Opa Reads artwork

Opa Reads

307 episodes - English - Latest episode: 6 months ago - ★★★★★ - 1 rating

Book selections read to my children and grandchildren.

Stories for Kids Kids & Family
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Episodes

CoSB Chapter 10: The Santa Anita Win

September 25, 2023 00:00 - 14 minutes - 7.15 MB

The win finally comes for Seabiscuit.

CoSB Chapter 9: The Suspensory Ligament is Torn

September 24, 2023 19:39 - 14 minutes - 6.78 MB

Seabiscuit’s recuperation lasts several months and then the decision is made to bring both him and Red out of retirement.

CoSB Chapter 8 War Admiral and Seabiscuit Finally Meet

September 21, 2023 15:03 - 24 minutes - 22.4 MB

Owners, trainers, and jockeys meet together at Pimlico track for the race of the century.

CoSB Chapter 7 The Attempt to Race War Admiral Fails

September 17, 2023 02:11 - 19 minutes - 18.3 MB

This chapter chronicles the ups and downs of Seabiscuit’s East Coast attempt to run against War Admiral.

CoSB Chapter 6: A Second Miss by Inches

September 05, 2023 01:59 - 16 minutes - 8.08 MB

Seabiscuit doesn’t race for nearly all the weeks leading up to the Santa Anita race because of owner disagreements and Red’s injury. Two jockeys are tried and it is Sonny who rides in the Classic.

CoSB Chapter 5: A Tour of the East

September 04, 2023 02:04 - 26 minutes - 12.9 MB

Seabiscuit finishes his wins in California, then head east to set track records and become the winner of the largest total prize money for a season.

CoSB Chapter 4: A Stinging Loss

August 23, 2023 11:47 - 27 minutes - 13.1 MB

Seabiscuit loses his run at Santa Anita, but redeems his reputation immediately after in a smaller stakes race but with a stunning performance.

CoSB Chapter 3: Seabiscuit Goes West

August 18, 2023 02:08 - 25 minutes - 12 MB

Seabiscuit heals, gets stronger, and starts winning races—beginning in the East and then out West in California.

CoSB Chapter 2: An Owner, Trainer, and Jockey

August 12, 2023 21:04 - 23 minutes - 11 MB

Seabiscuit is bought, slowly healed, and given the chance to change from irritable to grateful.

CoSB Chapter 1: The First Two Years

August 12, 2023 00:57 - 23 minutes - 11 MB

Seabiscuit’s birth and trials during his early years are chronicled up to the point in his life when an old cowboy, Tom Smith, recognizes a horse with “real stuff.”

TQR Chapter 15: The Last Chapter

March 28, 2023 02:14 - 9 minutes - 4.75 MB

Robert stays cheerful, content, and a perfect hostess to the end of her life.

TQR Chapter 14: An Anxious Week

March 11, 2023 03:25 - 10 minutes - 5.02 MB

Robert is beset by an illness of some sort, and she is cared for by family and friends.

TQR Chapter 13: Robert Asserts Herself

March 09, 2023 02:58 - 11 minutes - 5.34 MB

Robert does not receive the attention she is used to receiving at dinner time, so she makes a mess of the food items to gain the attention of adults at the table.

TQR Chapter 12: He Loves Me

February 26, 2023 03:30 - 9 minutes - 4.62 MB

Robert ignores the mating instinct as well as the attention of a male quail, she lays 13 eggs, and she swallows a diamond stone.

TQR Chapter 11: NBC Television

February 15, 2023 03:38 - 11 minutes - 5.58 MB

The author is hosted by NBC which allows her and the Kienzle’s to discover other people who had adopted quail.

TQR Chapter 10: Just the Two of Us

February 08, 2023 03:39 - 11 minutes - 5.73 MB

Robert enjoys playing chase/tag, she knows how to get attention, and her body proved able to digest even a red cloth ribbon. Three months of vacation came to a happy ending for the Kienzle’s as they returned to a healthy Robert.

TQR Chapter 9: Callers

February 06, 2023 03:09 - 13 minutes - 6.5 MB

Many people visited Robert every week, some who were ornithologists, some artists, and some simply captivated by a bird who loved to make people feel welcome.

TQR Chapter 8: I Learn

February 05, 2023 03:51 - 12 minutes - 6.11 MB

Robert demonstrates God-given instinct regarding food, drinking water, fear of birds overhead, and her love of dirt baths.

TQR Chapter 7: Fait Accompli

February 02, 2023 03:37 - 15 minutes - 7.22 MB

The Kienzle’s make a good hand off to get Robert into new surroundings, then they leave on their trip. Robert settles into a new routine with Margaret and the three month visit commences.

TQR Chapter 6: A Big Problem

February 01, 2023 03:29 - 13 minutes - 6.6 MB

The Kienzle’s plan a trip to Europe, so the author begins to plan how to care for Robert in their absence.

TQR Chapter 5: In The Spring—A Surprise

January 27, 2023 03:28 - 12 minutes - 5.97 MB

Robert molts, lays an egg, and gets weighed as springtime comes to the home.

TQR Chapter 4: Christmas and Grandchildren

January 26, 2023 03:31 - 11 minutes - 5.56 MB

Robert discovers the joy of the crèche (nativity), a Christmas tree, and the excitement of opening gifts.

TQR Chapter 3: A Change of Season

January 24, 2023 03:31 - 11 minutes - 5.35 MB

Roberts is introduced to snow, he shows a love of warmth from his lamp or from fire, and he survives a bleeding toe injury.

TQR Chapter 2: Registration

January 23, 2023 03:58 - 11 minutes - 5.7 MB

We learn of Robert’s routines, beginning with morning practices, and also of phone conversations, his keen sense of order, and of his head injury from falling while asleep.

TQR Chapter 1: The Miracle

January 22, 2023 03:34 - 21 minutes - 10.4 MB

Robert, a quail born in Cape Cod, appears out of the last egg found in an abandoned nest and he quickly becomes an attached and social bird in the Kienzle home.

HDC Chapter 25: The End of My Run

January 09, 2023 04:01 - 16 minutes - 7.95 MB

Ralph hosts a celebration dinner for his closest friends in order to share good news regarding his debts, his health, and his engagement.

HDC Chapter 24: Dr. DeMay’s Discovery

January 08, 2023 03:35 - 24 minutes - 11.6 MB

Ralph discovers a new diet that adds weight to his body, Dr. DeMay hypothesizes the cause for his diabetes, and Ralph once again pursues the love of his life.

HDC Chapter 23: My Boyhood Sweetheart

January 06, 2023 03:56 - 30 minutes - 27.8 MB

Ralph makes a good profit in the butcher and railroad contract business, in his shipping business, and in a two second sheep trading business.

HDC Chapter 22: Effie to the Rescue

January 05, 2023 03:52 - 27 minutes - 13 MB

Effie advises Ralph on how to package and sell his meat and products, then takes the orders for him. Mr Donovan arrives to inspect the excellently built and maintained business, then introduces Ralph to the railroad steward/head cook.

HDC Chapter 21: Ready For Business

December 27, 2022 03:49 - 23 minutes - 11 MB

Ralph and Nick implement the building plans for slaughter house and meat packing business. The hogs get set to ship in Saturday and Ralph is barely keeping up with so much to do.

HDC Chapter 20: Sweet Music

December 22, 2022 03:52 - 17 minutes - 8.59 MB

Ralph and the bankers reach an agreement, Effie gets the line call out for mortgaged hogs to show up and be bought, and then he and George Miner grade the hogs as they get dropped off.

HDC Chapter 19: Both Pockets Full of Fish

December 21, 2022 03:41 - 17 minutes - 15.8 MB

Ralph meets with success in Omaha, both in selling hogs and in getting the meat contract. Nick is hired to butcher the animals and Ralph negotiates the financing of his operation.

HDC Chapter 18: Making My Bid

December 18, 2022 03:27 - 20 minutes - 9.8 MB

Ralph takes his hogs to Omaha and meets the railroad commissary agent to make a bid to provide meat to construction crews.

Chapter 17: Mother’s Sausage

December 13, 2022 03:22 - 19 minutes - 9.48 MB

Ralph determined to recreate his mother’s Colorado sausage recipe, and he comes up with a plan to bid on the railroad’s butcher contract.

HDC Chapter 17: Mother’s Sausage

December 13, 2022 03:22 - 19 minutes - 9.48 MB

Ralph determined to recreate his mother’s Colorado sausage recipe, and he comes up with a plan to bid on the railroad’s butcher contract.

HDC Chapter 16: Horse of a Different Color

December 11, 2022 03:46 - 24 minutes - 11.7 MB

Ralph gets a vision for going into the butchering business when the railroad asks for bids to feed its crews.

HDC Chapter 15: Three Little Pigs

November 28, 2022 03:28 - 25 minutes - 10.1 MB

Ralph went to trial and ended up owing over $13,000. Effie became his advocate and the neighbors all showed him great support at auction.

HDC Chapter 14: Flood

November 25, 2022 03:11 - 16 minutes - 6.59 MB

Beaver Creek is hit by such a flood that Ralph and Bob lose all their hogs and the entire property gets covered in water.

HDC Chapter 13: The Sign in the Window

November 24, 2022 02:55 - 13 minutes - 5.55 MB

Ralph gets brought to court by the new bank owners, and he shared how he and Bob’s family worked hard to pull in the same direction.

HDC Chapter 12: Bankruptcy

November 23, 2022 03:24 - 15 minutes - 7.33 MB

Ralph and George walk Bob through bankruptcy so that he could get back on his feet.

HDC Chapter 11: Foreclosures

November 19, 2022 03:10 - 16 minutes - 6.21 MB

Bob overextends himself with a new Buick and is exposed to his wife as irresponsible. Ralph helps the family through this trial and then he helps the township by honoring both his commitment to the bank and by his care for his neighbor’s need to retain good stock.

HDC Chapter 10: A Skunk Under the Woodpile

November 12, 2022 02:47 - 24 minutes - 9.43 MB

Ralph experiences panic and loss alongside most farmers in his part of the country because cattle and hog prices fell drastically. His shipment went out on Christmas Day 1920 and his work ethic continued to diverge from Bob’s.

HDC Chapter 9: Mustang Auction

November 11, 2022 02:55 - 19 minutes - 7.52 MB

Ralph sees the arrival of automobiles and trucks as spelling an end to his wheat hauling business, so he sold out by auction. He and Bob takes on more cattle and hogs, and Bones’ bank is sold to new management.

HDC Chapter 8: The Hog Cycle

November 09, 2022 02:38 - 15 minutes - 6.08 MB

Bob goes to Kansas City with Ralph to sell cattle and hogs, and it is a good sale because they only lose $500 when the rest of the market is down 30%. George Miner explains his theory on the hog market cycle, and leaves Ralph to extrapolate his own conclusions about whether to put more cattle or hogs into the feed lot.

HDC Chapter 7 Blizzards and Backaches

October 15, 2022 21:23 - 19 minutes - 18.5 MB

Ralph puts up with Bob’s fake back pain since Bob has the knowledge and skill to run a cattle and hog feed lot. Their business venture meant many cold days and nights for both of them.

HDC Chapter 6: Our First Buying Trip

September 13, 2022 01:13 - 16 minutes - 7.01 MB

Effie at the switchboard warns Ralph that she thinks any work alongside Bob Wilson is foolish. Bob and Ralph go on to buy all the steers and hogs they wish to buy, and Christmas Day is spent with the Wilson family.

HDC Chapter 5: Old Man Macey’s Steers

September 11, 2022 19:54 - 12 minutes - 11.3 MB

Bob Wilson proves his poor character once again, and Ralph is willing to stand by him yet again…because of his little girl and wife.

HDC Chapter 4: Jointly But Not as Partners

August 30, 2022 02:04 - 23 minutes - 8.91 MB

Ralph has to hold the line in order to not go into business with a dishonest Bob Wilson. Ralph admits by the end of the chapter that he wasn’t 21 years old when he did his other work with the bank.

HDC Chapter 3: A Different Lesson for Bob

August 29, 2022 01:55 - 18 minutes - 6.86 MB

Bob Wilson’s poor work ethic and discipline is called out, and only George Miner is clever enough to find a way to lighten the scales so that Bob can’t profit from dishonesty.

HDC Chapter 2: A Lesson from George Miner

August 26, 2022 02:37 - 21 minutes - 8.12 MB

Ralph learns the most by listening to George advise friends and farmers regarding cattle and hogs. Practical advice that Ralph will use to start his own herd.