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English
Description
In 1815, France is on its knees after defeat at the battle of Waterloo. Jean Valjean is nearing the end of his sentence at the prison hulks in Toulon after serving 19 years for a petty crime, and is released by ambitious prison guard Javert. Parisian seamstress Fantine is drawn to the charming Felix, but Fantine's friends worry her naivete may prove dangerous.
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Paris is on the brink of revolt as unrest spreads through the streets, but despite these larger threats, Javert redoubles his efforts to find Jean Valjean. The increasingly paranoid Valjean warns Cosette that they must leave Paris soon. Marius makes a promise to his beloved Cosette.
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Fantine must leave Paris to find work. She is forced to make an unbearable decision to give her little daughter Cosette a better way of life, as she makes her way to Montreuil to find work in a factory. Jean Valjean is leading a new life as Monsieur Madeleine, mayor of the town, and owner of the factory. But life becomes unsettled when Javert becomes Montreuil's new police inspector.
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Tormented Jean Valjean is forced by Javert and his own conscience to reveal his true identity. He is arrested and Javert believes he has got his man for good this time. Valjean breaks free from the guards to find Fantine in the infirmary, where he makes a promise to Fantine that changes everything.
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In 1832, teenage Cosette and Valjean make a new start in Paris, though Valjean worries it may be dangerous. Marius Pontmercy, now a young law student, confronts his grandfather after he learns the truth about his late father and the revolutionary ideals he fought for under Napoleon. The Thenardiers plot their revenge against their old nemesis. Javert comes closer to recapturing Valjean than ever.
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Out of prison, Hester pleads to keep Pearl, as the Boston magistrates debate whether she is fit to raise her child. When Dimmesdale passionately intercedes on her behalf, the magistrates relent. Meanwhile, Hester’s husband, Chillingworth, pursues his wife's lover. Dimmesdale, racked by a mysterious illness, weakens, and the magistrates call in a physician -- Chillingworth -- to tend him.
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A year has passed and there are new additions to the March family, but there is worry all around as Beth’s health and spirits flag. Amy is chosen over Jo to go on a tour of Europe. Jo flees to New York to pursue her career, but devastating news from home cuts Jo’s adventure short. The family reunites upon Amy’s return, which is made more joyful by unexpected news and a surprise visitor.
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Christmas, 1861. The March sisters--Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy--and their mother, Marmee, prepare for Christmas without presents and without their father, a Union army chaplain away at war. The sisters strike up a friendship with their charming new neighbor, Laurie. The girls attempt to live humbly and with open hearts throughout the new year, but are faced with a series of testing events.
10) Kwame Alexander
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English
Description
How do you get reluctant readers to fall in love with a book? Writer and literacy activist Kwame Alexander says you have to offer them something relatable. In The Crossover, basketball is the hook to persuade kids to pick up a novel written in poetic verse. Jeffrey Brown sits down with Alexander to discuss his award-winning young adult book.
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Description
As Marmee waits by her husband’s sickbed, the March sisters must learn to cope without their parents. Together they face unrequited love, hurtful rumors, trouble at school and the toll of sickness. Meg and John Brooke’s relationship develops, as do Jo’s literary prospects. Jo grows anxious as the future for her and her loved ones seems fraught with challenges.
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Description
The lovers, separated for seven years, have been reunited and Dimmesdale gains strength from Hester's courage. But Chillingworth learns of their plans to leave Boston and begin anew. As the minister preaches his last sermon to his congregation, he reaches a terrible decision -- one that will spell disaster for them all.
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Hester Prynne, a young woman in 17th century Boston, is condemned for adultery and sentenced to wear forever a scarlet 'A' upon her breast. Having refused all pleas to reveal her lovers' name -- even an eloquent plea from her pastor, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale -- she goes to prison with her infant daughter, Pearl.
17) Tara Westover
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Because Tara Westover, author of Educated, had never been allowed to go to school, the only history she had learned was the history her father taught her. "His perspective was my perspective," she says, and his fears became her fears. When she discovered education -- different from school -- she began to construct her own mind from a diversity of ideas. In this NewsHour program, Westover shares her humble opinion on remaking yourself.
18) Kate DiCamillo
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Kate DiCamillo wasn’t always a writer. She didn’t actually start writing until she was 30 years old. It took six years before she was published, but it was her dream and so she kept trying. Now, DiCamillo is the author of children’s books Because of Winn-Dixie and Tale of Despereaux and she was recently appointed the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.
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Description
In this rollicking Shakespeare comedy, two women come up with a hilarious plan to teach their would-be seducer the error of his ways, while their husbands draw their own conclusions. This production from the Stratford Festival is set in the 1950s in a town not unlike Stratford, bringing the story close to home.
20) Henry VIII
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English
Description
The Stratford Festival presents Shakespeare’s Henry VIII, a searing drama about one of the most fascinating, romantic, yet brutal periods in history. When England’s King Henry falls for the young and beautiful Anne Boleyn, he must somehow remove his beloved Queen Katherine from his life. As church and state collide, the King’s closest advisor, Cardinal Wolsey, suffers calamitous consequences and ultimately the course of history is changed forever....