Short Classic Literature

In this atmospheric horror story, the city of the title is the ruin of a primordial site in the Arabian desert, thought to be more ancient than the first human civilization. In its heyday, the city flourished on the edge of the ocean. The inhabitants were a species of reptile looking like a hybrid of crocodile and seal, but with horns and protruding foreheads. They moved by crawling, so the remaining buildings have low ceilings.

Hundreds of books and articles have been written about Edgar Allan Poe. Even so, no one is really sure who Poe was. Many people say that he was as crazy as the characters he wrote about. Others say that Poe was a driven man with a simple wish. He wanted to write and to make a living by his writing. Even though Poe lived a miserable life, he wrote some of the most interesting and original literature ever created.

Madness and incantations in the nightmares of poets. Vicious ancient cults in the mountains and swamps. A corpse city rising in the sea. After Professor Angell meets a sudden and mysterious end, Francis Thurston, while sorting through his uncle's papers, makes a fateful discovery that ties these malignant manifestations together.

First published in 1920, Flappers and Philosophers marked F. Scott Fitzgerald's entry into the realm of the short story, in which he adroitly proved himself "a master of the mechanism of short story technique" ( Boston Transcript).

Words have power. Some words have more power than others. So when a group of monks seek to enlist modern technology in their quest to list all nine billion names of god, there is no telling what may happen.

This is a story from the In the Ravine and Other Stories collection.

This classic tale and superb short story by Mark Twain is a funny yet blistering indictment of political hypocrisy. A mysterious stranger is treated badly by the town of Hadleyburg—the town that proclaims itself "the most honest and upright town in the region". Through an ingenious sting operation, the stranger sets out to expose Hadleyburg's leading citizens and reveal their greedy, deceitful natures. Twain's burning wit and insight into political posturing and civic cowardice seem more pertinent than ever.

The Ultimate Classics Collection: Volume Two is the second instalment of our wide-ranging classic collections. Volume Two features 13 essential classic novels from Jane Austen; Edith Wharton; Leo Tolstoy; D.H. Lawrence, and many more, alongside selected poetry from Christina Rossetti; Elizabeth Browning; and Emily Dickinson. Read by a cast of incredible narrators including Joanne Froggatt, Adjoa Andoh, Jonathan Keeble, and many more, this is your new go-to collection to catch up on those classics you've always wanted to hear.

From a wizard on the moon to midnight fairy parties, there's a dreamy story for everyone in this short story collection by Enid Blyton. Drift off to dreamland with these starlit adventures!

The bloody-minded Montresor leads the pompous Fortunato deep into the catacombs, seeking the famed Amontillado wine. Here we have one of Poe’s most terrifying, and most “beloved” tales. Revenge and pomposity commingle beneath the river’s bed, leading to a delightfully sinister conclusion.

Nominated for both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award, this short story introduces the Warlock, who discovers to his horror that the world's mana, the fuel that makes magic work, is rapidly dwindling. The news spells doom for magic-based society. Unfortunately, no secret that powerful can stay hidden for long.

Written some 40 years after Moby Dick, Melville's Billy Budd is a moving tale of good versus evil. Set aboard a British navy ship at the end of the eighteenth century, a young, innocent sailor's charm and good nature put the men around him at ease. Ship life agreed with Billy. He made friends quickly and was well liked, which infuriated John Claggart, the ship's cold-blooded superior officer.

Œuvre la plus connue de Stefan Zweig, cette nouvelle relate une partie d'échecs durant laquelle un inconnu oppose une résistance inattendue à l'un des grands champions de la discipline. Mais qui est cet homme dont on apprendra plus tard qu'il fut prisonnier du régime nazi ? Comment fait-il pour jouer si bien aux échecs ?

Adventure, science fiction, aesop’s fables, classic fairy tales, and Christmas story books for children.

Mental illness though can still carry a stigma. A case of ‘you’re not trying hard enough’, ‘or knuckling down and getting on with it’. But in more recent decades mental issues have come to be recognised as an illness, a disease rather than an affliction. We all remember horror stories of lobotomy’s and electric shock being used to ‘cure’ what society viewed as anti-social behaviour but illness, mental or physical is very real. Depression, schizophrenia, breakdown, psychosis are alarming events to have or to witness.

This wide-ranging collection comprises the following six short stories by Joseph Conrad: Youth: A Narrative (1902); Karain: A Memory (1898); An Outpost of Progress (1898); The Lagoon (1898); Amy Foster (1909); The Anarchist - A Desperate Tale (1903). 'Youth: A Narrative' is an epic tale of a perilous voyage under sail to Bangkok, with a cargo of coal, narrated by Charles Marlow.

Charles Dickens was an English writer and social critic who lived during the 19th century. He is considered one of the greatest novelists of the Victorian era and is known for his vivid portrayals of the social and economic conditions of the time. His works often addressed issues of poverty, social injustice, and class struggle, and he is credited with helping to raise public awareness of these issues. Some of his most famous works include "Oliver Twist," "A Tale of Two Cities," and "Great Expectations."

Best known for her short story The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, an almost exact contemporary of Edith Wharton, is celebrated as one of America’s foremost feminist writers. This collection includes 28 of her short stories. In addition to The Yellow Wallpaper are The Unexpected (her first published work), The Great Wistaria, An Extinct Angel, The Unnatural Mother and Deserted. These stories range from the subversive to the humorous, and are often imbued with satire and social commentary.

This audiobook contains two awesome stories. The first story is about a wacky lion cub called Wilburr, and the second story is about a panicky penguin called Pettri.

When your ears are itching to hear a great detective story, this boxed set, by some of the cleverest authors in history, can satisfy that itch. This boxed set includes all the stories from Volumes 1,2 and 3 of Classic Detective Stories.