Humor Anthology

Depuis quarante jours, il marchait, cherchant partout du travail. Il avait quitté son pays, Ville-Avaray, dans la Manche, parce que l'ouvrage manquait. Compagnon charpentier, âgé de vingt-sept ans, bon sujet, vaillant, il était resté pendant deux mois à la charge de sa famille, lui, fils aîné, n'ayant plus qu'à croiser ses bras vigoureux, dans le chômage général. Le pain devint rare dans la maison ; les deux sœurs allaient en journée, mais gagnaient peu.

A record of a Zombie’s rant about the trials and tribulations of his life as a dis-respected member of the undead. A Chat Before Dinner is a 2,600 word darkly-humorous short story.

First published in The Saturday Evening Post, "The Ransom of Red Chief" is a humorous short story written in 1910 by O. Henry. A pair of con men kidnap and attempt to ransom a prominent Alabama citizen’s son. Immediately they find themselves at the mercy of a particularly spoiled and clever boy who begins driving them mad. The ironic ending remains the story’s most enduring feature.

According to an LA Times, May 14, 2014 article, the following entry came from a notebook of a gold-seeking prospector, Samuel Clemens, in 1864. "Coleman with his jumping frog - bet stranger $50... - stranger had no frog & C got him one - in the meantime stranger filled C's frog full of shot and he couldn't jump - the stranger's frog won." Little did Clemens know that this would be the source for his short story that would launch his career as one of America's greatest authors.

Jump-Start: To jump-start American consumerism after decades of zero economic growth, the vaganus is wholesaled in casino fashion.

New York-born John Kendrick Bangs was associate editor and then editor of Life and Harper magazines, eventually finding his way into the Humour department. Here, he began to write his own satire and humour. Ghosts I Have Met and Some Others is a delightful humorous collection of short tales relating encounters with ghosts, including "The Mystery of My Grandmother's Hair Sofa", "The Exorcism That Failed", and more.

We live in trying times. Anti-demon sentiment is at an all time high. Gone are the days when devils could get together on a Sunday night to sacrifice some virgins and crack open a few cold ones. While we have been shunned and despised since our first ancestors arrived here from Hell, today it’s impossible to walk even a single city block without running into a self-proclaimed “hunter.” Living under this threat of constant danger, it has never been more pertinent to hold on to our sense of identity. And more importantly, to pass that along to our spawn. 

Thirty years after his death, Capt. Stormfield is still speeding across the universe, on his way to the next life, though he doesn't know yet where or when his journey will end. It's not a spoiler to tell you that he does get into heaven (it's in the title after all), but you may be surprised at some of the customs, characters, and spectacles he finds there.

Humorous short stories relating to actual events that happened in Atlanta in 1957. A seven-year old remembers what happened in the previous year.

A frustrated lawyer finds release where she least expects it - and where she needs it most - in this exhilarating, sexy romp through the finest gluten-free indulgences in a New York City grocery store. After another long workday, the only thing Meredith wants is a big bowl of paleo maple-pecan coconola. But the hour-long checkout line at 7:00 p.m. at an all-organic supermarket stands between her and satisfaction, and the yupster mob is working her last nerve. Then, out of nowhere, a spontaneous flirtation with a stranger shows her there’s a lot more than coconola waiting for her.

A small-town waitress, awestruck by dreams of a bigger world, looks forward to the biggest break of a budding career in this darkly comic short tale of what happens when innocence collides with cynicism. Eighteen-year-old Keridee is done with high school, her cheating boyfriend, her jealous friends, and Nowhere, Florida. She’s determined to do something with her life, and her small-time modeling agent has already scored her a gig. She’s working an event for a real estate mogul who happens to own a huge modeling agency. What if he’s dazzled by her smile and makes her a star?

Mark Twain nos narra las historias del Jardín de Edén. Los divertidos diarios de Adán, el padre legendario, y Eva, la madre de la raza humana. Las relaciones entre el sexo femenino y el masculino ¿han sido siempre las mimas? Twain nos responde a esta pregunta presentándonos a nuestro padre Adán constantemente importunado por la curiosidad de su compañera que, con su particular modo de ver las cosas, pone e impone nombre a todos los lugares, seres y animales el jardín.  

"Cattivi Soggetti", unica opera letteraria di Luciano Salce per la prima volta in audiolibro letto dal figlio Emanuele, attore e regista. Un'antologia di racconti, di epoche differenti e umori diversi. "Cattivi soggetti" è ovviamente un titolo a doppio uso. Sono cattivi soggetti certi personaggi poco raccomandabili, ma anche soggetti cinematografici cattivi, cioè non piaciuti, non realizzati, cestinati, restituiti (quasi mai) dai produttori ai quali erano stati proposti. E una loro origine cinematografica si può ritrovare nel gusto per l'intreccio, la trovata, la situazione.

Mark Twain's "Extracts from Adam's Diary" first appeared in 1893. He based Adam and Eve on himself and his beloved wife Olivia ("Livy") to create a humorous counterpoint the traditional Garden of Eden story, this time centered on what life may have been like for the first man. In this story, we hear Adam trying to work out what the "new creature with long hair" is all about. She names things, much to Adam's annoyance. She follows him around. Then suddenly, there's another creature, which eventually Adam decides is his son Cain. It's all about confusion and curiosity, and finally, love for Eve.

The warrior Mithra must repel a Roman legion alone and armed only with one very tasty weapon. The Romans are marching! To protect her lands and her tribe, Mithra comes up with a sticky solution to an impossible problem.

In this tale by sensational storyteller and poet Edgar Allen Poe, a newspaper article claims that a man by the name of Von Kempelen has discovered the alchemical process by which to turn iron into pure gold.

Sense and Sensibility is Jane Austen's first published book. This comedy of manners is set in England, London, and Kent during the 1790s. Tackling love and heartbreak, the story follows the lives of the Dashwood sisters as they settle in their new home.

The narrator introduces himself as being 228 years old and goes on to document his interactions with Dr. Samuel Johnson. Being older and in a time when respect for elders was everything, the narrator expects Dr. Johnson to appreciate his writing, which the man does not. While the tale goes on to document other awkward meetings with Dr. Johnson, he ultimately dies younger than the narrator - who goes on to continue writing and living an unfulfilled life.

Joel Dunbar, the last branch of an Appalachian family tree, accepts a mysterious invitation from a billionaire plutocrat to attend a conservation expo in San Francisco. The rock star environmentalist has startling plans for the future and a caveat for Joel: Don’t ask too many questions, and don’t divulge any answers. But when Joel befriends a rebellious eco-friendly Arizona rancher, he’s roped into a new kind of war, with new kinds of casualties.

Now the Congress of Animals is in control, unforgiving, and debating the fate of the planet’s most reviled species. The popular ruling: Exterminate humankind without exception. But a curious mare, coming of age, is making a case for a seemingly gentle person she longs to save - a wish for mercy that could once again unbalance the new and righteous nature of the world.