Product Description
The Director of the Teaching Shakepeare Institute presents an invaluable guide for those teaching two of Shakespeare's greatest plays. Providing real help to teachers at all levels--from elementary school through college--this guide presents crucial information on scholarship, performance, and curriculum. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Brilliant Series
I love this series so much. Have used it in the classroom to great success.

The underlying idea is very simple: take the plays off the page and they make sense to all students -- the high flyers and the ones with reading difficulties. Within these books are activities and projects that are bite-sized. They allow the script to be performed and/or analyzed and/or experienced WITHOUT the students having to undertake a full-blown performance.

AND there is no dumbing down of the text.

AND you can do a little of these books or every page.

BUT your students need to have the skills to work in groups.

Outstanding teaching resource
I found this book to be useful in getting across the ideas in Hamlet and Henry IV. The activities are directly related to understanding the text. Instructions are written out to the letter, and a number of outsideresources are suggested. This has been one of the most useful aid I haveused in teaching either play. The ideas are clear and inventive. Mystudents responded positively to the activities that I used from this bookand came away with a clear understanding of plot, characterization, andlanguage.

The only negative comment I have is O'Brien can get a littleflighty once and awhile. In truth, however, she gets to and stays with thepoint better in this book than in any of her others. I find myself goingback to this text to supplement her others. She stretches a bit too farinto the artistic than my taste allows, and I don't feel that she goes intoenough detail in some parts of Hamlet, but these are things that are easilysupplemented. Nevertheless, this book sets up the premise for teaching in avery effective way.

Once again, this is learning through movement andacting. No wallflowers or shrinking violets allowed.

A very good teaching resource.
I found in teaching Shakespeare that this book was very valuable. It allows the teacher to combine both drama and literature into one lesson. Students have a remarkable response to its techniques. They seem moreinterested and have longer retention of the material. The variety ofexercises that are written out for you appeal to a number different kindsof learners; especially my resource students. I find the book a valuableaid either as supplemental material, or as a lesson planner in-and-ofitself. ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Product Description
6" x 8-1/2" clothbound.weight 2 pounds 1 ounce ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

THE COMPLETE WORKS OF O.HENRY
This is the finest book that I own. I wish I could find a leather bound edition. This is truely a work of art by the master of the short story. ... Read more

Product Description
An annual collection of the twenty best contemporary short stories selected by series editor Laura Furman from hundreds of literary magazines, The O. Henry Prize Stories 2008 is studded with extraordinary settings and characters: a teenager in survivalist Alaska, the seed keeper of a doomed Chinese village, a young woman trying to save her life in a Ukrainian internet café. Also included are the winning writers' comments on what inspired them, a short essay from each of the three eminent jurors, and an extensive resource list of literary magazines. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Mostly a waste of time
I truly wanted to like this book, but I just can't. This edition of the O. Henry prize stories only affirms to me that literature is subjective: what is revered by some, is trash to others.

If you like rambling short stories with drifting endings (most of them), stories that spend more time describing the surroundings than the actual plot (the rest of them), then this is the book for you. Not me.

Mostly a waste of time
I truly wanted to like this book, but I just can't. This edition of the O. Henry prize stories only affirms to me that literature is subjective: what is revered by some, is trash to others.

If you like rambling short stories with drifting endings (most of them), stories that spend more time describing the surroundings than the actual plot (the rest of them), then this is the book for you. Not me.

These Compilations are Gems
I always enjoy the O Henry Prize collections.When I finish I usually go back over to see if I missed anything.Some of these stories are exquisite like Ha Jin's story about the parakeet, but one or two I found unreadable , like Edward P Jones story, I guess I don't like reading in slang. This collection is a reminder of why not just anyone can write.
Julie Blattenbauer Seattle, WA

The o Henry Prize Stories 2008
Unfortunately, this book did not include the short stories I needed for Cyber High School Online School.Therefore the book is sitting in a box.
Valerie Jordan

The state of the art of the short story
In the 2008 edition of "The O. Henry Prize Stories", Editor Laura Furman has broadened her selections to include a wider stylistic variety of stories than prior years.She still exhibits a tendency to select stories concerning darker, depressive or morbid subject matter.Yet in this year's volume the stories take such different forms and showcase such different writing styles that the only underlying characteristic that almost all of them share is they truly are excellent examples of the modern day short story.

Why care to read a collection of short stories?Guest juror David Means provides one of the most lucid explanations I've ever seen in his short essay included in this volume, which is as worth reading as any of the stories."A great short story peels back and exposes some singular mystery about the human condition...", and "a great story, even a good one, thickens our sense of the perplexing essence of being human."I feel the same, which is why I read the O. Henry and Best American short story anthologies every year (plus they are great ways to be exposed to the work of many fine authors).

My favorite stories in this volume include:

-- Sheila Kohler's "The Transitional Object", which I felt was the overall best story in the volume, because my favorite type of short story is still the classic O. Henry model:a short, tightly worded story with compelling characters, an interesting plot, and a twist at the very end, the sum of which communicates a moral about the human condition.Kohler's story is a very modern version of a classic form originally honed to perfection by the author who inspired this entire series.

-- Shannon Cain's "The Necessity of Certain Behaviors", which poses an intriguing question (a young woman who leaves behind modern society to join a tribe of isolated aboriginal people) and provides some interesting answers that speak to modern day angst.

-- David Malouf's "Every Move You Make", which provides some good lessons about obsessive love and the dangers of myth making.

-- Michel Faber's "Bye-bye Natalie", a well-informed portrayal of a modern-day, technology-enabled clash between first world and second or third world societies.

The one story I disliked considerably was Alice Munro's "What Do You Want to Know For?".Ms. Munro seems to get an automatic bye into each annual volume of the O. Henry and Best American anthologies.It is time to stop this practice, and to start judging her stories on their own merits, although a blind test would fail because her stories are all instantly recognizable as hers:they all take place in Ontario and are concerned with the travails of upper middle class, late middle age women.Not being a late middle aged woman from Ontario, I don't identify with her writing at all, nor do I think it speaks to greater truths about the human condition.Surprisingly, one of the three jurors selected Munro's story as the best, although (amazingly) this juror also was not a late middle aged woman from Ontario, and (even more amazingly) he admitted that the story, "as is the case with most of Munro's work", had "apparent modesty" and "even artlessness".I'm sorry, but all I saw was the apparent modesty and even artlessness.

Hopefully next year Furman will produce her best volume yet by selecting the 20 best stories of the year, rather than the best 19 plus one from Alice Munro. ... Read more

Product Description
A radiant reflection of contemporary fiction at its best, The O. Henry Prize Stories 2006 features stories from locales as diverse as Russia, Zimbabwe, and the rural American South. Series editor Laura Furman considered thousands of stories in hundreds of literary magazines before selecting the winners, which are accompanied here by short essays from each of the three eminent jurors on his or her favorite story, as well as observations from all twenty prize winners on what inspired them. Ranging in tone from arch humor to self-deluding obsessiveness to fairy-tale ingenuousness, these stories are a treasury of potential classics.


From the Trade Paperback edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Worth it for Stephanie Reents' story, "Disquisition on Tears"
This is a fabulous collection. It's worth it alone for the story by the rising star author, Stephanie Reents, called "Disquistion on Tears," which is not only a poignant, moving story, but also wonderfully strange and funny. Reents creates a hybrid of sorts. It's a literary short story first and foremost, but it also seems to contain elements of horror, magical realism, and other genres. The Alice Munroe stuff is great, too.

Two Stories in the Collection Will Knock Your Socks Off
I agree with the first reviewer that the stories in this collection are dark and depressing.I like the way the collection is selected.While Laura Furman is the editor, there are three additional jurors - - Kenin Brockmeier, Francine Prose and Colm Toibin.

Of the 20 stories in this collection, there were only two that knocked my socks off.The others were nothing spectacular and I doubt I'll remember them one month from now.The two I really liked were 'Passion' by Alice Munro and 'Wolves' by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer.

'Passion' is a strange story about a woman returning to the home of her ex-fiance, the place where her engagement and life unraveled all in a fit of unbridled passion over the course of one weekend.

'Wolves' is a spectacular story of loneliness, the power of the mind, aging, and the difficulty of sorting our reality from imagination.In this story, a couple who have been together for 40 years are growing both more dependent on one another yet more distant.The wife has some animosity towards her husband which she takes out in a passive aggressive manner.They have a word game that they have played over the years.One says a word and then the other adds to it, plays with it, and then passes it pack to their partner.On once occasion, the husband says the word 'wolf'.The wife keeps the word, plays with it in her head, imagines a real wolf that comes to her and helps her abide with her loneliness.The wolf is also dangerous because it is wild and unknown.It can be treacherous and unpredictable.Tragedy can and does occur.

For me, it was worth reading this collection for these two stories.I know that 'Passion' is in a collection of stories by Alice Munro but I have never seen 'Wolf' before.I am a fan of both these authors and recommend these stories highly.If you can get this book cheaply it is worth it.You might like some stories that I didn't.I'm giving the collection a '4' because these two stories are so formidably dark and wonderful,

Editor Furman's darkest and best collection yet
As in her two previous volumes (2003, 2005 - there was no O. Henry Prize volume dated 2004, forever throwing a kink into the collection on my bookshelf), series editor Laura Furman has gravitated toward subject matter that can only be described as dark and depressing.Yet the stories are so well written that the net effect is one of being moved by the power of the written word to experience aspects of the human condition well beyond the everyday.This is what good literature is supposed to do, and I would rank this year's volume as Furman's best so far.

To get an idea of the subject matter covered in this volume, one only has to take a careful look at some of the titles:"Mule Killers", "The Broad Estates of Death", "Disquisition on Tears", "The Plague of Doves", and "Famine".Other titles sound benign, however the subject matter is anything but (e.g. the last two stories, "Letters in the Snow" and "Window" are both about domestic abuse).But in all the stories, the subject matter isn't anywhere near the most important element.These stories expose the thought, logic and emotions that the characters caught in these situations experience, and hence take the reader into interesting places that are best experienced vicariously.

Each reader will no doubt have his/her own list of favorite stories.Mine were:
-- "Window", by Deborah Eisenberg:I agree wholeheartedly with guest editor Francine Prose's assessment that the language, wording and pacing of Eisenberg's story are excellent, and that this story is the best of the best.There is even some humor sprinkled in at appropriate moments.
-- "Wolves", by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer: this is a portrait of the final stage of a long marriage, in which creations of the mind take on a reality of their own (perhaps).Along with Xu Xi's "Famine" and Stephanie Reents' "Disquisition on Tears", which I also enjoyed, Schaeffer's "Wolves" utilizes the fictional form to its full advantage.
-- "The Dressmaker's Child", by William Trevor: this story, more than any other, contains an O. Henry-like plot twist at the end, which turns the story into a masterful tale of entrapment.
-- "Girls I Know", by Douglas Trevor:a contemporary story of class differences and how ambition (or lack thereof) can drastically affect outcomes in life.

My least favorite story, and the only one that I would have preferred not to have been included, was Terese Svodoba's "'80's Lilies", a story about what I have always known to be a futile quest: the attempt to seek out a sheltered, idyllic Garden of Eden to escape all the world's problems.The world just doesn't work that way, as these characters also discover (and they were supposed to be smart, educated folk).

I keep hoping that, one of these years, Furman will include some well-written stories that explore more positive aspects of human experience.But if you are willing to take a walk on the dark side, you will be amply rewarded.On the other hand, if you are looking for stories with more popular appeal, then the Best American Stories series is for you.I happen to enjoy both. ... Read more

Product Description
The complete works of one of the funniest writers ever to grace the American literary stage. Stories include "The Gift of the Magi," "The Ransom of Red Chief," and "The Call of the Tame," just to name a few favorites. ... Read more

Product Description
Everyone in the bustling town of Concord loves buying grand new things and stylish clothes. Everyone, that is, except Henry David Thoreau. But when Henry builds himself a cabin – "not one inch bigger than I need" – near Walden Pond and speaks out against a ghastly plan to destroy his beloved Walden Woods, the town brands him a troublesome rooster. Can Henry prove once and for all that nature is worth more than sooty factories and fancy parasols? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Idyllic
This brilliant historical novel chronicling the life of Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) is truly a masterpiece.

Thoreau, an environmentalist and author is viewed by his family and the townsfolk as an eccentric town character.He tells the pompous mayor that he prefers soft materials and patched breeches to starchy, stiff clothing.The mayor sneers at him while adjusting his starchy, itchy collar.He tells Miss Phoebe, the town doyenne who is infused with a sense of entitlement that there is more to life than parasols, pocketbooks and pendants.He speaks against industrial growth in Concord and claims that this suburb of Boston needs clean air and water.His pleas are met with general scorn.

Thoreau decides to visit a beautiful pond that belongs to a man named Emerson.It is at Walden's Pond that Thoreau has found his home.He communes with nature, flora and fauna alike and builds a small house in the woods near that pond.He is happiest there, with his books and with the clean air and bucolic beauty that Walden's Pond and the surrounding woods have to offer.

He lives in that house for two years.One winter was especially harsh, so Thoreau reluctantly re-enteres town.His fellow Concordians sneer and scoff at him; whenever he goes to pick up his mail, he is met with general derision.

One day he sees the mayor and some other men right outside his window. He learns that they are planning to build a toothpick factory in those very woods!Alarmed, he attends a town meeting and is the only one who speaks out against buildling anything in those woods.To prove his point, he asks the meeting's attendees to join him in a walk through the woods he calls his home.

Once there, the townsfolk breathe clean air; take in the pastoral beauty of their surroundings and realize that this man is no fool.Luckily, Thoreau's pleas prevail and to this day Walden's pond and a replica of the house where he once lived stand.

Thoreau could be considered to be ahead of his times.His writings have influenced many, such as Gandhi, King and even former President Clinton.His gentle plea for a return to nature and to preserve the earth without industrial growth has long been used as a benchmark for environmentalists to this day.

An interesting aside: Concord was the home of Nathaniel Hawthorne; the Alcotts and John Brown.It is an intellectual and cultural mecca and the town museum is testament to the town's rich history.Algonquian tribes lived in the area and a slave named John Jacks, "approximately 60 years" is buried in the town cemetery.Walden's Pond is just down the street from the Old North Bridge and the Old Tavern.

As for Thoreau, he is drawn in a Lincolnesque style when in fact he looked nothing like Lincoln.He was described as being short and squat as opposed to ectomorphically lean like Lincoln.

This is a truly outstanding book and one I would heartily recommend to everyone.

A delightful (if hyperbolic) retelling of the story of Thoreau at Walden Pond
This is a beautifully illustrated and clever fictionalized account of Henry David Thoreau as a man who turns out not to be so foolish as his townsfolk think.His neighbors in Concord think he's crazy for not wanting what they want: more money, more property, more industry, more things.Their incredulity is heightened when he decides to live out by himself in a small cabin on the banks of Walden Pond.As told in this story, the townspeople and especially the mayor are threatened by this challenge to their lifestyle and decide to try and kick him out by enlisting a toothpick manufacturer to come in and cut down the trees in Walden woods.He changes their mind by telling his story -- or, as the authors suggest: by bringing his townspeople out of their cloistered lives and into the woods for an afternoon.

Of course this isn't exactly what happened -- there were some industries in the area but logging had been taking place in the Walden woods for a long time before Thoreau got there, and while some of the townsfolk thought Thoreau was crazy, none of them were threatened by his lifestyle and none tried to threaten him.Still, the essence of the story rings true, and the authors use of poetic license serves to indicate how much of a contrast there was between Thoreau's convictions and lifestyle and those of most around him.A very nice story, that would serve as an excellent brief introduction to the life of Thoreau for newcomers of all ages.

One minor caveat on the otherwise excellent illustrations: Thoreau is here depicted as tall and lanky, something like Lincoln, when in fact by all accounts he was short and lean but built.

Great story
I looked all over for a kids book about Henry Thoreau to use with my 3rd and 4th graders. They really enjoyed this story! I highly recommend it.

The Trouble with Henry
Wonderful book, my adult friends loved it as much as the children. Thoreau was cool 150 years ago and knew then what ignorant people like GW Bush will never know. This book should be read by everyone!!!

THE TROUBLE WITH HENRY
"The Trouble with Henry" provides children with an accessible classic story expressing the trials and tribulations of individuality and fostering sensitivity to the environment.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A "Larger-Than-Life" Prince of the Church
In our increasingly secular country, I would imagine that the subject matter of this book, an American Catholic cardinal, probably won't interest a number of people.That is very unfortunate.O'Connell truly was one of the most powerful figures in the history of New England.His wide influence was rooted not only in the innate respect that the people of his time had for religion and religious leaders, but also in his "larger-than-life," almost prima-donna personality, and the growing political power of the Church due to the massive influx of Catholic immigrants to the United States, particularly Boston.Militant and Triumphant traces O'Connell's rise under Pius X and his fall from grace during the pontificate of Benedict XV.O'Toole's research is objective, and it represents a monumental amount of work.At the same time, his honest portrayal of O'Connell and the characters who surrounded him is often entertaining, as well.I strongly recommend this book.

GREAT BIOGRAPHY - FRAGILE BOOK
Shame on the University of Notre Dame press for publishing such a flimsy edition of a fine biography. Read it quickly: the pages will fall out of the binding as fast as you turn them.

best Bio
splendidly written. best book I've read in Am Ch History and I've read a few hundred. How O'Connell managed to keep all the scandals under control
is itself a mystery. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

the best
would give it ten stars if i could.I LOVE O'HENRY'S WRITING.nuff said. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Skylight Zone
Do you remember the TWILIGHT ZONE... that Existential, creepy, black and white TV show? Rod Serling would come on TV against a star studed background with a black suit and burning cigarette and announce the latest doomed or rewarded victim of a capricious universe.

This anthology by O'Henryreflects the tragedy in his own life and his compassion for the poor. Like the TWILIGHT ZONE, O'Henry and Serling both seemed to focus on the plight of the marginalized urban poor and the twists of fate which seem topropel us towards what seems to be a random fate on one level and a intended destiny on another. These short tales with ironic twists written by O' Henry seem ahead of their time...meant for the TV age, but written at the dawn of the Twentieth Century.

The SKYLIGHT ROOM is the story of a copyist who is forced to live a threadbare existence with the denizens of a brownstone tenement. Work is elusive for Elsie as she looks up to the skylight window above her bed. Night after night she is lit by the faint light of a distant star named Billy Johnson only to find her own light fading fast from hunger and the approaching darkness of death. One day after a fruitless work search, she collapses and the young doctor who rescues her " as if he were bearing his own dead" is named William Johnson...the patient was expected to recover.

An editor may want to include footnotes for some of the victorian vocabulary in a future edition. Every story in this anthology follows either the writing or editing policy of Serling. Goodironic stories written with pathos and just a small dash of the macabre.

O. Henry--The Master Storyteller
I have long delighted with to the tales of William Sidney Porter, otherwise known as O. Henry. His colorful characters and half-cynical plot-twists have entertained me for years. I was very pleased, therefore, to come into posession of this collection of his works--incomplete as it may be. While I was disappointed that it did not include a couple of my favorite short stories (The Ransom of Red Chief, for example), it more than made up for it by including several stories that I had not yet read.

In this review I will list the stories included in this book, along with a brief (one sentence, usually) synopsis.

The Gift of the Magi

Possibly O. Henry's most famous work. A poor young couple make the ultimate sacrifices in order to buy each other Christmas gifts, and bring an entire new meaning to the phrase "it's the thought that counts".

The Skylight Room

A young woman meets her prince charming in a most unorthodox way.

The Cop and the Anthem

A vagrant is consistently frustrated in his attempts to get arrested, and then in his attempt at reform.

Memoires of a Yellow Dog

The story of a henpecked man, as told from the perspective of his loyal canine pet.

Springtime à la Carte

A young couple in love find each other with the help of a restaurant menu.

The Green Door

A man responds to the call of adventure and rescues a damsel in distress. This story ends with a classic O. Henry twist.

After Twenty Years

The first O. Henry story I ever read. Two friends reunite after twenty years--with unpredictable results.

The Furnished Room

Two related tragedies in one appartment.

The Pimienta Pancakes

How not to win the attention of a young lady in the Old West.

The Reformation of Calliope

A western badman undergoes a complete, thorough, and instantaneous reformation.

The Passing of Black Eagle

A vagrant is thrust into high adventure, and decides that it is not for him.

A Retrieved Reformation

The concept of this story has been made into at least one movie. An expert safe-cracker tries to go the straight and narrow, only to be forced to use his skill to save a child trapped in a safe.

Whilstling Dick's Christmas Stocking

A hobo becomes privy to plans to rob a souther mansion on Christmas. His quick thinking saves the day.

Caught

An American living in a Banana Republic is embroiled in national intrigue, and not only comes out on top, but gets the girl.

The Sleuths

A distraught man in search of his lost sister seeks the help of two detectives in New York City. This story proves that the most elaborate methods are not always the most effective.

Makes the Whole World Kin

A theif discovers he has something in common with his would-be victim.

The Whirligig of Life

A hillbilly Justice of the Peace administers a divorce, an alimony settlement, and a reconciliation--all for the same couple.

A Newspaper Story

Sometimes the effect of a newspaper is not at all what the editor had in mind.

The Voice of the City

A man sets out to find the "voice of the city". He seems to have found it, but I am still confused.

One Thousand Dollars

A ne'er-do-well inherits one thousand dollars, and makes better use of it than anybody expected.

The Trimmed Lamp

This story explores the possibility of finding true happiness in marriage.

A Madison Square Arabian Night

A wealthy man entertains a down-on-his luck painter. In the process he hears an amazing tale, and resolves a question that is weighing heavily on his mind.

The Rubaiyat of a Scotch Highball

An alcoholic resolves to go "dry", and faces mixed reactions from his spouse.

Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen

A starving gentleman feeds a stuffed beggar.

The Buyer from Cactus City

West meets East, and East is unable to resist West's charms.

The Badge of Policeman O'Roon

Poking gentle fun at Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders, O. Henry tells a tale of two former comrades in arms.

The Last Leaf

A painter finishes his final masterpiece--just in time to save the life of a young lady.

The Tale of a Tainted Tenner

Told from the perspective of a ten dollar bill, this story is a scathing condemnation of "polite society" and those who practice a hypoctritic religion.

A Municipal Report

A writer explores the best and worst that the Old South has to offer.

Compliments of the Season

A lost and found rag doll, and a simple kindness, save a man's life.

Some final observations:

Harry Hansen's introduction to the book is very informative. I share his lamentation at O. Henry's early demise. What might he have written had he lived longer?

I was also struck for the first time with the overwhelming number of biblical references O. Henry employs in his writing. The meaning of many of these stories will be lost on the reader with no background in the Scriptures.

Finally, as I live in Brazil, I was struck by the reference to Santos Dumont in the story "Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen".

[...] ... Read more

Product Description
The Lights o' London and Other Victorian Plays is a new selection of five nineteenth-century English plays, none of which has been recently available in print.Each represents vividly and masterfully the three dominant dramatic forms of the Victorian era: melodrama, farce, and comedy.All were extremely popular with audiences, and much vigour, excitement, and variety of dramatic expression of their time can be found in these texts.Included are Edward Fitzball's The Inchcape Bell; Joseph Stirling Coyne's Did You Ever Send Your Wife to Camberwell?; The Game of Specualtion by George Henry Lewes; George Robert Sims's The Lights 'o London; and The Middleman by Henry Arthur Jones.The texts of the plays have been newly edited and are presented with an introduction and detailed annotation. ... Read more

Product Description
An unabridged, illustrated edition with end-notes by J. O. Phillips, including the presumed first letter, and only one known to survive, from Anne to Henry (July, 1525) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

I really like this book!
Some of the letters are a bit confusing because it is written from the 1500's, BUT, its only like 2 or 3 out of like 50 or so. It shows the love that they shared and the fact that she captivated him the way no other could! Yes, he had her beheaded, but, if you know your history, you know why. But it shows that what they had was passionate and rare. He gave up alot for her, and it shows that at one time, maybe even till the end, he loved her. For any Henry/Anne fan, I recommend reading these love letters. It sheds light on things. He really did love her at one time if not some part for the rest of his life.

Brief, good reading!
Thin book since the preserved letters are few, but worth a read for Tudor enthusiasts.

Short but sweet
Although this book is relatively short, it is still worth the purchase for anyone interested in the Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII affair.The letters are very touching and shed some light on how much King Henry loved Anne, thus cutting ties off with Rome and declaring himself the head of the English Church.It's almost surreal that a man could love a woman so much and go to such extremes for her, but then have her beheaded.Nevertheless, the book demonstrates his great desire for her and it is rather lovely to read. ... Read more

Product Description

Heartwarming stories that recall Christmases past:

Product Description
Collected Stories of O. Henry ... Read more

Product Description
An Anchor Original

The 80th anniversary edition of "the nation's most prestigious awards for the short story."--The Atlantic Monthly

Established early in the last century as a memorial to O. Henry, throughout its history this annual collection has consistently offered a remarkable sampling of contemporary short stories. Each year stories are chosen from large and small literary magazines and a panel of distinguished writers is enlisted to award the top prizes. The result is a superb collection of twenty inventive, full-bodied stories representing the very best in American and Canadian fiction.



Amazon.com Review
An elegant salvo in the ongoing debate about the state of theAmerican short story, this collection, celebrating the 80th anniversaryof the famous O. Henry Awards, raises some questions about the uses offiction. Where, as one of the prize jurors, Michael Cunningham, remarks, are the icy, intellectual stories of 30 and 40 years ago? Are we less cynical? Or so cynical that we crave an injection of feelings? Short fiction is getting longer and richer, stuffed with anti-Modern sensory detail and the complicated inner lives of its characters--more Henry James than Hemingway. (Only one New Yorker story made the cut for these awards.) Emotion is back in vogue, and with it the realistic, "well-made" story. In subject matter, death is in; sex is out.

Granted, some of this reflects the taste of the series editor, Larry Dark, who selects the 20 award stories from 3,000 or so contenders each year. First-, second-, and third-place winners are decided on by a panel of prize jurors--for 2000, Pam Houston, George Saunders, and Cunningham. Whether it confirms your suspicions about American publishing or seems more or less inevitable, many of these O. Henry stories are by well-known writers, among them Russell Banks, Mary Gordon, Andrea Barrett, and John Edgar Wideman. (Wideman wins first prize here for "Weight," which Cunningham describes as a combination of autobiography and fiction that "spill over into each other because the story's messy, deeply personal emotions require it.") Nathan Englander, an exceptionally well-placed newcomer, is represented with "The Gilgul of Park Avenue." There is a minor, posthumously published Raymond Carver story as well ("Kindling"), a fictional treatment of material that he had also addressed in a poem called "To Begin With."

Among the newer writers, Judy Budnitz ("Flush") and Kevin Brockmeier stand out for their unexpected observations and their devotion to the word. In Brockmeier's luminous love story, "These Hands," a male nanny forms a helpless, permanent attachment to his 18-month-old charge. Leaving her bedroom one night after putting her in the crib, he lifts a red plastic See 'n Say from the toyshelf and points its dial at the picture of a lion:

This, said the machine, is a robin, and it whittered a little aria. When he turned the dial to a picture of a lamb on a tussock of grass, it said the same thing. Dog and pony, monkey and elephant: robin--twit twit whistle. Lewis set the toy against a wall, listening to the cough of a receding car. He passed through the dining room and climbed the back stairway, wandered the deep and inviolate landscape of the house--solemn with the thought of faulty lessons, and of how often we are shaped in this way.

Customer Reviews (6)

Wonderful Selection and Variety!
The O. Henry Awards is for short stories. The stories are quite varied and selective. Also, this book is quite detailed with useful information for us inspiring writers like short story magazines, journals, and periodicals where they accept short story submissions.

The First Prize went to John Edgar Wideman's story entitled "Weight" introduced by Michael Cunningham, author of The Hours. It's a story about a writer who writes about his mother and the weight she must carry on her shoulders.

The Second Prize went to Beth Lordan's short story entitled "The Man With the Lapdog" introduced by Pam Houston about a retired couple in Ireland where the American husband befriends an American wife whose husband is dying.

The Third Prize went ot Mary Gordon's short story entitled "The Deacon" which is my personal favorite of the three top stories. It's about a nun and her relationship with a deacon who may have realized that she knew what his weaknesses and strengths were rather than telling him the truth while others just shyed away. She became probably the best friend that he had on his silver anniversary as deacon.

The other stories included Russell Banks, author of The Sweet Hereafter and Affliction, The Plains of Abraham about a man dealing with his former wife's loss.
Judy Budnitz's short story, Flush, about mothers and daughters and their relationship.
The other stories include
Kevin Brockmeier-These Hands
Melissa Pritchard-Salve Regina
Keith Banner-The Smallest People Alive
Kiana Davenport-Bones of the Inner East
J. Robert Lennon-The Fool's Proxy
Allan Gurganus-He's at the Office
Nathan Englander-The Gilgul of Park Avenue
Andrea Barrett-Theories of Rain
Jeannette Bertles-Whileaway
John Biguenot-Rose
Kate Walbert-The Gardens of Kyoto
Tim Gautreaux-Easy Pickings
Michael Byers-THe Beautiful Days
Alice Elliott Dark-Watch the Animals
and Raymond Carver's Kindling.

The Carver Contrast
In the 2000 O'Henry Prize Stories, 11 of the 20 winners (55%) either hold MFA's, Ph.D.'s or teach at universities. Most interesting, however, is the experience of reading 19 highly polished, academically clean stories and at the end of the series, run headlong into Raymond Carver, a bold non-academe, and author of story 20.The contrast is striking, particularly coming at the end of the book.I am left wondering--are we missing or losing some literary giants because academic credentials have become as critical to the practice of creative writing as they are to law or medicine--or journalism?

Of the twenty stories, Michael Byers's "The Beautiful Days" was my top pick.From the literary journal Ploughshares, it's the story of Aldo, a young man we've seen before, who tries to find but ends up losing himself.

Stories such as these are entertainment far superior to most of what entertains us today.If only good literature were also more popular, and less reliant on the good will of universities and academic institutions.The popular mags publish so little fiction anymore, and the literary journals have budgets that don't permit much promotion."Best Of" publications such as the O'Henry Awards are not only good collections, but probably the top promotional vehicles for good writing today.

wonderful selection
The second prize winner here, "The Man With the Lapdog," is probably one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read.It's absolutely brilliant.Beth Lordan easily deserves first place for this piece, though the winner ("Weight," by John Edgar Wideman) is a wonderful piece of writing.Judging this must have been something else.

My other favorite was Judy Budnitz's "Flush."It's wonderful in that the ending is O'Henryish--a fitting award-winner indeed.

There's not a bad story in the bunch, really.This is a great buy--I plan to give many copies as gifts.

A wonderful read!
I almost didn't buy this book in the series because when I read the 1998 version I felt pretty much unmoved by what I read there. This one, however, is a beautiful collection of stories--each one often more stunning than the last.The stories are beautifully written, exciting, conventional and unconventional, and utterly surprising.What a read!I love it and am eagerly awaiting the 2001 edition.If anyone feels today's short story is stagnant--or that magazines are filled with ordinary work--read this book.You'll be pleasantly surprised.

Excellent, diverse sampling of the American short story
This anthology of prize winning short stories is an excellent example of the diversity in American writing today.Each story is unique in its perception and description of life- from voice, to view.I did not like all the stories by any means, but within this collection, I found stories that will stay with me forever-- "The Deacon" is a perfect example.I have always believed that a short story is one that answers all my questions, yet leaves me wanting to know even more about the characters-- these stories all accomplish this goal.

I highly recommend this book for book clubs and classes.The exposure to the different writing styles can easily spark disussions as to why readers prefer a particular style over another.In addition, many of the stories are enjoyable and thought provoking. ... Read more