Fifty World S Greatest Short Stories

The short story is one of the finest forms of writing. As short as a paragraph at times, or as lengthy as a novel, short stories are widely read and immensely lauded. Some of the most exceptional writers have dabbled in this form penning beautiful, unforgettable stories. In this carefully-crafted selection, we bring to you some of the greatest writers from around the world-- the iconic storytellers from America, such as Mark Twain, Kate Chopin, Virginia Woolf, the legendary Grimm brothers from Germany, to the lyrical Rabindranath Tagore from India, and the witty H H Munro from Britain. All these and many more remarkable people come together in this edition . . . and all have stories to tell. An anthology beginning with Aesop's fables-- perhaps the first stories we come across-- and ending with Virginia Woolf's gothic, thrilling ' The Haunted House', 100 World's Greatest Short Stories brings together stories short and sweet, descriptive and lengthy, and stories that can do anything-- from telling a tale to hiding its narrator, from portraying the reality to diving into pure imagination-- and are a must-read for every fiction lover."

Dating back to the early traditions of oral storytelling, the short story has evolved through the ages from myths, legends, fairy tales, fables, parables, stories in the Ramayana and Mahabharata, tales in the Panchatantra, the adventure tales of the Odyssey, biblical stories, the Norse sagas, and many others. As the oriental tale and Gothic novel gained popularity in the latter half of the eighteenth century, short story began developing in Britain. And by the beginning of nineteenth century, it had highly evolved as a form. This anthology is a compilation of some of the classic short stories of the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, from around the world. Beginning with the realistic stories of Pushkin and Chekov, it includes ' The Necklace' by Guy de Maupassant, ' Eve's Diary' by Mark Twain, ' The " Slapping Sal" ' by Arthur Conan Doyle, ' The Fly' by Katherine Mansfield, ' A Little Cloud' by James Joyce, ' White Nights' by Fyodor Dostoevsky, ' The Postmaster' by Rabindranath Tagore, and ' The Gift of Magi' by O. Henry. " Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They are journeys you can make to the far side of the universe and still be back in time for dinner." - Neil Gaiman " ' What shall I write?' said Yegor, and he dipped his pen in the ink." - Anton Chekov, At Christmas Time " There was a woman who was beautiful, who started with all the advantages, yet she had no luck." - D. H. Lawrence, The Rocking-Horse Winner

50 Greatest Short Stories is a selection from the best of the world's short fiction, bringing together writings by great masters of the genre. Carefully picked for their timeless quality, readers are sure to be delighted by the inclusion of such favourites as 'The Gift of the Magi', 'The Lady with the Dog', 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button', 'Rain' and 'Mrs Packletide's Tiger', to name but a few. This outstanding and wide-ranging anthology of stories is a collector's item, designed for readers to refresh their acquaintance with some of the world's finest writing and for newer readers to be introduced to it. Anton Chekov, Charles Dickens, Katherine Mansfield, Guy de Maupassant, F. Scott Fitzgerald, H. Rider Haggard, O. Henry, Rudyard Kipling, W.W. Jacobs, Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, Saki, Jerome K. Jerome, H.G. Wells, Kate Chopin, Ambrose Bierce, Jack London, Frank Stockton, Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen Leacock, James Joyce, Bram Stoker, Joseph Conrad, M. R. James, W. Somerset Maugham, R. L. Stevenson.

Ranging from the 19th to the 20th centuries, this wonderfully wide-ranging and enjoyable anthology includes Tolstoy, Kipling, Chekhov, Joyce, Kafka, Pirandello, Mann, Updike, Borges, and other major writers of world literature.

Dating back to the early traditions of oral storytelling, the short story has evolved through the ages from myths, legends, fairy tales, fables, parables, stories in the Ramayana and Mahabharata, tales in the Panchatantra, the adventure tales of the Odyssey, biblical stories, the Norse sagas and many others. As the oriental tale and Gothic novel gained popularity in the latter half of the eighteenth century, short story began developing in Britain. And by the beginning of nineteenth century, it had highly evolved as a form. This anthology is a compilation of some of the classic short stories of the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, from around the world. Beginning with the realistic stories of Pushkin and Chekov, it includes ‘The Necklace’ by Guy de Maupassant, ‘Eve’s Diary’ by Mark Twain, ‘The “Slapping Sal”’ by Arthur Conan Doyle, ‘The Fly’ by Katherine Mansfield, ‘A Little Cloud’ by James Joyce, ‘White Nights’ by Fyodor Dostoevsky, ‘The Postmaster’ by Rabindranath Tagore and ‘The Gift of Magi’ by O. Henry. “Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They are journeys you can make to the far side of the universe and still be back in time for dinner.” – Neil Gaiman “‘What shall I write?’ said Yegor and he dipped his pen in the ink.” – Anton Chekov, At Christmas Time “There was a woman who was beautiful, who started with all the advantages, yet she had no luck.” – D. H. Lawrence, The Rocking-Horse Winner

Castles and palaces around the world are structures of grandeur, might and beauty. From the flamboyance of Germany's fairy tale-Neuschwanstein Castle to the gothic, Dracula-inspiring Bran Castle, perched high in the craggy peaks of Romania's Carpathian Mountains; Tokyo's Imperial Palace, previously home to samurai warriors to Ireland's Blarney Castle, where 'the gift of the gab' will be granted to any who kiss its stone, the world's castles and palaces are steeped in history and stories to tell. Travel writer and journalist Gilly Pickup shares these stories, providing a tour of 50 of the world's greatest castles and palaces, filled with humour, interesting facts and tips on how best to visit them.