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|Short Stories|
Humorous
"The Ransom Of Red Chief"
by O.Henry
BL: 6.4, AR PTS: 1.0
Two men kidnap a mischievous boy and request a large ransom for his return.
"How the Camel Got His Hump"
by Rudyard Kipling
BL: 4.2, AR PTS: 0.5
This story of how the camel got his hump is a comical tale of justice delivered.
Character v. Nature
"To Build a Fire"
by Jack London
BL: 6.7, AR PTS: 1.0
Details a man's struggle against nature with his only companion, a half-wild dog, that continues to accompany the man in hopes of attaining the ultimate source of warmth, fire.
"The Open Boat"
by Stephen Crane
BL: 7.2, AR PTS: 2.0
After a shipwreck, four men struggle to survive in a tiny rowboat on the vast ocean.
Creepy
"Young Goodman Brown"
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
BL: 9.4, AR PTS: 1.0
A nocturnal journey with the devil and a strange vision in the forest lead Goodman Brown to regard his fellow townspeople as devil worshipers
"The Monkey's Paw"
by W.W. Jacobs
BL: 6.5, AR PTS: 1.0
A mummified monkey's paw carrying a spell receives three wishes from a family and proceeds to fulfill them in unexpected and horrible ways.
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"
by Washington Irving
BL: 11.0, AR PTS: 3.0
This is the rollicking tale of Ichabod Crane, a schoolmaster, who challenges his rival, Brom Bones, for the love and fortune of Katrina Van Tassel.
Poe Collection
"The Purloined Letter"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 10.4, AR PTS: 2.0
The brilliant Dupin uses psychological reasoning to deduce the hiding place of a stolen letter.
"The Cask of Amontillado"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 7.3, AR PTS: 0.5
After enduring many injuries of the noble Fortunato, Montresor executes the perfect revenge.
"The Tell-Tale Heart"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 7.3, AR PTS: 0.5
The murder of an old man is revealed by the continuing beating of his heart.
"The Pit and the Pendulum"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 10.1, AR PTS: 1.0
Judged guilty by the Inquisition, a condemned man is slowly tortured.
"The Masque of the Red Death"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 7.9, AR PTS: 0.5
Prince Prospero and a thousand of his followers shut themselves away in a vast abbey to avoid the dreaded Red Death.
"The Fall of the House of Usher"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 11.4, AR PTS: 2.0
A visitor to a gloomy mansion finds a childhood friend dying under the spell of a family curse
"The Black Cat"
by Edgar Allen Poe
BL: 9.9, AR PTS: 1.0
Poe's tale provides a ghastly journey through the subconscious of a murderer.
Murder Mystery
"A Jury of Her Peers"
by Susan Glaspell
BL: 5.2, AR PTS: 1.0
Two women uncover the truth in a rural murder investigation.
Character v. Society
"The Lottery"
by Shirley Jackson
BL: 5.9, AR PTS: 1.0
The people of a village perform their annual lottery, with startling consequences for the recipient of the one paper with the black spot.
Historical Fiction
"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"
by Ambrose Bierce
BL: 7.9, AR PTS: 1.0
During the United States Civil War, a condemned man has many thoughts as he stands on a bridge, awaiting hanging.
Greed
"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"
by Mark Twain
BL: 6.9, AR PTS: 0.5
A man who loves to place bets acquires a remarkable frog, which he claims can outjump any other frog in the county.
"The Rocking-Horse Winner"
by D.H. Lawrence
BL: 5.5, AR PTS: 1.0
A boy growing up in a household where there is no love and no luck but always a shortage of money develops an uncanny ability to pick horse-race winners while furiously riding his wooden rocking-horse.
The Hunt
"The Most Dangerous Game"
by Richard Connell
BL: 5.3, AR PTS: 1.0
On his way to hunt jaguars in the Brazilian jungle, a professional hunter is marooned on a remote island inhabited by a fellow hunter who pursues unusual game.
Choice and Consequence
"The Lady, or the Tiger?"
by Frank Stockton
BL: 8.6, AR PTS: 0.5
In very olden times, a barbaric king had an amphitheater built, in which an accused subject would have to choose between two doors for punishment or reward.
Love and Sacrifice
"The Gift of the Magi"
by O.Henry
BL: 6.2, AR PTS: 0.5
A husband and wife sacrifice treasured possessions in order to buy each other Christmas presents.
Internal Conflict
"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment"
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
BL: 9.6, AR PTS: 1.0
Dr. Heidegger experiments with four of his friends by giving them water supposedly from the Fountain of Youth.
"A White Heron"
by Sarah Jewett
BL: 7.2, AR PTS: 1.0
A nine-year-old New England girl has to decide whether or not she will help the ornithologist who is searching for the rare white heron.
Irony
"The Necklace"
by Guy DeMaupassant
BL: 5.5, AR PTS: 0.5
After devoting their energies and income for ten years to replacing a borrowed diamond necklace that they have lost, a woman and her husband learn the irony of their efforts.
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