Showing results by narrator "Cathy Dobson" in All Categories

Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852) was a pre-eminent Ukrainian-born story writer. He is particularly famous for those stories which veer in the direction of surrealism and the grotesque. "The Nose" is a classic example of this genre. The story opens with the barber, Ivan Yakovlevitch at breakfast. Things take an odd turn when Yakovlevitch finds a disembodied nose hidden in his bread roll. Yakovlevitch is at pains to rid himself as quickly as he can of the nose, which he recognizes as belonging to one of his clients, Major Kovalev.

The Elephant Man is Treves' own firsthand account of how he met and befriended Joseph Merrick (whom he mistakenly calls John Merrick), a young man with very severe physical deformities, who was being exhibited as a sideshow freak, as half man, half elephant. Treves initially invited Merrick to his rooms in the London Hospital so as to examine him, and to ensure Merrick's admittance he gave him his card.

A comprehensive and varied collection of the best vampire stories from the Victorian era by the greatest Gothic writers of the time. Includes: 'The Horla' by Guy de Maupassant; 'Mrs. Amworth' by E. F. Benson; 'La Belle Dame Sans Merci' by John Keats; 'Dracula's Guest' by Bram Stoker; 'The Bride of Corinth' by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe; 'Will' by Vincent O'Sullivan; 'Ken's Mystery' by Julian Hawthorne.

Alexander Pushkin's greatest short story. Hermann, a young German officer serving in the Engineers regiment, is obsessed by gambling, although he never indulges in it himself. One night he hears a tale about how a wealthy 87-year-old Countess in St. Petersburg once learned the secret of how to win on three cards from the Duc d'Orleans. He becomes obsessed with learning the secret himself. In pursuit of this aim, he becomes enamoured of the Countess' companion, the beautiful Lizaveta.

The ultimate collection of great short stories by the best Russian classic authors. 1. "Her Lover" by Maxim Gorky 2. "The Empty Drum" by Count Leo Tolstoy 3. "The Hoop" by Fedor Sologub 4. "The District Doctor" by Ivan Turgenev 5. "The White Dog" by Fedor Sologub 6. "The Cloak" by Nikolai Gogol 7. "A Soothing Dream" by Fedor Sologub 8. "The Christmas Tree and the Wedding" by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 9. "A Work of Art" by Anton Chekhov 10. "Children Wiser Than Their Fathers" by Count Leo Tolstoy

Mark Twain's hilarious account of life with a malfunctioning burglar alarm.

A spectacular collection of classic ghost stories from some of the masters of spooky fiction. 'On the Brighton Road' by Richard Middleton; 'A Ghost Story' by Mark Twain; 'The Everlasting Club' by Arthur Gray; 'The Snow' by Hugh Walpole; 'Rose Rose' by Barry Pain; 'The Ghost Ship' by Richard Middleton; 'The Bus Conductor' by E. F. Benson; 'The Tarn' by Hugh Walpole; 'The Diary of Mr. Poynter' by M. R. James.

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. The Last Leaf is the story of two female artists living together in Greenwich village. When one of them, Johnsy, becomes gravely ill with pneumonia, she becomes obsessed with counting the leaves on the ivy outside the window. As the weather gets colder and windier, the leaves fall one by one.

We all know what happened in the Arabian nights. The King's plan to put his wife to death in the morning was always foiled by her telling an exciting but unfinished story the night before the execution... until finally after 1001 nights, he agreed not to have her killed. But at this point the traditional story ends. In this tale, Poe conjurs up an amusing and macabre scenario for what happened on the thousand and second night.

"The Storm" is Kate Chopin's most sexually charged story, and as such is quite exceptional for a work which was written in 1898. It describes a chance sexual encounter between Calixta and her former flame Alcée during a heavy storm in Louisiana when her husband Bobinôt and her son Bibi are absent. Chopin's description of the events of that day is refreshingly modern and free of the stifling morals of the day.

"The Lady Or The Tiger?" is Frank R. Stockton's most famous work, first published in 1882. The semi-barbaric ruler of an ancient kingdom has devised an unusual method of justice. Offenders are placed in the arena of an amphitheatre where they must choose between two doors. Behind one is a hungry tiger and behind the other a beautiful woman whom they will marry. Their fate is left entirely to chance. When the king's daughter's secret lover is accused, only she knows which door hides which destiny.

Katherine Mansfield (1888-1923) was a prominent modernist writer of short fiction and a close associate of D. H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf. The Little Girl and Other Stories was first published in 1921 and includes 'The Tiredness of Rosabel', 'How Pearl Button Was Kidnapped', 'The Journey to Bruges', 'A Truthful Adventure', 'New Dresses', 'The Woman at the Store', 'Ole Underwood', 'The Little Girl', 'Millie', 'Pension', 'Séguin', 'Violet', 'Bains Turcs', 'Something Childish but Very Natural', 'An Indiscreet Journey', 'Spring Pictures', 'Late at Night' and more.

The short story is considered to be one of the most challenging genres because of the need for compact plotlines and the ability to conjure up atmosphere and character in a few sentences and to engage the reader instantly. This collection presents 66 of the greatest examples of the genre - many of them well known, some hidden literary treasures, all of them exquisite examples of the short story at its finest.

Herbert George Wells (1866-1946) was a prolific English writer of science fiction stories and novels and is frequently credited as being the father of science fiction. "The Empire of the Ants" is a disturbing tale about a new species of giant ants in South America which have evolved to use tools and weapons, wear clothes, communicate and organize themselves as a deadly fighting machine. And their chosen enemy is mankind....

Mary Wilkins Freeman (1852-1930) was an American writer, best known for her stories reflecting the world of women fighting for dignity and independence from men. Her tales typically describe domestic settings and intimate relationships and are told with sensitivity and a poignancy which illuminates a bygone era in vivid detail. "The Revolt of Mother" tells the story of a strong and self-reliant farm wife who defies her obstinate husband by moving her household into his newly built barn.

A beautiful collection of some of the finest Chinese fairy tales ever told. Incorporating magic, wicked witches, strange adventures and mysterious spirits. Enchanting! Stories include: "The Magic Pillow"; "The Stone Monkey"; "Stealing Peaches"; "The Painted Skin"; "The Wonderful Pear Tree"; "The Country of Gentlemen"; "Learning Magic"; "Theft of a Duck"; "Living for Ever"; "Football on a Lake"; "The Flower Fairies"; "The Talking Bird"; "The Peach Blossom Fountain"; "The Lute Girl’s Lament".

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. In this story two old friends had promised to meet up exactly 20 years to the day since their last meeting in New York. One of the friends has travelled a thousand miles to be there...and is now waiting for his childhood companion. Will he turn up?

Maxim Gorky, whose real name was Alexey Maximovich Pyeshkov, is probably the best-known late-19th-century Russian fiction writer among the English-speaking world. His pen name translates as Maxim the Bitter, which attitude is reflected in many of his works. Much of his writing reflects his own terrible life experiences and suffering. It is in his short stories that he reveals his true genius. "Her Lover" describes the plight of a lonely, alienated woman who creates an imaginary lover for herself.

Herbert George Wells (1866-1946) was a prolific English writer of science fiction stories and novels and is frequently credited as being the father of science fiction. The Red Room is the account of the terrifying nocturnal experiences of a young man who volunteers to spend a night in the haunted red room at Lorraine Castle.

>A true classic tale from the genre of weird Victorian tales based on a fascination with Ancient Egypt. A student of Egyptology gets shut into the Louvre at night by accident. Suddenly he sees a light approaching. Fearing that it is burglars, he hides and watches. The museum attendant, to whom he had spoken earlier, and who bears an uncanny physical similarity to images of ancient Egyptians, proceeds to open a mummy case and then unwrap the mummy. What he does next shocks the student of Egyptology to the core....