Boring Books for Bedtime Readings to Help You Sleep

Let's take a spooky yet ponderous journey back to the 17th century witch craze in New England, as described by one of its prime movers, the Reverend Cotton Mather. If he was cursed with anything, it was a love for clauses.   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Read "The Wonders of the Invisible World: An Account of the Salem Witch Trials" at Proj...

It's our One Year Anniversary! Let's return to the book that kicked off our boring bedtime journey, and revel in the relaxation of A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses. Thank you to each and every one of you lovely listeners for supporting us. We look forward to boring you even more in the coming year.   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Rea...

Fly away to relaxation on the wings of feathered friends with this week's reading, Cassell's Book of Birds. You'll learn more than you ever wanted to know about bird tongues, if you make it that far.   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Read "Cassell's Book of Birds, Volume 1" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/48675   Follow...

Tonight we get dreamy with the utopian urban planning vision of Edgar Chambless in Roadtown. A city a thousand miles long, built in a straight line? Why, it's the perfect solution for stress!   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Read "Roadtown" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/58964   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: http...

Let a sea of stardust carry you to sleep as we read "Astronomy for Young Folks" and learn about constellations, planets, and the equinoctial points of the ecliptic. You know, kid stuff.   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Read "Astronomy for Young Folks" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/45112   Follow and chat with us on Tw...

Sink into slumber as we detail the musical miracle of the Victrola, "the world's greatest instrument," and dream of a distant world where music on demand is a life-changing novelty.   Read "How to Get the Most Out of Your Victrola" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/53656   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Follow and chat wi...

Drift off in a world of snow and silence with Robert Peary's account of his trek to the world's northernmost point. But first, a rather lengthy history of Arctic exploration going back to the 1500s! Bundle up.   Read "The North Pole" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18975   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Follow and chat...

Tonight we find sleep in sport with a detailed history of the game of cricket. This wander through the origins of England's national game is sure to bowl you over with boredom.   Read "The Cricket Field" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/52022   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://tw...

To wrap up a month of Revisiting Relaxation, let's drift back through one of your favorite sleep-inducers, the Sears Catalog. Tonight's selection is a perfect pick for this podcast, and confirms that, truly, Sears was the Amazon of 1897.   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/boringbookspod   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com/boringbookspod  ...

Tonight we revisit a relaxing science classic, The Principles of Geology, erode away stress with a stroll through the stony halls of geological history, and ponder some very odd theories about our planet.   Read "The Principles of Geology" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/33224   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/boringbookspod   Support us on Patreon and...

Tonight, we return to the managerial wonder of Mrs. Beeton, and fall asleep to everything one needs to know to be a proper 19th century housekeeper, butler or footman. Who knew wine and wick-trimming could be so relaxing? Read "The Book of Household Management" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10136   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/boringbookspod   Sup...

Tonight we revisit one of our most popular books, Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius. His advice for Stoic living continues to be a font of sleepy wisdom two millennia later. Enjoy!   Read "Meditations" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2680 Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/boringbookspod Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.patreon.com...

Let's relax to this work about the classification and characteristics of animals, as determined by Aristotle 2,300 years ago. We don't get to the part about spontaneous generation, but he does mention winged snakes and mammals growing from worms, so there's that.   Read "History of Animals" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/59058   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://tw...

Let's drink deep of the relaxing words of Henry David Thoreau's classic "Walden". Wander the woods in sleepy solitude, where sweet dreams await you amidst the silent sentinels of the trees.   Read "Walden" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/205   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/boringbookspod   Support us on Patreon and get exclusive perks: https://www.pa...

In this episode, we caravan from sand to sandman with the Manual of Egyptian Archaeology & Guide to Antiquities from 1895. It's everything you never wanted to know about pharaonic fortress design. Special thanks to listener Jeremy Zenith for this wonderful recommendation!   Read "Manual of Egyptian Archaeology & Guide to Antiquities" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14400   Fo...

Let's gently hammer away at stress and saw our way into sleep with this manual for the amateur woodworker. In it, we'll learn why a list of tools for the beginner is a useless idea, followed immediately by a list of tools for the beginner, because of course it is.   Read "Woodworking for Beginners" at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/43604   Follow and chat with us on Twitter: ht...

Let Alexander Hamilton and his compatriots spark a revolution of sleep with arguments in favor of ratifying the US Constitution. If these Federalist Papers prove anything, it's that predicting what will become a Broadway hit is one of the great mysteries of our time. Music: "Boring Books for Bedtime" by Lee Rosevere, CC BY Read The Federalist Papers Follow and chat with us on Twitter Support us on...

Flow into the current of sleep on the genius of Nikola Tesla and his experiments in alternating electrical current. It runs our lives, but most of us have no clue how it works. This reading won't do a thing to change that, so feel free to drift off in peace.   Music: "Words or Silence 1" by PCIII (freemusicarchive.org), is licensed under CC All Boring Books readings are taken from works in the pub...

[Apologies, audio now corrected!] Relax to this spectacularly boring book by Mary Wollstonecraft, famed for her ideas about feminism, and not at all famed for her writing for children. If you manage to stay awake through "Original Stories," you'll likely know why. Children's literature has come a long way since 1790.   Music: "Dream Loop" (DL Music) is licensed under CC All Boring Books readings a...

Lean into languor with "The Advancement of Learning," by great Elizabethan thinker Sir Francis Bacon, one of the originators of the scientific method. This honestly might be the densest thing I've ever read to you. See if you agree!   Music: "Healing" by Lee Rosevere, licensed under CC BY. Visit http://leerosevere.bandcamp.com All Boring Books readings are taken from works in the public domain. If...

Drift away through the Himalaya with the first major expedition to study Mount Everest, highest of high peaks in the Roof of the World. Why tackle Everest? If you can stay awake long enough, you may find out. Music: "Boring Books for Bedtime" by Lee Rosevere, licensed under CC BY. Visit http://leerosevere.bandcamp.com   All Boring Books readings are taken from works in the public domain. If you'd...

Let your thoughts flit away as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the great Sherlock Holmes, tries to prove that actual fairies exist. No, really! It's a fascinating exercise in (not so) critical thinking, if you can stay awake long enough. Music: "earth 2 earth," by PCIII (freemusicarchive.org), is licensed under CC   All Boring Books readings are taken from works in the public domain. If you'd l...

Drift off on a voyage of relaxation with one of the foundation texts of science fiction and fantasy--"The Blazing World," written by Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle, in 1668. Imaginative worldbuilding and early scientific inquiry is a perfect tonic for sleep.   Music: "Gentle Whispering" by Lee Rosevere, licensed under CC BY-NC. Visit http://leerosevere.bandcamp.com   All Boring Books rea...

This week we fulfill a listener request, and relax to one of the world's earliest and most influential philosophical texts, the Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tze. If you stay awake long enough, perhaps you'll figure out what it all means, but don't hurt yourself.   Music: "Exit Exit" by PCIII (freemusicarchive.org), licensed under CC BY   All Boring Books readings are taken from works in the public domain....

Let's get transcendental with Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Nature" and relax to his musings on beauty, language, and our connection with the perfection of our surroundings. Music: "Ocean Tapping" by PCIII (freemusicarchive.org), licensed under CC BY   All Boring Books readings are taken from works in the public domain. If you'd like to suggest a copyright-free reading, catch us on Twitter @boringbookspo...