Greatest Short Stories Volume I

Greatest Short Stories #1

by P.F. Collier & Son (Editor)

A compilation of short stories by American authors: Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Frank R. Stockton, Fitz-James O'Brien, Edward Everett Hale, Theodore Dreiser, RIng Lardner, J.T. Trowbridge, W.H.H. Murray, Rebecca Harding Davis, and Bayard Taylor.

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Fiction

383 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1915

Reviews

[Cyrus Colah · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was OK. My dad picked up all 6 volumes for 1 USD at a garage sale. The first 3 volumes in the series are American authors and the latter 3 volumes are foreign authors. So, these were all American stories, mostly from the 19th century, and overall fairly patriotic and optimistic. Some were “classics” that it’s nice to have read, e.g. Rip Van Winkle, but most stories and authors were unknown to me.

I’d say the highlights were Murders in the Rue Morgue (just a fun detective story), The Diamond Lens (early sci fi), The Lost Phoebe (poignant, if predictable), and Haircut (most interesting prose).

Full list of stories:
Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving;
The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe;
The Great Stone Face by Nathaniel Hawthorne;
The Lady, or the Tiger? by Frank R Stockton;
The Diamond Lens by Fitz-James O’Brien;
The Man Without a Country by Edward Everett Hale;
The Lost Phoebe by Theodor Dreiser;
Haircut by Ring Lardner;
The Man Who Stole a Meeting-house by J T Trowbridge;
A Ride with a Mad Horse in a Freight Car by WHH Murray;
Balacchi Brothers by Rebecca Harding Davis;
Who Was She? by Bayard Taylor.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part of a six volume set of short stories, this first volume is a good read. One of the joys of reading a 1950s anthology (1915 copyright) is comparing it to more recent anthologies. What did they think was great back then compared to now? Most of the stories are excellent, though some are perhaps not to modern taste. Such a pleasure to read short stories in a format other than a Norton Anthology with its tiny print and flimsy pages and breakable spine. Here you get a book that is solid. 8 inches by 5 1/2 inches, about 350 pages, 12 pt font with generous margins. Easy to hold and a pleasure to read. In this first volume the best story is "The Lost Phoebe" by Theodore Dreiser. Also great was "The Great Stone Face" by Nathaniel Hawthorne, which I liked particularly for how it exemplified his Existentialist bent. Didn't think much of Hale's "The Man Without a Country". The rest were definitely enjoyable to read, many may already be familiar with the stories by Poe, Irving, with Stockton's "The Lady or the Tiger," and "The Haircut" by Ring Lardner. Others stories aren't as popular now as they might have been once. The book has 12 stories and includes besides the ones I've mentioned works by Fitz-James O'Brien, J.T. Trowbridge, WHH Murray, Rebecca Harding Davis, and Bayard Taylor. A good read, especially if you happen to find it going cheap at a used book sale as I did.

[James Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy short stories a these truly are some of the best. I believe writing a short story is harder in many ways there just isn’t any wasted blah blah speaking.

[Matthias · Rating 4 out of 5]

i read "rip van winkle" in this book for the first time.

i was very taken with "who was she?" by bayard taylor. a romantic piece you'll enjoy.

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice assortment of quick reads, mostly from the late 1800s.