Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    While the World Is Still Asleep
    While the World Is Still Asleep
    While the World Is Still Asleep
    Audiobook14 hours

    While the World Is Still Asleep

    Written by Petra Durst-Benning

    Narrated by Teri Clark Linden

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    The first in a new series from Petra Durst-Benning, the bestselling author of The Glassblower series.

    An inspiring historical tale of one woman risking it all for her dreams set in 1890s Berlin.

    After the tragic death of her little brother, Josephine travels to the Black Forest to heal. There she discovers a feeling of freedom astride a brand-new invention: the bicycle. The very idea of a woman on a bicycle is beyond taboo—it is indecent and even illegal—but Josephine will not be deterred. Back home, Josephine rides under cover of night, while the world is still asleep so as not to provoke a scandal. But Berlin’s streets are dangerous and the winds of change are blowing.

    Can Josephine’s fighting heart help her overcome the obstacles in her path? Will the passion she feels for this new adventure lead her toward true love?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    TranslatorEdwin Miles
    Release dateFeb 23, 2016
    ISBN9781511359399
    While the World Is Still Asleep
    Author

    Petra Durst-Benning

    Petra Durst-Benning was born in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in 1965. For more than twenty years, she has been writing bestselling historical and contemporary novels, including The Glassblower’s Trilogy, The Century Trilogy, and The Seed Traders’ Saga. Translated into several languages, Petra Durst-Benning’s novels have sold more than a million copies in English. She now lives with her husband and two dogs in the countryside south of Stuttgart. For more information, visit www.durst-benning.de.

    More audiobooks from Petra Durst Benning

    Related to While the World Is Still Asleep

    Titles in the series (3)

    View More
    View More

    Related audiobooks

    Historical Fiction For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Visit To Harar

      Oct 14, 2019

      Sir Richard Burton was an extraordinarily brave explorer and scholar with a genius for language and disguise. A year before this trip to Ethiopia, he became the first European to enter Mecca. Burton would go on to elope with his childhood sweetheart,

      3 min read

    • Article

      Set Up Google Home…

      Feb 9, 2017

      As Google Home isn’t officially available in the UK, and doesn’t charge via Micro USB or USB-C, you’re going to need an adapter to use it. While some are concerned about voltage, we’ve found that a cheap US-to-UK travel adapter works just fine. You c

      2 min read

    • Article

      Wilbur Smith obituary

      Nov 14, 2021

      At the age of eight, Wilbur Smith was given his grandfather’s Remington rifle, which had 122 notches on the butt. He shot his first lion when he was 14. Such a boy seemed destined to become a hunter, but it was on paper that Smith realised his dreams

      3 min read

    • Article

      Twinkle TWINKLE

      Dec 6, 2023

      Twinkle TWINKLE
      6 min read

    • Article

      This Back Is a Familiar Back

      May 1, 2023

      This Back Is a Familiar Back
      8 min read

    • Article

      Home News

      Aug 9, 2023

      This slow-burning drama starts with a punch – aknock on the door early in the morning, two police officers demanding to see the husband of our wide-eyed narrator Ellen. Gordon O’Hanlon is still in bed, Ellen says, but agrees to go and wake him. He’s

      1 min read

    • Article

      It Happened to Me…

      Apr 18, 2024

      It Happened to Me…
      9 min read

    • Article

      Great Read

      Jul 12, 2023

      Great Read
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Convict

      Jul 10, 2020

      The Convict
      5 min read

    • Article

      I Made Friends With A Ghost

      Jun 29, 2022

      I Made Friends With A Ghost
      2 min read

    • Article

      Hard Metal

      Jun 10, 2023

      When Raúl gave me his security job for August, he told me not to see anything. You don’t see nothin’, he said, because we both know I get curious. Sometimes the other guys think I’m soft, the way I get lost in my head. My girlfriend says it’s trauma,

      6 min read

    • Article

      A Year From Hell

      Jan 16, 2021

      A Year From Hell
      3 min read

    • Article

      Living Nightmare

      Aug 10, 2023

      Living Nightmare
      5 min read

    • Article

      Scapegoat Child

      Mar 15, 2018

      In the crucible of our family my sister burned like molten steel. Once I saw her arms outspread her legs hanging limp and useless wet saliva dripping from her tongue. I screamed they surrounded her lifted her onto the sheets where she convulsed for h

      7 min read

    • Article

      In Love And War

      Jun 10, 2021

      April 1943 - Krakow, Poland Irena was bent over her needlework, stitching the frayed seam of her skirt when she heard a single gunshot ring out. She jerked and then scowled. After four years of war, she ought to be used to it. Why, the other night a

      11 min read

    • Article

      My Friend Anne Frank

      Jun 14, 2023

      My Friend Anne Frank
      12 min read

    • Article

      The Plagues Steph Cha

      Sep 29, 2020

      The Plagues Steph Cha
      9 min read

    • Article

      My Friend Anne Frank

      Jun 14, 2023

      My Friend Anne Frank
      12 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reading Guide

      Jan 2, 2022

      Summer Reading Guide
      6 min read

    • Article

      Winter Sun

      Feb 6, 2020

      Winter Sun
      4 min read

    • Article

      Between the Sheets

      Jan 19, 2023

      Between the Sheets
      5 min read

    • Article

      Suspicious Circumstances

      Aug 10, 2022

      Suspicious Circumstances
      7 min read

    • Article

      It Happened to Me…

      Apr 21, 2022

      It Happened to Me…
      8 min read

    • Article

      Performance

      Nov 10, 2022

      “Wait here,” the guard said as he shut the door behind him, leaving me by myself. The floor inside the lab was polished, and the air smelled of disinfectant, and yet the room felt unclean. Leaves shook on a tree outside the window, making shadows on

      18 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for While the World Is Still Asleep

    4/5

    29 ratings2 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      While the World is Still Asleep by Petra Durst-Benning is the first book in The Century Trilogy. Josephine “Jo” is telling her story. We start out with her in an accident and in trouble with the law (I know. It makes no sense.) Jo ends up in prison for 3 and a half years. Jo then goes back to tell us about the death of her brother, Freddie?? He was twelve years old and fascinated with fire. One Sunday Jo was ordered to watch him while her parents went off for the day to visit relatives. Jo watched him for a while and then went to visit friends. Freddie found the key to the barn where their father had his smithy. Freddie was told he was not allowed in the there. He went in and found matches. As you can imagine he started setting fire to paper. Sparks from the burning paper flew into the hay and soon the whole barn is one fire. Jo tried to rescue him, but Freddie had locked the doors. Jo was unable to break the doors down. She was found unconscious in front of the barn. Freddie died in the fire. Her parents blame her for the boy’s death and treat her like a pariah. Jo developed a horrible cough from the smoke inhalation that would not go away. A neighbor, ?? convinces Jo’s parents to send her to a sanatorium in the Black Forest (the neighbor had to pay for it). Jo found a friend named Lilo (also a relative of neighbors). She introduced Jo to the velocipede (pedal bicycle). Jo loved it and her cough went away (the writer makes it out to be psychosomatic—in her head). Jo becomes obsessed with riding bicycles. Women were not supposed to be on bicycles. They were deemed too much for the “weaker sex” (it is also considered indecent and illegal). Jo returns home to her hateful parents who insist she work from dawn to way past dusk in the smithy for no pay. Jo discovers that Isabelle’s (a girl from school) father has a bicycle. This becomes Jo’s obsession. Jo wants to ride and this leads to her biggest mistake. It is unfortunate for Jo that cycling is a men’s sport and bicycles are extremely expensive (all made by hand in Germany). Come see what Jo does While the World is Still Asleep!While the World is Still Asleep is one slow paced novel that is way, way too long. It contains good writing, but (I’m sorry) it’s boring (alright just plain dull). Basically, you get to see what Jo goes through to enjoy cycling (some of the information was interesting). It was interesting to find out that cycles were handmade in Germany while the United States automated the process. And, of course, it was a male dominated sport at the time. This is just the first book in the series. This story could have easily been finished in one novel. I give While the World is Still Asleep 3 out of 5 stars. The book just needed something to liven it up and keep the readers interest. It is way too long for it to be unfinished (can you imagine two more books on this subject). I received a complimentary copy of While the World is Still Asleep from NetGalley in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel.
    • 5/5
      Jo discovers a love for bicycling when she travels away from home to heal from cough and lung ailments. However, the idea of a woman riding a bicycle is scandalous in 1890’s Berlin. After crashing the bicycle of her friend’s father, she is locked away in prison for three years. Once she is set free, she is determined to live how she likes, with or without societies approval.This was a great book. I didn’t realize it was a translation. It was well written and engaging. The characters were realistic and covered a wide swatch of society. I look forward to reading more from this author.