolf falsely accuses th...
Ron reads Aesop's classic fable "The Fox and the Crow," sharing the timeless tale of a cunning fox who uses flattery to trick a vain crow into dropping her cheese. The story delivers the ageless wisdom to beware of those who use excessive praise to manipulate others for their own gain.
• A fox spots a crow with cheese in its beak sitting on a tree branch
• The fox flatters the crow extensiv...
In Aesop's fable The Fox and the Grapes, a fox spots a bunch of ripe grapes hanging high on a vine. Hungry and eager, he jumps repeatedly to reach them but fails each time. Frustrated, he walks away, convincing himself that the grapes were probably sour and not worth having. The story illustrates how people may belittle what they cannot attain to cope with disappointment.
Ron stumbles through an introduction before reading Aesop's fable "The Fox and the Cat," a tale about a boastful fox with numerous escape plans and a practical cat with just one reliable strategy.
• Fox boasts about having "a hundred ways of escaping enemies"
• Cat admits to having only one escape strategy
• When hounds approach, the cat immediately climbs a tree to safety
A classic Aesop's fable brings timeless wisdom about reciprocity and treating others as we wish to be treated. The Fox and the Stork demonstrates that what goes around comes around through a simple tale of dinner invitations gone wrong.
• Fox invites Stork to dinner but serves soup in a shallow dish the Stork cannot eat from
• Stork remains gracious despite leaving hungry from the Fox's trick
Ron Reads presents Aesop's fable "The Dog in the Manger," exploring the timeless lesson about selfishly preventing others from enjoying what we ourselves cannot use. This brief yet profound tale reminds listeners of the human tendency to begrudge others' happiness even when it costs us nothing to share.
• A dog takes a nap in an ox's manger, lying comfortably on the straw
• When t...
This podcast challenges categorization as a sleep aid, positioning itself instead as a space for practicing boredom together through Aesop's fables. Ron reads "The Woodman and the Serpent," a tale about kindness betrayed and the nature of wickedness.
• Clarification that this podcast is not designed to help listeners fall asleep
• Exploration of the difference between boredom and sleep as m...
We continue our series of Boring Reads with Aesop's fable "The Cock and the Pearl," a short tale about a rooster who finds a precious pearl but would rather have a barleycorn instead.
• Part of our ongoing Boring Reads series designed to bore
• Features the classic Aesop's fable "The Cock and the Pearl"
• Tells the story of a cock who discovers a pearl while scratching in...
Ron narrates Aesop's fable "The Jay and the Peacock," exploring themes of authenticity and the folly of pretending to be something you're not.
• A jay finds peacock feathers in a yard and attaches them to his tail
• The jay struts toward the peacocks, attempting to blend in with them
• The peacocks quickly discover the deception and pluck away the stolen feathers
• When the jay...
Ron delivers another intentionally boring reading of Aesop's "Hercules and the Wagoner," a classic fable about self-reliance and the importance of taking action before seeking divine intervention.
• A wagoner gets his cart stuck in deep mud and immediately prays to Hercules for help
• Instead of rescuing him, Hercules tells the wagoner to get up and put his shoulder to the wheel
• The f...
Ron narrates Aesop's classic fable "The Lion and the Mouse," illustrating how acts of mercy can return unexpected rewards. When a mighty lion spares a tiny mouse who promises to help him someday, the seemingly absurd promise becomes a life-saving reality.
• A sleeping lion is awakened by a mouse running across him
• The lion captures the mouse and prepares to eat him
• The mouse begs fo...
Ron dramatically reads Aesop's fable "The Crow and the Pitcher," delivering the timeless lesson that persistence and incremental progress can solve seemingly impossible problems.
• Ron opens with his trademark dry humor, warning listeners that short stories can still be boring
• The thirsty crow encounters a pitcher with water too low to reach
• After initial despair, the crow cleverly ...
Ron presents Aesop's fable "The Dog and the Shadow," a timeless tale about a dog who loses his meat when he tries to grab what appears to be another piece of meat in his reflection.
• A dog carrying meat in his mouth wants to eat it in peace
• While crossing a plank over a brook, the dog sees his reflection in the water
• Believing he sees another dog with meat, he tries to grab that pi...
Ron Reeds brings to life Aesop's timeless fable "The Man, the Boy, and the Donkey," exploring how trying to please everyone leads to pleasing no one. The story follows a father and son's journey to market with their donkey, where their attempts to accommodate everyone's criticism lead to disaster.
• A man and his son initially walk alongside their donkey to market
• A countryman c...
Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil" tells the story of Reverend Hooper who mysteriously begins wearing a black veil over his face, transforming his relationship with his congregation and exploring the hidden nature of sin and secrets.
• Reverend Hooper appears with a black veil covering his face, shocking his congregation
• The community reacts with fear, speculation, and...
Ron reads Katherine Mansfield's "The Garden Party," a poignant short story exploring class divisions, mortality, and a young woman's awakening to life's harsh realities beyond her privileged existence.
• The Sheridan family prepares for an elaborate garden party at their estate
• Laura, the youngest daughter, interacts with workmen and questions class distinctions
• News arriv...
Mathilde Loisel's desire to appear wealthy leads to borrowing a necklace that changes her life forever when she loses it after a grand ball. After ten years of grueling poverty to repay the debt for a replacement, she discovers the original necklace was merely costume jewelry worth a fraction of what they paid.
• Mathilde, born to a family of clerks, feels entitled to a life of luxury because of her beau...
Ron reads Mark Twain's powerful anti-war short story "The War Prayer," which exposes the hidden, devastating consequences behind prayers for military victory. The story forces us to confront the reality that when we pray for our side's triumph in war, we are inadvertently praying for the destruction and suffering of other human beings.
• A town celebrates as young men prepare to march off ...
Ron quietly reads Kate Chopin's revolutionary short story "The Story of an Hour," a tale about a woman who discovers a sense of freedom after learning of her husband's supposed death. The story unfolds with a shocking twist ending that reveals profound truths about marriage, autonomy, and the complex nature of human emotions in the late 19th century.
• Mrs. Mallard, a woman with heart trou...
Ron reads H.H. Munro's "The Open Window," a masterful short story about deception and the power of suggestion. Nervous visitor Frampton Nuttall receives more than he bargained for when he meets fifteen-year-old Vera during a country visit.
• Frampton visits the Stapleton household on doctor's orders for a "nerve cure"
• Young Vera tells him a tragic tale about her aunt's...
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