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Classic American Short Stories
Excellent examples of American fiction of the 19th and 20th centuries, these stories have been chosen for their timeless relevance and enduring popularity. Arranged in chronological order, they include Herman Melville's "Bartleby" and "The Egg" by Sherwood Anderson, as well as works by Bret Harte, Edgar Allan Poe, O. Henry, Mark Twain, Sarah Orne Jewett, Stephen Crane, Jack London, Henry James, Willa Cather, Ambrose Bierce, Kate Chopin, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and other celebrated authors.
This Dover edition is specially designed for those who need or prefer large print and meets the standards of the National Association for Visually Handicapped.
This Dover edition is specially designed for those who need or prefer large print and meets the standards of the National Association for Visually Handicapped.
- GenresShort Stories
528 pages, Paperback
First published May 13, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 26, 2025
Classic American Short stories, edited by Clarence C. Strowbridge, is a great collection of excellent works by the masters. I enjoyed The Egg, by Sherwood Anderson, and The Diamond as Big as the Ritz, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, best of all.
I got the LARGE PRINT version of the book because I thought if the print was larger, maybe I’d read the stories faster. I don’t think the larger print made me read any faster though, I just think I’m a slow reader no matter what.
The stories that appeared in this collection were pretty standard and are as follow:
Rappaccini’s Daughter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
I spent my entire life not reading this story, only to read it three times in a row in different short story collections in the past year. I’m not complaining because it is a very well written story, but the plot is obvious. You know what’s going to happen and you can see the ending from a mile away. 7/10
The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe.
So far, in my life, I have hated everything written by Poe except for a couple of poems so I wasn’t looking forward to reading this story when I saw they had included Poe in this collection. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I quite enjoyed the tale though. I liked that the narrator is completely crazy, and I can dig the fact he’s getting revenge over one insult too many. I don’t know if murder is necessarily warranted when it comes to retaliating over an insult, but I do wish we could bring back duels. Duels are always warranted after being insulted. I’d challenge people to duels all the time if I could and I would really shoot them too. I wouldn't aim to miss. But anyway, I digress. I think this is probably the first Poe short story that I actually enjoyed reading. 7/10
Bartleby by Herman Melville.
This story cracked me up. The employer was a wimp who already ran a dysfunctional office full of drunks and here comes a belligerent employee who would “prefer not to” work. . . unbelievable. Bartleby reminded me of some of my own coworkers who refuse to do all kinds of work tasks. 8/10
The Outcasts of Poker Flat by Bret Harte.
I always wanted to read something by Bret Harte since he wrote when Mark Twain was alive, and I love Mark Twain so much that I assumed I’d also love Harte. Judging from the excellence of this short story, I do love Harte. This story could have been a movie. It’s a lot of fun to read. 8/10
Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce.
I’ve read this story several times. It has a surprise twist ending that is no longer a surprise after reading this tale even once. Even though the surprise is gone, I enjoy the writing and it’s still a wild read. 8/10
The Revolt of “Mother” by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
This is a fun story to read that is probably considered some kind of early feminist work. In the story, women are disregarded and thought of as weak and not worth considering and yet, the main character stands up to her husband and sticks it to him. It’s also a funny story. 7/10
The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
This story is based on true events. The author had postpartum depression, and she was told to lay in her bed and not to do anything. So, I guess she must have stared at the wall until she went crazy. The female in the story does the same thing and goes on to have a psychotic break. She is treated with condensation and paternalism and infantilized by her dismissive and oppressive husband. When this story was written women were actually treated like second class citizens who were too weak and whiny to do anything. This story was groundbreaking because it addressed the plight of women. It’s an early feminist work and it’s very good. 7/10
The 1,000,000 pound Bank-Note by Mark Twain.
This story is adorable and sweet. Funny and light, it’s a charming and fun short story. Mark Twain is the best! 7/10
The Open Boat by Stephen Crane
A true story of Stephen Crane’s experience being stuck at sea in a lifeboat after the steamer he was on sunk. Crane’s prose is what makes this story so excellent. 7/10
A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin.
A mother, sick of being broke, comes into some money and instead of spending the money on the kids, she treats herself. I think this is probably an early feminist story because it addresses the idea /that women have needs, which was probably a radical notion, back in the day. 7/10
The Foreigner by Sarah Orne Jewett.
I thought this story was kind of boring. Even though it was supposed to be a ghost story it wasn’t scary at all. The best part of the story was reading the heavy accent of the character named Mrs. Todd. 5/10
The Law of Life by Jack London
An old native American gentleman left behind by his tribe to die from hypothermia but instead eaten by wolves. What’s not to like? 8/10
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry.
This story comes up from time to time. I always have a different reaction to it. Once I read it and found it sweet, like I was probably supposed to. Another time I read it and was enraged by how infantized Della was. She whimpers around like a little kid and doesn’t have a job and has to save her pennies and still hasn’t got enough cash to buy her old man a Christmas gift. Bleh, what dross. This time I read it through, and I didn’t get angry. I felt like there was some hack writing afoot though. Like, this story was calculated to try to make me feel some type of way and all it did was make me feel that O Henry was trying too hard. 4/10
The Jolly Corner by Henry James.
What the heck is Henry James talking about? I have a terrible time understanding this guy. I don’t “get” him. This time I read his story–and there is always one of his stories in any “great” story collection I pick up–and I just gave up trying to understand him. For some reason once I stopped trying to follow him, James became slightly comprehensible to me. Like, I think the main character hallucinated the ghost of. . . himself. I still can’t stand Henry James, but this isn’t his worst story. 4/10
A Wager Matinee by Willa Cather.
I don’t understand this story. Does this guy's Aunt Georgiana hate her life or what? I don’t get it. This is the second time I’ve read it too; I’m not picking up what Willa Cather is putting down. 5/10
The Egg by Sherwood Anderson.
I love this story! The best story in the whole collection! I remember my dad read me this story when I was a kid, and I laughed and laughed. I still think this story is hilarious. 10/10
The Diamond as Big as the Ritz by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I absolutely love Fitzgerald’s short stories. His stories are so funny and so creative and brilliant. He’s the best. 10/10
I got the LARGE PRINT version of the book because I thought if the print was larger, maybe I’d read the stories faster. I don’t think the larger print made me read any faster though, I just think I’m a slow reader no matter what.
The stories that appeared in this collection were pretty standard and are as follow:
Rappaccini’s Daughter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
I spent my entire life not reading this story, only to read it three times in a row in different short story collections in the past year. I’m not complaining because it is a very well written story, but the plot is obvious. You know what’s going to happen and you can see the ending from a mile away. 7/10
The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe.
So far, in my life, I have hated everything written by Poe except for a couple of poems so I wasn’t looking forward to reading this story when I saw they had included Poe in this collection. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I quite enjoyed the tale though. I liked that the narrator is completely crazy, and I can dig the fact he’s getting revenge over one insult too many. I don’t know if murder is necessarily warranted when it comes to retaliating over an insult, but I do wish we could bring back duels. Duels are always warranted after being insulted. I’d challenge people to duels all the time if I could and I would really shoot them too. I wouldn't aim to miss. But anyway, I digress. I think this is probably the first Poe short story that I actually enjoyed reading. 7/10
Bartleby by Herman Melville.
This story cracked me up. The employer was a wimp who already ran a dysfunctional office full of drunks and here comes a belligerent employee who would “prefer not to” work. . . unbelievable. Bartleby reminded me of some of my own coworkers who refuse to do all kinds of work tasks. 8/10
The Outcasts of Poker Flat by Bret Harte.
I always wanted to read something by Bret Harte since he wrote when Mark Twain was alive, and I love Mark Twain so much that I assumed I’d also love Harte. Judging from the excellence of this short story, I do love Harte. This story could have been a movie. It’s a lot of fun to read. 8/10
Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce.
I’ve read this story several times. It has a surprise twist ending that is no longer a surprise after reading this tale even once. Even though the surprise is gone, I enjoy the writing and it’s still a wild read. 8/10
The Revolt of “Mother” by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
This is a fun story to read that is probably considered some kind of early feminist work. In the story, women are disregarded and thought of as weak and not worth considering and yet, the main character stands up to her husband and sticks it to him. It’s also a funny story. 7/10
The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
This story is based on true events. The author had postpartum depression, and she was told to lay in her bed and not to do anything. So, I guess she must have stared at the wall until she went crazy. The female in the story does the same thing and goes on to have a psychotic break. She is treated with condensation and paternalism and infantilized by her dismissive and oppressive husband. When this story was written women were actually treated like second class citizens who were too weak and whiny to do anything. This story was groundbreaking because it addressed the plight of women. It’s an early feminist work and it’s very good. 7/10
The 1,000,000 pound Bank-Note by Mark Twain.
This story is adorable and sweet. Funny and light, it’s a charming and fun short story. Mark Twain is the best! 7/10
The Open Boat by Stephen Crane
A true story of Stephen Crane’s experience being stuck at sea in a lifeboat after the steamer he was on sunk. Crane’s prose is what makes this story so excellent. 7/10
A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin.
A mother, sick of being broke, comes into some money and instead of spending the money on the kids, she treats herself. I think this is probably an early feminist story because it addresses the idea /that women have needs, which was probably a radical notion, back in the day. 7/10
The Foreigner by Sarah Orne Jewett.
I thought this story was kind of boring. Even though it was supposed to be a ghost story it wasn’t scary at all. The best part of the story was reading the heavy accent of the character named Mrs. Todd. 5/10
The Law of Life by Jack London
An old native American gentleman left behind by his tribe to die from hypothermia but instead eaten by wolves. What’s not to like? 8/10
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry.
This story comes up from time to time. I always have a different reaction to it. Once I read it and found it sweet, like I was probably supposed to. Another time I read it and was enraged by how infantized Della was. She whimpers around like a little kid and doesn’t have a job and has to save her pennies and still hasn’t got enough cash to buy her old man a Christmas gift. Bleh, what dross. This time I read it through, and I didn’t get angry. I felt like there was some hack writing afoot though. Like, this story was calculated to try to make me feel some type of way and all it did was make me feel that O Henry was trying too hard. 4/10
The Jolly Corner by Henry James.
What the heck is Henry James talking about? I have a terrible time understanding this guy. I don’t “get” him. This time I read his story–and there is always one of his stories in any “great” story collection I pick up–and I just gave up trying to understand him. For some reason once I stopped trying to follow him, James became slightly comprehensible to me. Like, I think the main character hallucinated the ghost of. . . himself. I still can’t stand Henry James, but this isn’t his worst story. 4/10
A Wager Matinee by Willa Cather.
I don’t understand this story. Does this guy's Aunt Georgiana hate her life or what? I don’t get it. This is the second time I’ve read it too; I’m not picking up what Willa Cather is putting down. 5/10
The Egg by Sherwood Anderson.
I love this story! The best story in the whole collection! I remember my dad read me this story when I was a kid, and I laughed and laughed. I still think this story is hilarious. 10/10
The Diamond as Big as the Ritz by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I absolutely love Fitzgerald’s short stories. His stories are so funny and so creative and brilliant. He’s the best. 10/10
November 3, 2024
Some stories are better than others... but interesting to read different styles and contents.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews