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  Top 10 Short Stories The -...

  Oscar Wilde, Anthony Trollope,...

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  Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart.  A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. 
   
  In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author?  
   
  The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme.  Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature. 
   
  Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made.  If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something. 
   
  In this volume we explore and enjoy the stories of authors who attended one of the great seats of learning.  Amongst their storied number are Anthony Trollope, Radclyffe Hall, Lewis Carroll and a host of others.   
   
  01 - The Top 10 - Oxford - An Introduction 
  02 - Lord Arthur Savile's Crime - Part 1 by Oscar Wilde 
  03 - Lord Arthur Savile's Crime - Part 2 by Oscar Wilde 
  04 - Malachi's Cove by Anthony Trollope 
  05 - The Blank Cheque by Lewis Carroll 
  06 - Miss Ogilivy Finds Herself by Radclyffe Hall 
  07 - Lucifera by Anthony Hope 
  08 - Couching at the Door by D K Broster 
  09 - The Spectre of Tappington - Part 1 by Richard Harris Barham 
  10 - The Spectre of Tappington - Part 2 by Richard Harris Barham 
  10 - Thurnley Abbey by Perceval Landon 
  11 - The Omnibus by Arthur Quiller-Couch 
  12 - The Beast With Five Fingers by W F Harvey

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  Hikk Te Balda Diva

  Ravinder Chot

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  Hikk Te Balda Diva by Ravinder Chot beautifully captures the essence of Punjabi rural life, traditions, and rituals surrounding life and death. Through realistic storytelling, the author presents heartfelt moments, cultural practices, and the simple yet profound experiences of village people, making it a powerful reflection of Punjab’s living heritage.

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  Bellerophon To Anteia - From...

  Mary Butts

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  Mary Frances Butts was born on 13th December 1890 in Poole, Dorset. 
  Her early years were spent at Salterns, an 18th-century house overlooking Poole Harbour.  Sadly in 1905 her father died, and she was sent for boarding at St Leonard's school for girls in St Andrews. 
  Her mother remarried and, from 1909, Mary studied at Westfield College in London, and here, first became aware of her bisexual feelings.  She was sent down for organising a trip to Epsom races and only completed her degree in 1914 when she graduated from the London School of Economics.  By then Mary had become an admirer of the occultist Aleister Crowley and she was given a co-authorship credit on his ‘Magick (Book 4)’. 
  In 1916, she began the diary which would now detail her future life and be a constant reference point for her observations and her absorbing experiences. 
  During World War I, she was doing social work for the London County Council in Hackney Wick, and involved in a lesbian relationship.  Life changed after meeting the modernist poet, John Rodker and they married in 1918. 
  In 1921 she spent 3 months at Aleister Crowley's Abbey of Thelema in Sicily; she found the practices dreadful and also acquired a drug habit.  Mary now spent time writing in Dorset, including her celebrated book of short stories ‘Speed the Plough’ which saw fully develop her unique Modernist prose style. 
  Europe now beckoned and several years were spent in Paris befriending many artists and writing further extraordinary stories.   
  She was continually sought after by literary magazines and also published several short story collections as books. Although a Modernist writer she worked in other genres but is essentially only known for her short stories.  Mary was deeply committed to nature conservation and wrote several pamphlets attacking the growing pollution of the countryside. 
  In 1927, she divorced and the following year her novel ‘Armed with Madness’ was published.  A further marriage followed in 1930 and time was spent attempting to settle in London and Newcastle before setting up home on the western tip of Cornwall.  By 1934 the marriage had failed. 
  Mary Butts died on 5th March 1937, at the West Cornwall Hospital, Penzance, after an operation for a perforated gastric ulcer. She was 46.

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  The Magnet - From their pens to...

  Barry Pain

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  Barry Eric Odell Pain was born at 3 Sydney Street in Cambridge on 28th September 1864. He was one of 4 children. 
  He was educated at Sedbergh School and then Corpus Christi College, Cambridge where he read classics and contributed to and edited Granta. 
  Four years of service as an Army coach followed before he moved to London. In 1889, Cornhill Magazine published his short story ‘The Hundred Gates’.  This opened the way for Pain to advance his literary career on several fronts. He became a contributor to Punch and The Speaker, as well as joining the staff of both the Daily Chronicle and Black and White.  
  In 1897 he succeeded Jerome K Jerome as editor of To-Day but still contributed regularly, until 1928, to the Windsor Magazine. 
  It is often said that Pain was discovered by Robert Louis Stevenson, who compared his work to that of Guy de Maupassant.  It’s an apt comparison. Pain was also a master of disturbing prose but able to inject parody and light comedy into many of his works.  A simple premise could in his hands suddenly expand into a world very real but somehow emotionally fraught and on the very edge of darkness as many of these short stories demonstrate.   
  Despite applying his talents to several genres and forms today Pain is more readily thought of, especially during the first decade of the 20th Century, as perhaps the leading British humorist of his day.  These stories reveal a darker side and beg to differ. 
  Barry Pain died on 5th May 1928 in Bushey, Hertfordshire.

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  The murder of Roger Ackroyd

  Agatha Christie

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  The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie is one of the most famous mystery novels ever written and a masterpiece of detective fiction.In the quiet English village of King's Abbot, wealthy businessman Roger Ackroyd is found murdered shortly after receiving a shocking letter connected to the recent death of a woman named Mrs. Ferrars. As secrets begin to surface, the legendary Belgian detective Hercule Poirot comes out of retirement to investigate the crime.Narrated by Dr. James Sheppard, the story follows Poirot as he uncovers hidden motives, lies, and unexpected connections among the villagers. Every suspect seems to have something to hide, making the mystery increasingly complex. With brilliant twists and psychological suspense, the novel builds toward one of the most surprising endings in crime fiction history.Perfect for fans of classic mysteries, suspenseful investigations, and clever storytelling, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd remains a timeless audiobook experience that continues to captivate listeners around the world.

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  Let's Go! - The Adventures of...

  Larry Jacobson

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  Let’s Go! is Nonstop action and adventure with just the right amount of light fantasy-fiction. Skip begins searching for his mysterious runaway brother, who was last seen in Tahiti. The search for his brother explodes into a dangerous journey Skip never expected.He meets Kanek, a Tahitian orphan, and together they sail around the world searching for Skip’s brother. They’re surprised and shocked about the dark discoveries they make, but are compelled to keep on the hunt. They become involved way over their heads and danger lurks everywhere as the boys encounter dragons, snakes, crocodiles, man-fish, pirates, and erupting volcanoes. Only having just met, Skip and Kanek must learn to trust each other in these situations and are faced with life or death decisions along their journey. The story is fast-paced, exciting, and dangerous, and at many points, the boys are faced with the question of whether to go on or not. What is important in life? What are the boys’ priorities? They don’t seem to want to give up…but should they?

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