American Literature Anthology

Zora Neale Hurston is best remembered today for her work as a novelist, but she was also an accomplished dramatist, short story writer, and folklorist. That range of interests and styles is on full display in this collection.

On Ash Wednesday in 1908, Swiss German immigrant Fritz Hirter arrives at his children’s school, where he is the lone custodian. But soon after lessons start, a fast-moving fire breaks out—its cause is unknown, but its effects are horrifying. Although Fritz is soon cleared of any responsibility for the catastrophe, the community continues to suspect him, supremely testing Fritz and his family.

A Charlie Madigan short story - from the series praised for "intricate world-building and richly complex characters" ( Publishers Weekly) - as it first appeared in the Carniepunk urban fantasy anthology.

When Kiley learns firsthand what evil lurks in the heart of her boyfriend, he’ll learn about the Cold Girl, and her penchant for retribution.

Author of the Amanda Feral series Mark Henry lends his brilliantly twisted imagination to the gripping Carniepunk anthology in this creepy zombie short story. When the zombie apocalypse overtakes New York City, a trip to Coney Island is the most frightening thing of all. A gruesome tale of transformation, Ferris wheels, and transsexuals.

All my life, I've been a man-magnet. Everywhere I go, guys drop at my feet. After all, I have a perfect body, insatiable sex drive, and a razor wit. I'm also modest (can't you tell?). Trouble is, I've never been lucky in love. I only attract guys who forget their wallets and show up to dates wearing #@%#-stained clothes. With my best friend's wedding around the corner, I finally decide enough is enough. I'm not only going to find the perfect date to her wedding, but I'm going to find Mr. Right: a gorgeous man with a great sense of humor, a chiseled bod, talent in bed, and a big...(ahem) wallet. Is that too much to ask? If all goes right, my quest will lead me into the arms of my perfect match...or will it?

This superb collection of larger-than-life folk heroes aptly represents America’s robust early days, perfectly capturing the vitality of the men and women who carved a new country out of the North American wilderness. Author Mary Pope Osborne supplies a fascinating introduction to each tale and then gives her own original twist to the telling of it. Scott Snivley takes the listener on a wild ride from sea to shining sea in this classic collection, which includes Davy Crocket, Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind, Johnny Appleseed, Stormalong, Mose, Febold Feboldson, Pecos Bill, John Henry, and Paul Bunyan.

Canonized, overlooked, and forgotten African American poets star in Terrance Hayes's brilliant contemplations of personal, canonical, and allegorical literary development. Proceeding from Toni Morrison's aim to expand the landscape of literary imagination in Playing in the Dark ("I want to draw a map, so to speak, of a critical geography"), Watch Your Language charts a lyrical geography of reading and influence in poetry.

As Kalina prepares for the next stage in her life with a visit to Yale University, a surprise meeting with someone from her past leads to a discovery that would change the vampire world forever.You thought you knew all about Life's Blood and what it can do. You thought you knew what Kalina was. Now in Blue Blood, all that will change as Kalina meets her maker. One of her vampire loves will die, another will be turned, and another will break her heart forever.

Plant Your Feet Firmly is an intimate glimpse of Asian America. Through the pages of seven short stories, the listener is treated to a delicate taste of ordinary people living extraordinary lives - from a cool grandpa to a grieving mother to a disillusioned husband.

In this collection, you’ll find stories conveyed through poetry and song. Some of them will no doubt be familiar to you - like Francis Scott Key’s Star Spangled Banner and Julia Ward Howe’s Battle Hymn of the Republic (although many people are only familiar with the first verse). Other poems will be entirely new to you. My hope is that you’ll embrace both the familiar and the unfamiliar as pieces of the American story that deserve to be remembered.

James Baldwin writes about the beginnings of four formidable figures, which were central to the founding of America. He tells the stories of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Daniel Webster and Abraham Lincoln.

Roberto "Papa" Huffington. Beloved husband. Father. Friend. This is a very short story in honor of his legacy that he has left behind.

These brilliant stories deal with love and life in Louisiana during the Civil War through the turn of the century. The Cajun and French-Creole traditions make a rich backdrop for these deeply human tales. In "Disirie's Baby" a young plantation owner marries and has a child with features of the slave race; in "A Lady of Bayou St. John" a young woman becomes a devoted wife after her husband is killed; in "The Story of an Hour" a woman is surprised by her feelings at the news of her husband's death. Other stories include "Love on the Bon-Dieu," "The Unexpected," "Fedora," "The Godmother," and "At the 'Cadian Ball." After more than a half century of neglect, Kate Chopin's writings have at last regained the attention of readers, writers, and critics. These stories, some of her best, demonstrate her special insight and understanding of irony.

A blind obsession. A driving ambition. A relentless, unrestrained, single-minded pursuit of a shiny metal. These are the symptoms of a condition known as gold fever, and, like Bogart in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, American mining engineer Captain Humbert Reynolds has got it bad. Possible side effects include: temporary insanity, a propensity for violence, and death.

Sasha is a single mother and the youngest of her two sisters. Drama followers her everywhere and her sister, Stacey and Randi are fed up with her short temper and untamed tongue. Their relationship with Sasha seems toxic due to her unbearable irresponsible lifestyle. She faces many trails but relies on her good looks to get her out of trouble. Until she finally gets a wake up call.

Charles Eastman is unique among Indian writers, whether storytellers or oral historians. He was raised traditionally, as a Woodland Sioux, by his grandmother, from 1858 to 1874, until he was 15. He thus gained a thorough first-hand knowledge of the lifeways, language, culture, and oral history. His father (thought to have been hanged at Mankato, Minnesota) reappeared and insisted he receive the white man's education.

This dynamic collection of Black voices, performed by Tony and Grammy Award-winning actor, rapper, and producer Daveed Diggs and Emmy Award-winning writer, creator, producer, and actor Lena Waithe, works like an incantation of origin, healing, and imagination. Born from a series of conceptual art exhibitions, the perspectives gathered here are nowhere near monochromatic.

A woman driven to marry out of desperation. A billionaire who cannot stand gold diggers. The heat between them will lead to one or both of them getting burned. For richer, for poorer...in bondage and submission.

Exploring the lives of bisexual and gay Puerto Rican men, these 15 stories show a vulnerable, intimate world of yearning and desire. The stars of these narratives linger between living their truest selves and remaining in the wings, embarking on a journey of self-discovery to satisfy their hunger for companionship and belonging.