The Gift Of The Magi And Other Stories. The World's Best Reading Series

by The Gift Of The Magi And Other Stories. The World's Best Reading Series

Genres: Classics

Hardcover

Published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Bo Belanger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed a few of them but many I struggled to get into. I did like his twist endings, reminded me of the end of Seinfeld episodes when things came together (even if a bit coincidentally).

[VICKY · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading the story, the first thing occurred to me is ‘Are those presents refundable?’ Sorry I’m not a romantic type but I did feel the love between the couple. They were eager to sacrifice themselves and devoted a lot to their love.

The story reminded me the wedding vow, ‘ I promise to love you, comfort you, honor and keep you, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, for as long as we both shall live’. Nowdays we become more self-conscious and more independent, we calculate costs and benefits, some of us don’t believe in sacrifices anymore, but I do believe how much you love your lover depends on how much you’d sacrifice to him/her? Your love will be tested by obstacles in real life(daily life), so be prepared.

One more question puzzled me a long time, if one day when we can have a stable, simple, economical love relationship with AI( like the film ‘Her’), will we still choose the hard way, like the couple in the story?

[Max Bergmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

O. Henry is considered one of the masters of the short story. After reading this, I agree. He considered himself a hack writer. I agree with that too. He definitely repeats certain tropes and characters over the course of these stories. The stories can also at times be sentimental in a cheap way, a way that to me ruins his otherwise very strong sense of realism. That was one thing I quite liked about these– the realism. I felt like I got a good sense of what life was like for average people in early 20th century America. Also notable is his style, which is overdone and ridiculous, slathered in slang and references to classics that come across about as tastefully as Ionic columns on a McMansion. I love it. And the twists! When the twist is good, as it is in many of these, by God is it good! At his best O. Henry is wonderful. At his worst he's still just fine.

[bethany hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

the air i gasped after reading 'The Troubadour'. This story collection shows a range of stories showcasing how money affects the actions of people, may it be for themselves or for the people they care for. My favorite is probably the Gift of the Magi. I found it so sweet and wholesome. So sacrificial and unselfish.

[Margie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now I understand why O Henry is considered such a master of writing. His short stories are inventive and each contains some surprise at the end to keep readers guessing about how the story will conclude. These are just plain fun.

[Sofia Olguin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely short stories, always had a feel-good ending, overall showed virtuous characters and the good in life

[Henzi · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnf.

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book to gain a little bit more of an understanding of life in the early 20th century as literature is an excellent source that can be useful for historians studying different time periods. Although these stories were extremely short, they accurately illustrated a picture of society at the time. ‚The gift of the Magi and other stories’ emphasised the unequal wealth distribution in American society. This can be particularly seen in ‚The Art Game’ and ‚The Trabadour’ stories. This idea of there being a large divide between the wealthy and poor is evidenced by the fact that millions of Americans-especially immigrants, African Americans, and rural farmers-lived in poverty in the 1900s. Urban slums were crowded and unsanitary; many factory workers earned very low wages. This meant that many Americans would have been struggling financially, therefore leading to an increased crime rate as well as fraudulent behaviour (as can be seen in the stories). However we are also taught about the upper class and the ‚wealthy’ side of society who were financially stable and we are taught how that section of American society would have spent their time doing leisure activities and lived a life full of entertainment.

On the whole, the content and formatting of ‚The Magi and other stories’ allows us to understand the level of education that would have been present in the early 20th century in America. It is clear that literature and education was starting to become more important in society. For example, by 1900, 32 states already had laws requiring children to attend school (usually until age 14) and by 1918, all states had such laws that made education compulsory. This meant that most Americans could read. Literacy was rising steadily thanks to public education, but major gaps would have still remained, particularly for Black Americans, rural residents, and recent immigrants.

In summary, this book is very informative and indicative of the state of American society in the early 20th century as it teaches about America’s economic structure as well as the societal dynamics.