Catherine Zeta-Jones

Runaway Bunny, The Story of Babar: The Little Elephant, and Goodnight Moon are national treasures and many of us remember them from our childhoods.

Catherine Zeta-Jones narrates The Runaway Bunny in a new piano-trio version composed by GPR Records artistic director and four-time Emmy Award Winner, Glen Roven. This piece premiered at Carnegie Hall with the American Symphony. Runaway Bunny was written in 1942 and has been published continuously since that time - it's a wonderful timeless story of free thinking and creativity.

Narrating the tale of one of the most famous elephants in the world Michael Douglas, a two-time Academy Award-winning actor and producer, tells the story of an orphan elephant who is befriended by a kind old lady, introduced to the pleasures of civilized life, then returns to the jungle and marries his childhood sweetheart and is elevated to King of the Elephants. The story of Babar, which celebrated its 81st Anniversary in 2012, includes music by Francis Poulenc and Jason Wirth on piano.

Also Goodnight Moon, a lullaby for baritone and piano, sung by international Opera superstar and English Baritone Mark Stone is based on Wise's book of the same title, which has been in print for over 60 years.

Why a poetry album? Easy answer: I love poetry. I love reading it. I love memorizing it. I love hearing great actors recite it. As the poet Mark Strand wrote, "Ink runs from the corners of my mouth / There is no happiness like mine / I have been eating poetry." In the past, when I was full from eating, I have had the audacity to set poetry to music. But, on this audiobook, you will hear the music of the poems. Poetry unadorned. Words. Because in truth, great poetry needs nothing but a great actor, a voice as eloquent and expressive as the poem itself, to lift the poem off the page and into the heart.

I have never done a project that has elicited so much enthusiasm. From the actors arriving at the studio who thanked me for inviting them to participate, "Are you kidding?" I'd say, "Thank you!" to the engineers who would say, "I never got this stuff, but these guys make it so beautiful." This audiobook has been a joy from beginning to end, a true labor of love. And whenever I heard my stomach rumbling during the production process, I always knew I could find something delicious to eat in the studio. Mmmm. Yeats? That hits the spot.