Ambrose Bierce’s Followers (1,296)

Ambrose Bierce

Born

in Meigs County, Ohio, The United States

June 24, 1842

Genre

Short Stories, Nonfiction, Poetry

Influences

Robert Ingersoll, H.L. Mencken, Voltaire, Joseph McCabe, Jack London, ...more

edit data

died perhaps 1914

Caustic wit and a strong sense of horror mark works, including In the Midst of Life (1891-1892) and The Devil's Dictionary (1906), of American writer Ambrose Gwinett Bierce.

People today best know this editorialist, journalist, and fabulist for his short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and his lexicon.

The informative sardonic view of human nature alongside his vehemence as a critic with his motto, "nothing matters," earned him the nickname "Bitter Bierce."

People knew Bierce despite his reputation as a searing critic, however, to encourage younger poet George Sterling and fiction author W.C. Morrow.

Bierce employed a distinctive style especially in his stories. This style often embraces an abrupt begin ...more

Combine Editions
Ambrose Bierce’s books

Average rating: 3.87 · 99,141 ratings · 9,184 reviews · 2,423 distinct works • Similar authors

	An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge 4.01 avg rating — 27,021 ratings — published 1890 — 476 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary 4.05 avg rating — 11,058 ratings — published 1911 — 335 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ghost and Horror Stories of Ambrose Bierce 4.12 avg rating — 3,204 ratings — published 1964 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce by Ambrose Bierce, Ernest Jerome Hopkins (Editor), Cathy N. Davidson (Foreword) 4.19 avg rating — 1,545 ratings — published 2000 — 19 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Damned Thing 3.52 avg rating — 1,500 ratings — published 1893 — 108 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Civil War Stories 3.90 avg rating — 1,220 ratings — published 1956 — 40 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Can Such Things Be? 3.68 avg rating — 1,160 ratings — published 1893 — 318 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	An Inhabitant of Carcosa 3.69 avg rating — 1,115 ratings — published 1886 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Monk and the Hangman's Daughter 3.73 avg rating — 1,094 ratings — published 1892 — 169 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and Other Stories 3.82 avg rating — 656 ratings — 205 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Ambrose Bierce…

Series by Ambrose Bierce

Collected Fiction (2 books)
by

Ambrose Bierce,

S.T. Joshi (Editor)

4.50 avg rating — 6 ratings

Quotes by Ambrose Bierce (?)

“Love, n. A temporary insanity curable by marriage.”
― Ambrose Bierce, The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary

tags: insanity, love, marriage

1731 likes

“Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret.”
― Ambrose Bierce

1657 likes

“The covers of this book are too far apart.”
― Ambrose Bierce

tags: attributed-no-source, books, criticism, humor, wit

1598 likes

See all Ambrose Bierce's quotes »

Polls

September 2015 Short Story Poll

1754, Candide by Voltaire, 94 pages

35 votes, 26.7%

1936, At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft, 130 pages

17 votes, 13.0%

1924, A Hunger Artist by Franz Kafka, 84 pages

14 votes, 10.7%

1905, The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, 64 pages

13 votes, 9.9%

1952, Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett, 109 pages

11 votes, 8.4%

1905, The Game by Jack London, 103 pages

9 votes, 6.9%

1936, Double Indemnity by James M. Cain, 115 pages

8 votes, 6.1%

1921, The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield, 12 pages

8 votes, 6.1%

1943, Chess Story by Stefan Zweig, 84 pages

5 votes, 3.8%

1965,Everything That Rises Must Converge: Stories by Flannery O'Connor, 25 pages (Title Story Only)

4 votes, 3.1%

1955, Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo, 128 pages

3 votes, 2.3%

1890, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce, 36 pages

2 votes, 1.5%

1971, Reunion by Fred Uhlman, 96 pages

2 votes, 1.5%

131 total votes

1 comment

More...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Book Challenge: Michelle Kay's Reads 2009	4	1203	Apr 17, 2009 12:42AM
College Students! : Michelle Kay's 2009 Reads	7	552	May 06, 2009 09:12PM
Happy & Brainy Group: * Politics – everyone may post	291	271	Sep 12, 2009 06:33PM
Glens Falls (NY) ...: "That's telling 'em!" - Great comebacks	9	26	Sep 29, 2009 10:14AM
Between the Lines: 50 Books in 2009	60	261	Dec 31, 2009 11:16AM
College Students! : The REAL Official School Year Challenge 09	96	1187	Feb 04, 2010 05:14PM

More…

Is this you? Let us know. If not, help out and invite Ambrose to Goodreads.