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Publisher: HarperCollins e-books
A short story from the Classic Shorts collection: The Happy Failure by Herman Melville
The Russian novel has a reputation that is immense, both in narrative and in length. Unquestionably though the ideas, themes and characters make many novels rightly revered as world class, as icons of literature. Perhaps an easier way to enjoy a wider selection of the Russian heritage, with its varied and glorious literary talents, is with the short story. These gems sparkle and beguile the mind with their characters and narrative, exploring facets of society and the human condition that more Western authors somehow find more difficult to navigate, or to explore, explain and relate to. The Russian short story is, in many respects, in a genre of its own. It is at its captivating best whether it’s an exploration of real-life experiences, through fantasy and fables and on to total absurdity. In a land so vast it is unsurprising that it is a world almost unto itself. Cultures and landscapes of differing hues are packed together bound only by the wilful bonds and force of Empire. The stories in this collection traverse the decades where one might be a serf under an absolute monarch, and the reality of that was pretty near to slavery, into an emancipation of sorts in the fields, or towns under the despotic will of landowners and the rich into the upheavals of Empire and then the overthrow of the ruling class and its replacement by the communists, who promised equality for all and delivered a society where the down-trodden remained the lowest yet vital cog of the state machine and its will. Whilst Tolstoy, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Pushkin and Chekhov are a given in any Russian collection we also explore and include Andreyev, Korolenko, Turgenev, Blavatsky and many others to create a world rich and dense across a sprawling landscape of diverse people, riddled with the class and unfairness in perhaps some of the most turbulent times that Russia has ever experienced. 01 - The Russian Short Story - Volume 5 - An Introduction 02 - About Love by Anton Chekhov 03 - Vanka by Anton Chekhov 04 - Hide And Seek or Pliatki by Fyodor Sologub 05 - In The Steppe by Maxim Gorky 06 - Chelkash - Part 1 by Maxim Gorky 07 - Chelkash - Part 2 by Maxim Gorky 08 - Chelkash - Part 3 by Maxim Gorky 09 - Twenty-Six Men and a Girl by Maxim Gorky 10 - One Autumn Night by Maxim Gorky 11 - Her Lover by Maxim Gorky 12 - The Servant by S T Semyonov 13 - Son by Ivan Bunin 14 - Kasimir Stanislavovitch by Ivan Bunin 15 - Gentle Breathing by Ivan Bunin 16 - The Outrage by Alexander Kuprin 17 - The Park of Kings by Alexander KuprinShow book
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald's third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. First published in 1925, this quintessential novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted "gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession," it is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.Show book
For a genuine Conan tale, full of barbarian craftiness, magic, fierce fighting and his berserker strength, this meets every criteria and is one of the best. Conan was raiding with the Free Companions when they were trapped and slaughtered by the merciless Shah Amurath the great Lord of Akif. Conan is one of the very few who escape by hiding in the mud of the marshes like a beast living on raw snake and muskrat. Luck, which seems to have deserted him, smiles again and allows him the chance for revenge and he eagerly seizes it, destroying his enemy with fierce strokes. Barely escaping his soldiers with the slave girl Olivia, once a princess of Koth, they reach a deserted island that holds many enchantments and strange dangers. Then the pirates arrive and things become even bloodier.Show book
O. Henry was the pen name of William Sydney Porter (1862-1910), an American writer of outstanding short stories known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization, and surprise endings.'A Newspaper Story' is an ingenious tale about a lost newspaper blowing through the streets of New York. Each passer-by who comes into contact with any part of it is personally impacted by one of the stories in the paper - but not in the way one would expect.Show book
The Short Stories Of Virginia Woolf. The short story is often viewed as an inferior relation to the Novel. But it is an art in itself. To take a story and distil its essence into fewer pages while keeping character and plot rounded and driven is not an easy task. Many try and many fail. In this series we look at short stories from many of our most accomplished writers. Miniature masterpieces with a lot to say. In this volume we examine some of the short stories of Virginia Woolf. Adeline Virginia Woolf was born in 1882 and was to become a founder of modernist writing. Her background is filled with elements of tragedy that she somehow overcame to become a revered writer. Her mother died when she was 13, her half sister Stella two years later and with it her first of several nervous breakdowns. She began writing professionally at age 20 but her father’s death two years later brought a complete mental collapse and she was briefly institutionalised. Three of her half brothers had sexually abused her so further darkness was added to her life. But out of this came great innovations in writing; she was a pioneer of “stream of consciousness”. Whilst the dark periods continued to interrupt her emotional state her rate of work never ceased. Until on 28 March 1941, Woolf put on her overcoat, filled its pockets with stones, and walked into the River Ouse and drowned herself leaving behind a note which read in part “Dearest, I feel certain that I am going mad again. I feel we can't go through another of those terrible times. And I shan't recover this time. I begin to hear voices, and I can't concentrate. So I am doing what seems the best thing to do”. Many of these stories are also available as an audiobook from our sister company Word Of Mouth. Many samples are at our youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/user/PortablePoetry?feature=mhee The full volume can be purchased from iTunes, Amazon and other digital stores. They are read for you by Richard Mitchley and Ghizela Rowe. Index Of Stories; A Haunted House; A Society; An Unwritten Novel; Kew Gardens; The Mark On The Wall; Monday Or Tuesday; Blue & Green; The Man Who Loved His Kind; The Searchlight; Together and Apart; The Legacy; A Summing Up; Moments Of Being; The Shooting Party.Show book
This has the distinction of being the only magazine piece ever written in a New York hotel. The business was done in a bedroom in the Knickerbocker, and shortly afterward that memorable hostelry closed its doors forever. When a fitting period of mourning had elapsed it was published in the "Smart Set." This short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald was published in his Tales of the Jazz Age collection.Show book
