Last year, I put together this list of the most iconic poems in the English language; it’s high time to do the same for short stories. But before we go any further, you may be asking: What does “iconic” mean in this context? Can a short story really be iconic in the way of a poem, or a painting, or Elvis?
Well, who knows, but for our purposes, “iconic” means that the story has somehow wormed its way into the general cultural consciousness—a list of the best short stories in the English language would look quite different than the one below. (Also NB that in this case we’re necessarily talking about the American cultural consciousness, weird and wiggly as it is.) When something is iconic, it is a highly recognizable cultural artifact that can be used as a shorthand—which often means it has been referenced in other forms of media. You know, just like Elvis. (So for those of you heading to the comments to complain that these stories are “the usual suspects”—well, exactly.) An iconic short story may be frequently anthologized, which usually means frequently read in classrooms, something that can lead to cultural ubiquity—but interestingly, the correlation isn’t perfect. For instance, Joyce’s “Araby” is anthologized more often, but for my money “The Dead” is more iconic. Film adaptations and catchy, reworkable titles help. But in the end, for better or for worse, you know it when you see it. Which means that, like anything else, it all depends on your point of view—icon status is (like most of the ways we evaluate art) highly subjective.
So, having acknowledged that there’s no real way to make this list, but because this is what we’re all here to do, here are some of the most iconic short stories for American readers in the English language—and a few more that deserve to be more iconic than they are.
Washington Irving, “Rip Van Winkle” (1819) and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (1820)
I agonized over whether I should pick “Rip Van Winkle” or “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” from Irving’s oeuvre. Both have many, many adaptations to their name and are so ubiquitous as to have drifted into the folklore realm. The latter certainly has more memorable recent adaptations, but the former is the only one with a bridge named after it. Ah, screw it, we’ll count them both.
Edgar Allan Poe, “The Tell-Tale Heart” (1843)
Poe’s early stream-of-consciousness horror story, unreliable narrator and heart beating under the floorboards and all, is certainly one of the most adapted—and even more often referenced—short stories in popular culture, and which may or may not be the source for all of the hundreds of stories in which a character is tormented by a sound only they can hear. (Still not quite as ubiquitous as Poe himself, though . . .)
Herman Melville, “Bartleby, the Scrivener” (1853)
Once, while I was walking in Brooklyn, carrying my Bartleby tote bag, a woman in an SUV pulled over (on Atlantic Avenue, folks) to excitedly wave at me and yell “Melville! That’s Melville!” Which is all you really need to know about that.
Ambrose Bierce, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” (1890)
I will leave it to Kurt Vonnegut, who famously wrote, “I consider anybody a twerp who hasn’t read the greatest American short story, which is “Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” by Ambrose Bierce. It isn’t remotely political. It is a flawless example of American genius, like “Sophisticated Lady” by Duke Ellington or the Franklin stove.”
Charlotte Perkins Gilman, “The Yellow Wallpaper” (1892)
Odds are this was the first overtly Feminist text you ever read, at least if you’re of a certain age; it’s become a stand-in for the idea of women being driven insane by the patriarchy—and being ignored by doctors, who deem them “hysterical.” This is another one with lots of adaptations to its name, including a memorable episode of The Twilight Zone, which concludes: “Next time you’re alone, look quickly at the wallpaper, and the ceiling, and the cracks on the sidewalk. Look for the patterns and lines and faces on the wall. Look, if you can, for Sharon Miles, visible only out of the corner of your eye or… in the Twilight Zone.”
Henry James, “The Turn of the Screw” (1898)
Technically a novella, but discussed enough as a story that I’ll include it here (same goes for a couple of others on this list, including “The Metamorphosis”). It has, as a work of literature, inspired a seemingly endless amount of speculation, criticism, unpacking, and stance-taking. “In comment after comment, article after article, the evidence has been sifted through and judgments delivered,” Brad Leithauser wrote in The New Yorker. Fine, intelligent readers have confirmed the validity of the ghosts (Truman Capote); equally fine and intelligent readers have thunderously established the governess’s madness (Edmund Wilson).” And nothing that inspires so much interpretive interest could escape the many interpretations into other media: films, episodes of television, and much other literature.
Anton Chekhov, “The Lady with the Toy Dog” (1899)
Widely acknowledged as one of Chekhov’s best stories, if not the best, and therefore almost no students get through their years at school without reading it. Has been adapted as a film, a ballet, a play, a musical, and most importantly, a Joyce Carol Oates short story.
W. W. Jacobs, “The Monkey’s Paw” (1902)
So iconic—be careful what you wish for, is the gist—that you probably didn’t even know it started out as a short story. My favorite version is, of course, the Laurie Anderson song.
O. Henry, “The Gift of the Magi” (1905)
According to Wikipedia, there have been 17 different film adaptations of O. Henry’s classic short story about a couple’s thwarted Christmas; the essential format—Della sells her hair to buy Jim a watch chain; Jim sells his watch to buy Della a set of combs—has been referenced and replicated countless times beyond that. I even heard Dax Shepard refer to this story on his podcast the other day, and so I rest my case.
James Joyce, “The Dead” (1914)
The last story in Joyce’s collection Dubliners and one of the best short stories ever written; just ask anyone who wanted to have read some Joyce but couldn’t crack Ulysses. (Or anyone who could crack Ulysses too.) And let’s not forget the John Huston movie starring Anjelica Huston as Gretta.
Franz Kafka, “The Metamorphosis” (1915)
Everyone has to read this in school, at some point—which is probably the reason why it’s been parodied, referenced, and adapted many times in just about every format. And why not? What could be more universal than the story of the man who wakes up to find himself transformed into an enormous insect?
Richard Connell, “The Most Dangerous Game” aka “The Hounds of Zaroff” (1924)
“The most popular short story ever written in English” is obviously the one about aristocrats hunting people. Widely adapted, but one of my favorite versions is the episode of Dollhouse in which a Richard Connell (no relation except the obvious) hunts Echo with a bow.
Ernest Hemingway, “The Killers” (1927)
I was tempted to include “Hills Like White Elephants” because of the number of people forced to read it to learn about dialogue (happily, there are other options), but “The Killers,” while less often anthologized, is more influential overall, and gave us not only two full length film adaptations and a Tarkovsky short but Tobias Wolff’s “Bullet in the Brain,” which I do think is a very good story to learn from, if not for dialogue, then for story-making.
Zora Neale Hurston, “The Gilded Six-Bits” (1933)
Hurston is most famous for Their Eyes Were Watching God, but those who know will tell you that this story of love, marriage, betrayal, and love again—which was also made into a 2001 film—is a classic, too.
Shirley Jackson, “The Lottery” (1948)
The short story that launched a thousand letters to The New Yorker—or if not a thousand, then at least “a torrent . . . the most mail the magazine had ever received in response to a work of fiction.” Still taught widely in schools, and still chilling.
J. D. Salinger, “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” (1948)
The very first story to destroy many a young mind. In a good way, obviously.
Ray Bradbury, “There Will Come Soft Rains” (1950)
Bradbury’s work has thoroughly permeated pop culture; plenty of his stories are widely adapted and referenced, so I could have chosen a few others here (“The Veldt” is my personal favorite). But every year, the image of a smart house going on long after the death of its occupants becomes more chilling and relevant an image; we can’t help but keep going back to it.
Daphne du Maurier, “The Birds” (1952)
I know it’s really the Hitchcock film adaptation that’s iconic, but you wouldn’t have the Hitchcock without the du Maurier.
Flannery O’Connor, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” (1953)
Another oft-assigned (and oft-argued-over) story, this one with so many title rip-offs.
Elmore Leonard, “Three-Ten to Yuma” (1953)
I know, I know, it’s “Fire in the Hole” that gave us Justified, and we’re all so very glad. But “Three-Ten to Yuma” has more name recognition—after all, it was adapted into two separate and very good films, the former of which (1957) actually created contemporary slang: in Cuba, Americans are called yumas and the United States is La Yuma.
Philip K. Dick, “The Minority Report” (1956)
As a whole, Philip K. Dick’s work has had massive influence on literature, film, pop culture, and our cultural attitudes toward technology. Most of his best-known works are novels, but when a short story gets made into a Steven Spielberg/Tom Cruise film, you’re basically assuring iconic status right there. (Or at least that’s how it used to work…)
James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues” (1957)
Baldwin’s best known short story pops up in plenty of anthologies, and can be thanked for being the gateway drug for many budding Baldwin acolytes.
Alan Sillitoe, “The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner” (1959)
Not only is the story itself widely known and read—just ask Rod Blagojevich (remember him?)—that title has been rewritten and reused thousands of times for varying ends—just ask the reporter who wrote that piece about Blagojevich. Or Adrian Tomine.
John Cheever, “The Swimmer” (1964)
Cheever’s most famous story nails something essential about the mid-century American sensibility, and particularly the mid-century American suburbs, which is probably why everyone knows it (it’s also frequently anthologized). Or maybe it’s more about Burt Lancaster’s little shorts? Either way.
Joyce Carol Oates, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” (1966)
Another frequently anthologized and unwaveringly excellent short story; and look, it’s no one’s fault that Laura Dern turns everything she touches iconic.
Toni Cade Bambara, “The Lesson” (1972)
Yet another story often assigned in schools (the good ones, anyway), which hopefully means one day we’ll wake up and find out that everyone has read it.
Ursula K. Le Guin, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” (1973)
As others have pointed out before me, Le Guin’s most read and most famous short story is almost always chillingly relevant.
Donald Barthelme, “The School” (1974)
This one might only be iconic for writers, but considering it’s one of the best short stories ever written (according to me), I simply couldn’t exclude it.
Jamaica Kincaid, “Girl” (1978)
Another staple of a writer’s education, and a reader’s; “are you really going to be the kind of woman who the baker won’t let near the bread?” being a kind of bandied-about shibboleth.
Raymond Carver, “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” (1981)
I struggled choosing a Carver story for this list—”Cathedral” is more important, and probably more read, but “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” has transcended its own form more completely, at least with its title, which has spawned a host of echoes, including Haruki Murakami’s What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, and Nathan Englander’s What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, to the point that I think it’s recognizable to just about everyone. A quick Google search will reveal that the framing has been used for almost everything you can think of. There’s—and I kid you not—a What We Talk About When We Talk About Books/War/Sex/God/The Tube/Games/Rape/Money/Creative Writing/Nanoclusters/Hebrew/The Weather/Defunding the Police/Free Speech/Taxes/Holes/Climate/The Moon/Waste/Cancel Culture/Impeachment/Gender/Digital Inclusions/Exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease/COVID-19. You see what I’m getting at here.
Stephen King, “The Body” (1982)
Otherwise known, to the general public, as Stand By Me.
Amy Hempel, “In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried” (1983)
Want to feel bad about your writing? This was the first short story Amy Hempel ever wrote.
Lorrie Moore, “How to Be an Other Woman” (1985)
A very very good short story that has given rise to so many bad ones.
Mary Gaitskill, “Secretary” (1988)
Bad Behavior is iconic as a whole, but probably the story to have most acutely permeated the wider culture is “Secretary,” on account of the film adaptation starring Maggie Gyllenhaal and James Spader—despite the fact that it totally butchers the ending.
Amy Tan, “Rules of the Game” (1989)
This story originally appeared in The Joy Luck Club, Tan’s mega-bestseller, so probably almost everyone you know has read it. The film version didn’t hurt either.
Tim O’Brien, “The Things They Carried” (1990)
Why, it’s only the most anthologized short story of the last 30(ish) years. That’s why even the people you know who haven’t picked up a book in their adult lives have read it.
Denis Johnson, “Emergency” (1992)
When I left New York to go get my MFA, a friend gave me a copy of Jesus’ Son with the inscription “Because everyone in your MFA will talk about it and you don’t want to be the girl who hasn’t read it. (It’s also really good).” He was not wrong.
Annie Proulx, “Brokeback Mountain” (1997)
Everybody knows this story—even if they only know it from its (massively successful and influential, not to mention the true Best Picture Winner of 2006) film adaptation—and not for nothing, coming out when it did, it went a long way towards making some Americans more comfortable with homosexuality. Open the floodgates, baby.
Jhumpa Lahiri, “A Temporary Matter” (1998)
The story that made Lahiri a household name.
Ted Chiang, “Story of Your Life” (1998)
Otherwise known as Arrival. (Also technically a novella.)
Alice Munro, “The Bear Came Over the Mountain” (2001)
At this point, almost everyone has read at least some Alice Munro, right? This story is one of the best from one of the greats, and was also adapted into a fantastic but heartbreaking film, Away From Her.
Kristen Roupenian, “Cat Person” (2017)
Sure, it’s recent, so it’s not quite as ingrained as some of the others here, but it’s also the story that broke the internet—and quite possibly the only New Yorker story that thousands of people have ever read.
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Finally, as is often the case with lists that summarize the mainstream American literary canon of the last 200 years, it is impossible not to recognize that the list above is much too white and male. So for our future and continuing iconography, your friends at Literary Hub suggest reading the following stories, both new and old:
Eudora Welty, “Why I Live at the P.O.” (1941)
Clarice Lispector, “The Imitation of the Rose” (1960)
Leslie Marmon Silko, “The Man to Send Rain Clouds” (1969)
Ralph Ellison, “Cadillac Flambé” (1973)
Octavia Butler, “Bloodchild” (1984)
Bharati Mukherjee, “The Management of Grief” (1988)
John Edgar Wideman, “Fever” (1990)
Sandra Cisneros, “Woman Hollering Creek” (1991)
Christine Schutt, “To Have and to Hold” (1996)
ZZ Packer, “Brownies” (2003)
Edward P. Jones, “Marie” (2004)
Karen Russell, “Haunting Olivia” (2005)
Kelly Link, “Stone Animals” (2005)
Edwidge Danticat, “Ghosts” (2008)
Yiyun Li, “A Man Like Him” (2008)
Claire Vaye Watkins, “Ghosts, Cowboys” (2009)
Ottessa Moshfegh, “Bettering Myself” (2013)
Amelia Gray, “House Heart” (2013)
Zadie Smith, “Meet the President!” (2013)
Carmen Maria Machado, “The Husband Stitch” (2014)
Diane Cook, “The Way the End of Days Should Be” (2014)
Kirstin Valdez Quade, “Five Wounds” (2015)
NoViolet Bulawayo, “Shhhh” (2015)
Mariana Enriquez, “Spiderweb” (2016)
Ken Liu, “State Change” (2016)
Helen Oyeyemi, “Sorry Doesn’t Sweeten Her Tea” (2016)
Lesley Nneka Arimah, “What Is a Volcano?” (2017)
James McBride, “The Christmas Dance” (2017)
Viet Thanh Nguyen, “War Years” (2017)
Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, “Friday Black” (2018). . .
Honestly, this list could go on forever, but let’s stop and say: more short stories of all kinds in the hands of the general public, please!
How do you capture the human condition in a few pages? With difficulty. Which is why many writers argue that short stories are harder to write, and a much purer form of writing than novels.
The perfect short story might be comedic, fast-paced and exciting, descriptive, or poetic. But the one thing it must do? Get the reader hooked quickly.
Everything must be perfectly weighted and have a purpose.
What Is the Best Short Story Ever Written?
An impossible question to answer, but we can try to get close.
We’ve put together a list of 25 of the most iconic, most anthologised, best written, or most well-known short stories of all time.
What Are the Best Short Story Collections?
To start us off, here are some authors that many consider to be the masters of the short story. We’ve highlighted some of their most popular works, but check out their full collections for classic examples of incredible short stories.
1. «The Dead» by James Joyce
The stories in Dubliners are depictions of life in Dublin around 1910. T. S. Eliot, amongst others, described The Dead as «one of the greatest short stories ever written.»
Irish middle-class life jumps from the page, as Gabriel Conroy gives a speech at a family party and finds his principles and beliefs challenged.
There is a lyrical, melancholic tone as his thoughts move from awkward social encounters, to Irish nationalism, to the role of the dead in people’s lives. It offers a beautifully accessible route into the world of an often-inaccessible writer.
2. «The Lottery» by Shirley Jackson
Who knew that a story about a village lottery could cause so much anger and outrage?
Yet Jackson’s dark, modern gothic tale caused a flood of complaints to The New Yorker. People demanded to know where such a horrific lottery was taking place!
The Lottery, written in 1948, remains chilling to this day and perfectly captures the potential of human beings to both accept and participate in a shocking act of ritual violence in the name of faith and tradition.
3. «The Swimmer» by John Cheever
Cheever’s short stories veer from realism to satire to fantasy, often in the space of the same sentence.
Below the surface of the cocktail parties that greet new readers, are puzzling fables about radio transmissions of private conversations (The Enormous Radio) or brothers attacking one another unexpectedly (Goodbye My Brother).
The Swimmer is his best-known story and certainly the most anthologized.
A boozy jaunt through the pools and backyards of middle America, the story swings from social commentary about mid-century, middle American sensibilities in Shady Hill, to a surreal and melancholic dream fable of the passing of the seasons and a man losing everything he has in his life.
4. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor
It is almost cast in stone that any list of great short story writers must mention Carver, Cheever, and O’Connor together, as the greats of American short story writing.
Known for her southern gothic stories, O’Connor’s A Good Man Is Hard to Find is her most popular work.
It tells the tale of a southern family who gets stranded on a road trip and encounters a criminal gang. As usual with O’Connor, it is a humorous, but dark and vicious tale, confronting notions of good and evil.
5. «The Company of Wolves» by Angela Carter
Carter’s reworking of fairy tales in The Bloody Chamber challenged the way women were represented in classic tales of western culture.
Turning the tropes of fairy tales and gothic fiction on their head, Carter created heroic and sexually liberated female protagonists. In her most famous story, The Company of Wolves, Red Riding Hood becomes a confident and beloved heroine, who defeats the wolf by seducing and taming him.
6. «Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?» by Joyce Carol Oates
Joyce Carol Oates’s impeccable short stories are known for their representation of violence and evil in American society.
«Where are you going, where have you been» is one of her finest. It is about a 15-year-old girl who meets a stranger, who is trying to coax her into coming with him.
Inspired by three real life murders in Arizona the story has been anthologised many times and is regularly featured on English literature courses around the world.
7. «Desiree’s Baby» by Kate Chopin
Causing widespread outrage on first publication, Kate Chopin set her 1893 story of race relations in Louisiana just before the Civil War.
It examines gender and discrimination through the story of Desiree, who is adopted by wealthy French Creoles and who later marries Armand.
When Desiree gives birth to a mixed-race baby, Armand forces her to leave. Chopin was fascinated with women’s identities in all her stories, and this was one of her finest.
8. «Hills Like White Elephants» by Ernest Hemingway
Eternally imitated but never bettered, few writers have influenced as many as Ernest Hemingway.
Any number of his stories could have made this list – from the early noir of The Killers to the pathos of confronting death in The Snows of Kilimanjaro. However, if you had to pick one from the best Hemingway short stories, then it would surely be Hills Like White Elephants (1927).
A man and woman are waiting for the train whilst discussing an operation the man wants the woman to have.
The story’s genius lies in how the whole thing is about abortion, but it is never actually mentioned. A masterclass of simplicity, by the undisputed master of minimalism.
What Is a Good Example of a Short Story?
All of the stories below represent some of the best storytelling in the last century. You’ve probably heard the classing writing advice to read more than you write. With short stories, you get all the elements of brilliant story structure, description, character, and voice, but in bite-sized pieces.
Even if you don’t enjoy some of the titles on this list, you can still learn from the way they were written—often in one sitting!
9. «An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge» by Ambrose Bierce
This frequently anthologized story is simple enough; a civilian who has carried out a mission for the confederacy is being hanged on a bridge in Alabama.
But it is the story’s portrayal of this «occurrence» as a part of war, its unreliable narrator, and its innovative use of the stretching of subjective time, that has seen the story influence generations of writers.
10. «The Monkey’s Paw» by W W Jacobs
Some stories are on this list because they are the best written short stories of all time.
Others, such as The Monkey’s Paw, are here because of their iconic place in our imaginative lives.
W W Jacobs took the ancient story of magic wishes and rewrote it as a supernatural short story, dealing with the notion of unintended consequences. The tale is as creepy today as it was in 1902 when it was first published.
11. «The Gift of the Magi» by O. Henry
You will not find a more compact tale about sacrifice and the Christmas spirit than The Gift of the Magi. It is for this reason that the story has been adapted countless times, including over 18 movie adaptations.
12. «Cathedral» by Raymond Carver
Most critics agree that alongside Chekhov, the grand master of the short story is Raymond Carver.
His stories exhibit a stripped back, minimalist examination of American working-class life. He reinvigorated the form in the 1980’s after it had gone out of fashion.
Two of his stories that are cited most often are, What We Talk About When We Talk About Love and Cathedral. Both have been heavily anthologized, but the latter is perhaps the more important and well known of the two.
The story is about a prejudiced man whose wife’s old blind friend comes to visit. Amidst Carver’s classic working-class landscape, Cathedral portrays a distrusting narrator having a moment of revelation and catharsis.
The final moments of the story, as the two men try to draw the Cathedral together, represent the high point of American short story telling.
13. «The Metamorphosis» by Franz Kafka
Can there be any more famous first line in the history of literature than this?
“As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into an enormous insect.”
Kafka’s stories are pregnant with multiple meanings and devoid of answers.
In the Penal Colony is possibly his finest short story, but The Metamorphosis is his best known, and most anthologised.
Perhaps this is because of the story’s parallel meanings or perhaps it is simply because there is something intriguing about a man who wakes up having turned into an insect.
14. «Sonny’s Blues» by James Baldwin
Sonny’s Blues is a perfectly crafted short story about an algebra teacher in Harlem and his brother Sonny who is hooked on heroin.
Baldwin portrays the darkness looming over African Americans, and the narrator sees that drugs are for many, including his brother, a way of coping.
The darkness in their lives is contrasted with the «atmospheric lighting» of the jazz club and the «circle of light» the musicians play under. By far the best story ever written about jazz, the story follows a long tradition of proclaiming the artist as a prophet.
15. «Girl» by Jamaica Kincaid
A stunning and inventive piece of writing that first appeared in The New Yorker, Girl is a single 650-word sentence of dialogue between a mother and daughter.
Most of the dialogue is the mother instructing the daughter about how she must become the perfect woman and fit into society in Antigua. She passes down the same patriarchal roles for women that she was taught as a child.
16. «A Telephone Call» by Dorothy Parker
On one level, this is a story about dating and agonising over whether the phone is going to ring.
On another level, Parker explores the precarious place of women in society in 1928. Parker argues that women depend on men and God and act irrationally and insecurely when they should aim for self-reliance.
What Makes a Perfect Short Story?
Short stories are, well, short. They require you to be exact with your language, specific with your details, and vivid with your imagery.
When writing a short story, you need to make sure that every sentence—every word, even—is working to draw your reader in. But what does that actually mean?
One place where writers lose specificity is in their verbs. Sometimes, we hide strong verbs behind combinations of weaker verbs and adverbs, like this:
- She’d made a decision. It was time to make a change.
Let’s run that through ProWritingAid.
- She’d decided. It was time to make a change.
Now the sentences sound more punchy and less repetitive, all with one simple change.
Try ProWritingAid today to learn more about creating specific, engaging sentences that will make your short story shine.
17. «The Rocking Horse Winner» by D H Lawrence
First published in 1926, The Rocking Horse Winner by Lawrence concerns a boy, Paul, who wishes to help his no-luck mum by proving he can be lucky.
He does this by riding his rocking horse into a frenzy, which allows him to predict real horses in races.
The family wins a great deal of money until things come to an abrupt and dark end. Most often viewed as a Freudian cautionary tale, it represents a high point in Lawrence’s short fiction.
18. «The Nose» by Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Gogol was one of the most influential writers in Russian history, with Borges, Nabokov, Kafka, and Tolstoy all citing him as a major influence.
The Nose (1836) is his best and most famous work. Satirizing life in a totalitarian regime, The Nose tells the story of a Russian official whose nose wants to live independently from the rest of his face and body.
19. «The Distance of the Moon» by Italo Calvino
Calvino’s tale is the perfect example of magical realism, imagining a world where the moon was much closer to the Earth than it is today—when standing on the top of a ladder «you could just touch the moon if you held your arms up.»
Underlying the more whimsical elements of is a sensual story of a man being in love with another man’s wife. The moon is the star of The Distance of the Moon, though, and as one Goodreads reviewer suggested, this story is «strange, but enjoyable.»
20. «The Body» by Stephen King
Unfortunately, there isn’t enough room here to list the best sci-fi short stories or the best horror stories (or even the best Stephen King short stories) , but Stephen King does manage to sneak onto the list anyway.
Known for his horror fiction, King has also written some heart-breaking, lyrical short stories, and is an astonishingly talented short story writer.
Certainly, two of his stories deserve a place on any list of the greats.
The first is Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption (the source material for the most highly rated film of all time).
The second is The Body, a bittersweet, coming-of-age masterpiece, about four young friends looking for a dead body (made into another popular film, Stand By Me).
21. «The Legend of Sleepy Hollow» by Washington Irving
This entry has embedded itself deeply in popular culture.
Irving’s other famous story Rip Van Winkle could also be here, but it is The Legend of Sleepy Hollow that makes the cut, simply because it features ghosts and a headless horseman, looking for his head!
22. “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
Poe’s story of losing one’s sanity and a beating heart under the floorboards is the one that most people remember.
The Tell-Tale Heart is technically accomplished, from the use of the unreliable narrator to the hallucinatory writing style as the narrator goes slowly mad. Frequently adapted and referenced in books, TV shows, and movies over the last century, no list of great short stories can ignore this American gothic classic.
23. «The Yellow Wallpaper» by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
As relevant as ever, The Yellow Wallpaper is often cited as the first feminist story readers come across.
Concerning itself with women’s mental health, it follows the deterioration of a woman who is confined to her room by a controlling husband.
Staring at the wallpaper, it changes form: “At night in any kind of light, in twilight, candlelight, lamplight, and worst of all by moonlight, it becomes bars!”
24. «I Bought A Little City» by Donald Barthelme
Donald Barthelme is on this list because of his incredibly unique, postmodern voice and the dazzling experimentation that went into his short stories.
In I Bought a Little City (1974), a man buys a city and gradually becomes more and more despotic in his attempted stewardship of that city. In trying to better the city, he strips away its individuality and creates conflict.
25. «The Lady with the Dog» by Anton Chekhov
Writers who are on the record as being heavily influenced by Chekhov include Raymond Carver, Alice Munro, Katherine Mansfield, Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, and Flannery O’Connor.
John Cheever noted wryly that he was one of «8 or 10 American writers described as the American Chekhov.»
Why is he rated so highly? Perhaps because he was the first writer to concentrate less on the development of the plot, and more on uncertainty, reticence and mood, via his highly complex characters.
Chekhov was the first writer to truly reflect the mundane ordinariness of life and the infinite strangeness of people.
The Lady with the Dog, a story of two people in unhappy marriages, ends up (as most of his stories do) with the characters in the same place as they started, but with more uncertainty about the world and less confidence in their own view of things.
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Short story in English Free Download — Rich Man, Poor Man book PDF
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Rich Man, Poor Man
Chapter one: A Letter for Adam
Chapter two: Adam Goes to Darpur
Chapter three: An Identity Card
Chapter four: Photographs
Chapter five: Adam Changes his Money Order
Chapter one
A Letter for Adam
One day a postman came to my village. The postman brought me a letter from my son, Saul.
“Is your name Adam?“ the postman asked.
“Yes,“ I said.
“I have got a letter for you.” The postman read the envelope:
“Adam of the village of Minta.”
“A letter for me. Who is it from?” I asked.
The postman looked at the envelope again.
“From Saul,” he said.
He gave me the letter and walked away.
“Martha, Martha,” I called to my wife.
“Come here. We have a letter from our son, Saul.”
Martha came out and looked at the letter. She was excited but she was also worried.
“A letter from Saul,” she said. “Is he alive and well? I’m going to find the school teacher. He can read the letter.”
There was no school fifty years ago. So I cannot read or write. I live in a small village. The only work is farming. My only son, Saul left the village two years ago and my three daughters are married. Saul is making a lot of money in a foreign country.
Martha and the school teacher came back. A lot of other people came. Everyone wanted to hear my letter. The school teacher opened the envelope and read the letter.
20 Taylor Street, London E. 19, England 16 March
Dear Father,
I am living in London. I have a job in a factory. The work is very hard, I often work at night. But the pay is good.
I am well and I live with people from my country. I am sending you 100 pounds in this letter. This is for you and my mother.
Love to you and mother.
Saul.
“One hundred pounds!” I said to the school teacher. “You’re wrong. It’s a mistake.”
“No”, the school teacher said.
“I’m not wrong. It’s not a mistake. Here is the money.”
And he gave me a piece of paper.
“What is this?” I asked.
“A money order,” the school teacher said.
“Go to Darpur. Take this money order to the Post Office in Darpur.
The money order is worth one hundred pounds. The Post Office official will give you the money.”
“One hundred pounds!” I said again .
Everyone laughed and said, “ Adam, you are a rich man. You can buy many things for your farm and for your house.”
“And I can buy some good food and drink in Darpur. I am going to give a party for you all,” I told my friends.
Martha said, “ Saul is a good son.”
That evening, the village people talked about the money order and my money. Martha and I also talked about the money. We needed many things for the farm.
Chapter two
Adam Goes to Darpur
The next morning I got up very early. It was dark and everyone was asleep. But I was going to Darpur. I washed and dressed carefully. I put on my best clothes and I carried my best stick. I put the money order carefully in my pocket and I said goodbye to Martha.
I walked ten miles to the main road. I sat down at the main road and ate my breakfast.
I waited for the bus. I waited for two hours. Then the bus came and I got on.
It is a long way to Darpur. The bus takes three hours. I arrived in Darpur and walked to the Post Office immediately.
I do not often go to Darpur. I only know the market, and one shop. This is the shop of Rick. I buy things for my farm from Rick
There were a lot of people in the Post Office. I asked about money orders. A man showed me the queue. There was a long line of people and I waited at the back.
Finally it was my turn ; I was at the front of the queue. But the official did not serve me.
“Excuse me,” I said .
“It’s my turn. I’m next.”
“You are next? Old man, I’m very busy,” the official said. “Look at my papers. Look at all these people. I am very busy. And you must wait,”
So I waited. Finally the official looked at me.
“What do you want?” he asked.
I gave him my money order.
“This is my money order for one hundred pounds,” I replied.
The official held out his hand. “Identity Card,” he said.
“Excuse me. I don’t understand,” I replied
“Your Identity Card,” the official said again. “Give me your Identity Card.”
“What is an Identity Card?” I asked.
“I can’t give you any money for this money order. First I must see your Identity Card. Your Identity Card gives your name and your address. Your Identity Card describes you. There is a photograph of you in your Identity Card. I don’t know you. Who are you?” The official was a little angry.
But I was also angry. “Who am I?” I said.
“Everyone knows me. I am Adam of the village of Minta. I haven’t got an Identity Card and I don’t need an Identity Card.” “Old man, I’m very busy and you’re very stupid,” the official said. “ Who are you? Where is Minta?
“Give me my money. Give me my one hundred pounds,” I said.
The official looked angry and said, “Show me your Identity Card. I don’t know you.”
The official gave back my money order and he turned away.
“Where can I buy an Identity Card?” I asked the official. He did not speak to me. He did not answer.
“Go to the Ministry of the Interior,” a man said.
He was standing in the queue. And he told me the way.
Chapter three
An Identity Card
I walked to the Ministry of the Interior. I waited in another queue. I spoke to another official. I asked for an Identity Card.
“Fill in this application from, the official said. “And bring the form and three photographs of yourself and two pounds. Come back tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” I said. “Can I have an Identity Card today please ? I live in Minta. I live five hours’ journey from Darpur. I’m an old man.”
“Yes, come back tomorrow.” And the official turned away.
I walked away from the Ministry of the Interior, I walked to the market. At the market I looked at everyone. I was looking for a man from my village. But I could not find a villager. So then I walked to the shop of Rick. I spoke to Rick.
“I want an Identity Card,” I told him. “But I need three photographs of myself.”
“I see. You need some photographs.” And he showed me the way to a photographer.
I found the house. The photographer was asleep but he came to me quickly. The man’s clothes were dirty and he looked tired.
“I need an Identity Card,” I said. “I want three photographs of myself.”
“Yes, you want three photographs of yourself,” the photographer replied.
“And I take very good photographs. Come and see my camera.”
We walked into his room. In the middle of the room was a large camera. “This is the best camera in Darpur. This camera is very, very good,” the photographer said proudly.
“I’ve never seen a camera,” I said. “I don’t know about cameras. Hurry up and take a photograph of me.”
“Please do not hurry me, old man,” the photographer said. I am an artist. “And he gave me a mirror and a comb.
I don’t want a mirror, I don’t want a comb. Please take my photograph. I’m going to Minta this afternoon. And I’m in a hurry,” I said.
“Yes,“ he said. “ But first the price. This is the best camera in Darpur and I’m the best photographer. Three photographs will cost you two pounds fifty.”
“Two pounds fifty!” And I laughed.
“Two pounds fifty-and pay me now please,” the photographer answered.
I did not know the price of photographs. What could I do? Then the photographer said, “You are an old man. For you, the price is two pounds.”
So I gave him the money and he took the photographs. “Come back tomorrow morning,” he said.
“I want my three photographs now, immediately,” I said.
“Don’t be stupid,” the photographer said. Photographs take twenty-four hours. Come back tomorrow.”
What could I do? So I said, “Yes. Tomorrow morning.”
“Good,” said the photographer. “Now go. I have a lot of work. I’m very busy.”
I went back to the bus station. I sat on the bus for three hours. I walked ten miles back to my village.
It was night time and I was very tired. Martha and my friends were waiting for me. “Where is the money?” Martha asked.
“I have no money. I cannot change the money order. First I must an Identity Card.” And I told Martha everything.
“Tomorrow I am going to Darpur again,” I said.
Then I did not talk again. I was very tired and it was late at night. I lay on my bed and I slept.
Chapter four
No photographs
I woke up late the next morning. The sun was already high. I did not walk to the main road and catch a bus. All the buses go to Darpur early in the morning.
So I stayed at home on Wednesday. I was still very very tired. I rested and talked to the villagers about the money order. I told them about the Identity Card and the photographer.
The school teacher said, “Yes, the official is correct. In a Post Office, you always show your Identity Card.” The school teacher filled in my application from for an Identity Card.
Application from for Identity Card
Name: Adam Jamei
Address: Village of Minta
Age: 72 years
Place of birth: Village of Minta
Occupation: Farmer
Colour of eyes: Brown
On Thursday I travelled to Darpur again. I walked to the main road and I caught a bus. In Darpur , I walked to the house of the photographer.
I knocked on the door of the house. No one came to the door. I knocked again loudly with my stick. A woman opened the door.
“Who are you? What do you want?” she asked.
“Can I have my photographs, please?” I said.
“Your photographs? I have no photographs,” the woman replied.
“I came here on Tuesday. Where is the photographs?” I asked.
“He’s out. He’s not here.” And the woman closed the door.
I shouted at her, “I’m waiting here for him.”
After a long time the photographer came back. He looked tired and he smelt of beer. “Give me my photographs, “ I said. “I have waited a long time for you.”
The photographer looked at me and said, “I don’t know you, old man. What photographr are you talking about?”
“My three photographs for my Identity Card. I paid you two pounds for them on Tuesday. Give me my photographs immediately or my money.”
“Your photographs? Your money? What are you talking about?” the photographer said.
“Show me the paper. Show me the receipt for your money.”
“My receipt? I asked.
“Yes. Where is your receipt?” the photographer asked.
“You didn’t give me a receipt,” I shouted. “Give me my photographer or my money immediately.” And I hit the photographer hard with my stick. I am old , But still strong.
The photographer fell on the ground. He shouted, “Help! Help! This old man is killing me.” And I hit him hard again.
Lots of people ran out of their houses. I hit the photographer again and two men held me.
I could not get away from the two men.
The photographer was very angry and I was very angry. Lots of people were shouting. Then a policeman came. The photographer shouted to the policeman, “This old man hit me three times with his stick. He’s a thief and a murderer. He wants my money.”
The policeman held my arm and said “Come with me to the police station.” I did not say anything. We walked to the police station. At the police station, the policemen asked me “Did you hit that man three times?”
“Yes,” I said, “he didn’t give me my photographs.”
“Show me your Identity Card,” said the policeman.
“ I am Adam of Minta village, “ I replied, “ and I haven’t got an Identity Card.”
“Old man,” said the policeman. “Go back to your village. Don’t come here and fight. Keep our of Darpur.”
And he pushed me into the street. I went back to my village. I was tired and angry.
Chapter five
Adam Changes his Money Order
Next day I told my story to all the villagers. The villagers were angry. Martha was very unhappy.
She said,” Saul is working very hard. He is sending money and we can’t have the money.
What are we going to do?”
I did not know. Then in the evening the school teacher came to my house again.
“Adam. Perhaps I can help you, “ the school teacher said. “Here is a letter to Mr Sheth.” “Mr?” I said, “Who is he?”
“He’s an important man in Darpur and he’s a friend of my wife’s cousin,” replied the school teacher. “This letter is to Mr Sheth. The letter is about your money order. Perhaps he can help you.”
I took the letter and thanked the school teacher.
So I travelled to Darpur again on Saturday, for the third time. After a long time, I found Mr Sheth’s house.
The door was opened by a tall man. “Can I see Mr Sheth?” I asked.
“And who are you ?” the tall man asked. I have a letter for Mr Sheth ,” I replied. “I see. Can I have the letter, please?” And the tall man held out his hand.
“The letter is here,” I said. And I took the letter out of my pocket. “But I must see Mr Sheth.”
“Many people want to see Mr Sheth ,” the tall man told me. “He is a very busy man and a very important man. Mr Sheth is not here at the moment. But give me your letter, and Mr Sheth will read it later.”
I gave the tall man the letter. Then I waited. Later, a large black car came and a men went into the house. A long time later, the tall man opened the door again.
“Come in now, please, and follow me,” he said.
I followed the tall man. We went into a large room with fine carpets and big chairs. Another man was in the room. He was drinking.
“This is Mr Sheth,” said the tall man. “I am Adam of Minta village,” I replied.
“Yes, I know,” said Mr Sheth. “Thank you for the letter. I hope I can help you. I like to help people. Please, sit down.” Mr Sheth smiled. His clothes were new and smart.
“Thank you, “ I said.
“Can I see the money order, please?” Mr Sheth asked.
I took the money order out of my pocket.
By now, the money order was dirty and looked very old. I gave it to Mr Sheth.
“This money order is for one hundred pounds,” I said.” My son sent it from a foreign country.”
Mr Sheth unfolded the money order and looked at it. “You can’t change this money order,” he said. “This money order is not worth one hundred pounds. This money is worth nothing
“Worth nothing! Worthless?“ I asked.
Then Mr Sheth looked at the money order again. “Yes, worthless. Your son does not understand about money orders. This money order is not correct for our country,”
Mr Sheth said. Then he looked at the money order again and said, “And this money order is also old. It is out-of-date.”.
I said nothing. Mr Sheth gave me the money order back. Then Mr Sheth smiled and said, I am very sorry. You are an old man. You came a long way from your village. What can I give you to eat and drink?”
I was not hungry. But Mr Sheth went out of the room. Then he brought me some coffee and some cakes. I drank my coffee.
“Old man,” said Mr Sheth, “ I like to help people. I am a rich man. Give me your money order.”
I gave my money order to Mr Sheth. “Yes, this money order is worthless,” he said again.
“But I am going to help you. I am going to change this money order for you. I am going to give you some money.”
Mr Sheth went out of the room. I felt very happy again. After a few minutes, the tall man came into the room. He gave me an envelope. “This is from Mr Sheth. You can go now,” the tall man said.
I went out of the house. I walked along the road to the bus station. I opened the envelope and I took out my money.
I counted the money. It was ten pounds. I thought about my only son, Saul.
My son, Saul, had sent me a money order for one hundred pounds. Mr Sheth had given me ten pounds. I felt old and I felt poor again.
— THE END –
Source: vocab.today
Short story in English Free Download — Rich Man, Poor Man book PDF
Short story in English TOP SITES
- themanual.com — short story in english
It’s been argued by many writers that penning a good short story is much harder than writing an entire novel. With the latter, there’s plenty of space to unpack character, theme, and plot. With a short story, however, every word counts. The best short stories speak volumes within a few slim pages.CONTENTS
- The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe
- The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
- The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
- The Dead by James Joyce
To that end, there are a smattering of short stories that stand out from the crowd. Admittedly, it is difficult to call them the best short stories because quality is subjective. But rest assured that those you’ll find recommended here are almost universally considered some of the most important little works of literature ever thanks to some combination of their revolutionary style, timeless storytelling, or influence on nearly all writers to follow.
Some of these are classic tales that have been beloved for decades while others are from current authors who are still breaking literary ground today, but they are truly great short stories one and all.
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Short story in english Best Short Stories and Collections Everyone Should Read
short story in english If you are on the lookout for great storytelling but don’t want to commit to a full-length novel, then short story collections are the answer. Whether it’s just before bed, during your commute, or waiting to see your doctor, small chunks of time are perfect for reading short stories.
Here we have gathered thirty-one of the best short stories and collections, from all sorts of backgrounds and sources, to help you grow your “To Be Read” pile short story in english.
For your convenience, we’ve divided this post into two parts: 1. the ten best free short stories to read right now, and 2. best short story collections. Feel free to jump to the section that you prefer!
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the number of great short stories out there, you can also take our short story in english 30-second quiz below to narrow it down quickly and get a personalized short story recommendation 😉
Free Short Stories to Read Right Now
These individual short stories are the best of the best — and the even better news is that they’re available for free online for you to peruse. From classics published in the 1900s to a short story that exploded in late 2017, here are ten of the greatest free short stories for you to read.
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1. “Lamb to the Slaughter” by Roald Dahl-short story in english
While not exactly a philosophical or political tale like our first two examples, this twisty short story from Dahl does delve into some shady moral territory. We are introduced to Mary Maloney: a loving wife and dedicated homemaker. In just a few short paragraphs describing how she welcomes her husband home, Dahl makes us sympathize with Mary — before a rash act turns her life upside down and takes the reader with her on a dark journey.
short story in english For those who haven’t read it, we won’t spoil the rest. However, it’s safe to say that Dahl serves up a fiendish twist on a platter.
Short stories in English for beginners pdf
2. “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
A perennial feature in many a high school syllabus, Shirley Jackson’s best-known short story clinically details an unusual ritual that takes place in a small town. There’s not exactly a lot of plot to spoil in The Lottery — but within a few short pages, Jackson manages to represent the mob mentality that can drive reasonable people to short story in english commit heinous acts.
3. “How to Become a Writer” by Lorrie Moore
Told in the second person point of view, this story from Moore’s debut anthology Self-Help takes an honest look at the inner life of a struggling artist. Through the use of an unusual POV, the author manages to turn her reader into a confidante — making short story in english it abundantly clear that the ‘you’ the narrator is speaking about is actually herself.
This story is a standout, but the entire collection is well worth a read for its insight, humor, and disregard for literary norms.
4. “Cat Person” by Kristen Roupenian
In the Social Media Age, no short story has gone viral the way this New Yorker contribution from Roupenian has. Arriving at the height of #MeToo, it begins with 20-year-old Margot embarking on the early stages of flirtation with an older man, Robert. As she gets to know more about this man (as well as filling in the gaps with her short story in english imagination), the power dynamic in their relationship starts to fluctuate.
Lauded for its portrayal of Margot’s inner life and the fears many modern women face when it comes to dating, it also has its fair share of detractors — many are critical of the central character, some are downright outraged by the story’s success. Still, this story undeniably struck a chord with the reading public, and will likely short story in english remain relevant for some time.
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5. “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver
First published in The Atlantic Monthly in 1981, “Cathedral” is today known as one of Raymond Carver’s finest works. When it opens, we meet a narrator whose wife is expecting a visit from an old friend, a blind man. Dissatisfied and distrusting of people not like him, our narrator struggles to connect until the blind man asks him to describe a cathedral to him.
“Cathedral” is one of Carver’s own personal favorites, and deservedly so. His characteristic minimalist style is devastating as the story builds up to a shattering moment of emotional truth — short story in english an ultimate reminder that no-one else can capture the quiet sadness of working-class people like him.
Short stories in English for students
6. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor
Innocuously titled, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is nevertheless Flannery O’Connor’s bleakest — and most famous — work. It begins unassumingly with a Southern family who’s planning to go on a road trip. Yet the journey is rudely interrupted when their short story in english car overturns on an abandoned dirt road — and they are met by an enigmatic group of three men, coming up over the far hill.
This short story inspired some strong reactions from the public upon publication — and the conversation continues today as to its frank depiction of the nature of good and evil. Again, we won’t spoil anything for you, except to say that “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is well worth your time.
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7. “Symbols and Signs” by Vladimir Nabokov
The famous author of Lolita wrote “Signs and Symbols” in 1948. Its premise is seemingly simple: an elderly short story in english couple visits their mentally ill son in the sanatorium in America. Yet their background and trials come into sharp focus as the story develops, until an explosive ending disrupts everyone’s peace of mind.
As you might expect, the somber “Symbols and Signs” diverges sharply from Lolita in terms of both tone and subject — but its ending will keep you awake at night thinking about its implications.
BEST Short story in english
8. “Sticks” by George Saunders
Not so much a short story as it is flash fiction, “Sticks” is written from the perspective of a young man whose father has an unusual habit: dressing up a crucifix that’s built of out a metal pole in the yard. One of America’s greatest living short story writers, George short story in english Saunders explained: «For two years I’d been driving past a house like the one in the story, imagining the owner as a man more joyful and self-possessed and less self-conscious than myself. Then one day I got sick of him and invented his opposite, and there was the story.»
The result is a masterful piece of fiction that builds something out of seemingly nothing — all in the space of only two paragraphs.
BEST Short story in english
9. “The Veldt” by Ray Bradbury
If there’s anyone who you can trust to deliver thought-provoking, terrifying science fiction on the regular, it’s Ray Bradbury. In “The Veldt,” George and Lydia Hadley have bought an automated house that comes with a “nursey,” or a virtual reality room. Worried about the nursery’s effect on the kids, George and Lydia think about turning off the nursey — but the problem is that their children are obsessed with it.
As an ominously prescient short story in english prediction of the downside of technology, “The Veldt” is a short and shining example of how Ray Bradbury was an author before his time.
BEST Short story in english
10. “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes
In this classic short story, we are privy to the journals of Charlie Gordon, a cleaner with an IQ of 68. («I reely wantd to lern I wantid it more even then pepul who are smarter even then me. All my life I wantid to be smart and not dumb.”) Charlie’s luck changes when he is selected for an experiment that purports to turn him into a genius — but everything that goes up must come down in the end.
“Flowers for Algernon” won the Hugo Award in short story in english 1960 for its groundbreaking presentation. Heartbreaking and rich with subtle poignance, it is likely to remain a staple for centuries to come.
3. wealthygorilla.com— short story in english
Stories that have morals and messages behind them are always powerful. In fact, it’s crazy just how powerful a 200 word story can be.
Our last article of short stories became so popular, that we decided to create another list, in which every story has a simple moral behind it.
4. theguardian.com— short story in english
- “The Tribute” by Jane Gardam (1980)
John McGahern and Annie Proulx are among my favourite authors, but to dispel gloom I choose this story from Jane Gardam’s 1980 collection The Sidmouth Letters. Reading this gleeful story in my expatriate days, I recognised the cast of “diplomatic wives”, trailing inebriate husbands through the ruins of empire. Mostly dialogue, it is a deft, witty tale in which a small kindness – though not by a diplomatic wife – pays off 40 years later. I must have read it a dozen times, to see how its note is sustained and the surprise is sprung; every time it makes me smile with delight. Hilary Mantel
“The Stone Boy” by Gina Berriault (1957)
This great and underrated masterpiece is a meditation on good and evil and especially about the way that people’s expectations and assumptions about us may wear us down and eventually force us into compliance with their view. But it is a much deeper and more biblical story than that and, like any great work of art, resists reduction. Berriault, who died in 1999, is known as a San Francisco writer. A wonderful sampling of her stories is available in Women in Their Beds: New & Selected Stories. George Saunders
“The Love of a Good Woman” by Alice Munro (1998)
Among the handful of short stories closest to my heart, I’ve chosen “The Love of a Good Woman” by Canadian writer Munro, from her 1998 collection of that name. It’s about a murder – probably it’s a murder, because nothing is certain – and a love match that depends on keeping that murder secret. Like so many of Munro’s stories, this one has the scope of a novel yet never feels hurried or crowded. The sociology of a small town in rural Ontario is caught on the wing in the loose weave of her narration; the story takes in whole lifetimes, and yet its pace is also exquisitely slow, carrying us deep inside particular moments. A woman moves among the willows beside a river at night, making up her mind. Tessa Hadley
5. owlcation.com-short story in english
Howard is an avid short story reader who likes to help others find and understand stories.
Here is a selection of some of the best, most anthologized short stories ever. No doubt you’ll find many familiar titles here, but I hope you also discover something new.
These narratives are sterling examples of the short story form. They have endured, bringing enjoyment to readers for many years.
Most of them are part of the literary canon. You’ll have no trouble finding explanatory notes and analysis for these titles if you want to go deeper. But if that’s not for you, don’t let it put you off reading these stories. They can be enjoyed on their own.
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry
Della, a young married woman, has managed to save a dollar and eighty-seven cents. It’s Christmas tomorrow; she wants to get her husband a nice present. She’s distraught, knowing that she’s well short of the amount she needs. Before going out, she looks at her long, beautiful hair in the mirror.
This story can be read in the preview of The Gift of the Magi and Other Stories. (37% into preview)
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
A small village is preparing for its annual summer tradition—a lottery. It’s a very important event, done to ensure a good harvest. The children gather excitedly, followed by the adults. When everyone is present, the village’s civic leader, Mr. Summers, gets things started.
This story can be read in the preview of Brave New Worlds: Dystopian Stories. (10% in)
The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe
A man claims that a disease had sharpened his senses and that he isn’t mad. He was seized with a desire to kill an old man. The man hadn’t wronged him in any way, nor was material gain his motive. It was the old man’s eye—pale blue with a film over it—that drove him to act.
Read The Tell-Tale Heart
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
A woman going through some difficulties is confined to a room in a colonial mansion. Both her husband and brother are physicians, and they agree on the diagnosis—nervous depression and a slight hysterical tendency. She’s to have no excitement and do no work until she’s better. She disagrees, but all she can do is a little secret writing.
The curation of this content is at the discretion of the author, and not necessarily reflective of the views of Encyclopaedia Britannica or its editorial staff.
For the most accurate and up-to-date information, consult individual encyclopedia entries about the topics.
Literary critics, historians, avid readers, and even casual readers will all have different opinions on which novel is truly the “greatest book ever written.” Is it a novel with beautiful, captivating figurative language? Or one with gritty realism? A novel that has had an immense social impact? Or one that has more subtly affected the world? Here is a list of 12 novels that, for various reasons, have been considered some of the greatest works of literature ever written.
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Anna Karenina
Greta Garbo in Anna KareninaMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Any fan of stories that involve juicy subjects like adultery, gambling, marriage plots, and, well, Russian feudalism, would instantly place Anna Karenina at the peak of their “greatest novels” list. And that’s exactly the ranking that publications like Time magazine have given the novel since it was published in its entirety in 1878. Written by Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, the eight-part towering work of fiction tells the story of two major characters: a tragic, disenchanted housewife, the titular Anna, who runs off with her young lover, and a lovestruck landowner named Konstantin Levin, who struggles in faith and philosophy. Tolstoy molds together thoughtful discussions on love, pain, and family in Russian society with a sizable cast of characters regarded for their realistic humanity. The novel was especially revolutionary in its treatment of women, depicting prejudices and social hardships of the time with vivid emotion.
Get Your Copy
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To Kill a Mockingbird
To Kill a MockingbirdGrand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group Harper Lee, believed to be one of the most influential authors to have ever existed, famously published only a single novel (up until its controversial sequel was published in 2015 just before her death). Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird was published in 1960 and became an immediate classic of literature. The novel examines racism in the American South through the innocent wide eyes of a clever young girl named Jean Louise (“Scout”) Finch. Its iconic characters, most notably the sympathetic and just lawyer and father Atticus Finch, served as role models and changed perspectives in the United States at a time when tensions regarding race were high. To Kill a Mockingbird earned the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1961 and was made into an Academy Award-winning film in 1962, giving the story and its characters further life and influence over the American social sphere.
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The Great Gatsby
F. Scott FitzgeraldPublic Domain F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is distinguished as one of the greatest texts for introducing students to the art of reading literature critically (which means you may have read it in school). The novel is told from the perspective of a young man named Nick Carraway who has recently moved to New York City and is befriended by his eccentric nouveau riche neighbor with mysterious origins, Jay Gatsby. The Great Gatsby provides an insider’s look into the Jazz Age of the 1920s in United States history while at the same time critiquing the idea of the “American Dream.” Perhaps the most famous aspect of the novel is its cover art—a piercing face projected onto a dark blue night sky and lights from a cityscape—an image that is also found, in a slightly different configuration, within the text itself as a key symbol.
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One Hundred Years of Solitude
Gabriel García Márquez© Lutfi Ozkok The late Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez published his most famous work, One Hundred Years of Solitude, in 1967. The novel tells the story of seven generations of the Buendía family and follows the establishment of their town Macondo until its destruction along with the last of the family’s descendents. In fantastical form, the novel explores the genre of magic realism by emphasizing the extraordinary nature of commonplace things while mystical things are shown to be common. Márquez highlights the prevalence and power of myth and folktale in relating history and Latin American culture. The novel won many awards for Márquez, leading the way to his eventual honor of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982 for his entire body of work, of which One Hundred Years of Solitude is often lauded as his most triumphant.
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A Passage to India
A Passage to IndiaColumbia Pictures E.M. Forster wrote his novel A Passage to India after multiple trips to the country throughout his early life. The book was published in 1924 and follows a Muslim Indian doctor named Aziz and his relationships with an English professor, Cyril Fielding, and a visiting English schoolteacher named Adela Quested. When Adela believes that Aziz has assaulted her while on a trip to the Marabar caves near the fictional city of Chandrapore, where the story is set, tensions between the Indian community and the colonial British community rise. The possibility of friendship and connection between English and Indian people, despite their cultural differences and imperial tensions, is explored in the conflict. The novel’s colorful descriptions of nature, the landscape of India, and the figurative power that they are given within the text solidifies it as a great work of fiction.
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Invisible Man
Ralph EllisonEncyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Often confused with H.G. Wells’s science-fiction novella of nearly the same name (just subtract a “The”), Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man is a groundbreaking novel in the expression of identity for the African American male. The narrator of the novel, a man who is never named but believes he is “invisible” to others socially, tells the story of his move from the South to college and then to New York City. In each location he faces extreme adversity and discrimination, falling into and out of work, relationships, and questionable social movements in a wayward and ethereal mindset. The novel is renowned for its surreal and experimental style of writing that explores the symbolism surrounding African American identity and culture. Invisible Man won the U.S. National Book Award for Fiction in 1953.
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Don Quixote
Don QuixoteProject Gutenberg Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote, perhaps the most influential and well-known work of Spanish literature, was first published in full in 1615. The novel, which is very regularly regarded as one of the best literary works of all time, tells the story of a man who takes the name “Don Quixote de la Mancha” and sets off in a fit of obsession over romantic novels about chivalry to revive the custom and become a hero himself. The character of Don Quixote has become an idol and somewhat of an archetypal character, influencing many major works of art, music, and literature since the novel’s publication. The text has been so influential that a word, quixotic, based on the Don Quixote character, was created to describe someone who is, “foolishly impractical especially in the pursuit of ideals; especially: marked by rash lofty romantic ideas or extravagantly chivalrous action.”
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Beloved
Toni MorrisonBernard Gotfryd Photograph Collection, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (reproduction no. LC-DIG-gtfy-02425) Toni Morrison’s 1987 spiritual and haunting novel Beloved tells the story of an escaped slave named Sethe who has fled to Cincinnati, Ohio, in the year 1873. The novel investigates the trauma of slavery even after freedom has been gained, depicting Sethe’s guilt and emotional pain after having killed her own child, whom she named Beloved, to keep her from living life as a slave. A spectral figure appears in the lives of the characters and goes by the same name as the child, embodying the family’s anguish and hardship and making their feelings and past unavoidable. The novel was lauded for addressing the psychological effects of slavery and the importance of family and community in healing. Beloved was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1988.
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Mrs. Dalloway
Virginia WoolfNew York World-Telegram & Sun Collection/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (neg. no. LC-USZ62-111438) Possibly the most idiosyncratic novel of this list, Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway describes exactly one day in the life of a British socialite named Clarissa Dalloway. Using a combination of a third-person narration and the thoughts of various characters, the novel uses a stream-of-consciousness style all the way through. The result of this style is a deeply personal and revealing look into the characters’ minds, with the novel relying heavily on character rather than plot to tell its story. The thoughts of the characters include constant regrets and thoughts of the past, their struggles with mental illness and post-traumatic stress from World War I, and the effect of social pressures. The novel’s unique style, subject, and time setting make it one of the most respected and regarded works of all time.
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Things Fall Apart
Chinua AchebeZUMAPRESS.com— Keystone Pictures/age fotostock The Western canon of “great literature” often focuses on writers who come from North America or Europe and often ignores accomplished writers and amazing works of literature from other parts of the world. Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, published in 1958, is one such work of Nigerian literature that had to overcome the bias of some literary circles and one that has been able to gain recognition worldwide despite it. The novel follows an Igbo man named Okonkwo, describing his family, the village in Nigeria where he lives, and the effects of British colonialism on his native country. The novel is an example of African postcolonial literature, a genre that has grown in size and recognition since the mid-1900s as African people have been able to share their often unheard stories of imperialism from the perspective of the colonized. The novel is frequently assigned for reading in courses on world literature and African studies.
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Jane Eyre
Jane Eyre Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, another novel often assigned for reading in school, was initially published in 1847 under the pseudonym Currer Bell to disguise the fact that the writer was a woman. Fortunately, a lot has changed with regard to women in literature since 1847, and Brontë now receives the credit she deserves for one of the most groundbreaking novels about women in history. At a time when the author felt compelled to hide her true identity, Jane Eyre provided a story of individualism for women. The novel’s eponymous character rises from being orphaned and poor into a successful and independent woman. The work combines themes from both Gothic and Victorian literature, revolutionizing the art of the novel by focusing on the growth in Jane’s sensibility with internalized action and writing.
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The Color Purple
Alice WalkerBrad Barket/Getty Images Though the epistolary novel (a novel in the form of letters written by one or more characters) was most popular before the 19th century, Alice Walker became a champion of the style with her 1982 novel The Color Purple, which won a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award. Set in the post-Civil War American South, the novel follows a young African American girl named Celie into adulthood in letters she writes to God and to her sister Nettie. Celie faces sexual abuse by her father and eventually her husband, chronicling her own suffering and growth as well as that of her friends and family. The novel explores themes of sexism, racism, gender, sexual orientation, and disability through its grouping of disadvantaged and damaged characters who, over time, grow to shape their own lives. The story was adapted into an Academy Award-nominated film in 1985 that, despite widespread critical acclaim, was notoriously snubbed of all 11 awards it was nominated for.
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1. Don Quixote Miguel De Cervantes
The story of the gentle knight and his servant Sancho Panza has entranced readers for centuries.
Harold Bloom on Don Quixote – the first modern novel
2. Pilgrim’s Progress John Bunyan
The one with the Slough of Despond and Vanity Fair.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Pilgrim’s Progress
3. Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe
The first English novel.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Robinson Crusoe
4. Gulliver’s Travels Jonathan Swift
A wonderful satire that still works for all ages, despite the savagery of Swift’s vision.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Gulliver’s Travels
7. Tristram Shandy Laurence Sterne
One of the first bestsellers, dismissed by Dr Johnson as too fashionable for its own good.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman
8. Dangerous Liaisons Pierre Choderlos De Laclos
An epistolary novel and a handbook for seducers: foppish, French, and ferocious.
Jason Cowley on the many incarnations of Dangerous Liaisons
9. Emma Jane Austen
Near impossible choice between this and Pride and Prejudice. But Emma never fails to fascinate and annoy.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Emma
10. Frankenstein Mary Shelley
Inspired by spending too much time with Shelley and Byron.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Frankenstein
11. Nightmare Abbey Thomas Love Peacock
A classic miniature: a brilliant satire on the Romantic novel.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Nightmare Abbey
12. The Black Sheep Honoré De Balzac
Two rivals fight for the love of a femme fatale. Wrongly overlooked.
Balzac drank 50 cups of coffee a day: Daily Rituals of Creative Minds
Jason Bourke on France’s tradition of art imitating life
Nick Lezard on a translated collection of short stories and Balzac’s influence on other literary greats
13. The Charterhouse of Parma Stendhal
Penetrating and compelling chronicle of life in an Italian court in post-Napoleonic France.
The Charterhouse of Parma — review
14. The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas
A revenge thriller also set in France after Bonaparte: a masterpiece of adventure writing.
Dumas’s five best novels
15. Sybil Benjamin Disraeli
Apart from Churchill, no other British political figure shows literary genius.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Sybil
16. David Copperfield Charles Dickens
This highly autobiographical novel is the one its author liked best.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: David Copperfield
17. Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë
Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff have passed into the language. Impossible to ignore.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Wuthering Heights
18. Jane Eyre Charlotte Brontë
Obsessive emotional grip and haunting narrative.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Jane Eyre
19. Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray
The improving tale of Becky Sharp.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Vanity Fair
20. The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne
A classic investigation of the American mind.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Scarlet Letter
21. Moby-Dick Herman Melville
‘Call me Ishmael’ is one of the most famous opening sentences of any novel.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Moby-Dick
24. Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland Lewis Carroll
A story written for the nine-year-old daughter of an Oxford don that still baffles most kids.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
25. Little Women Louisa M. Alcott
Victorian bestseller about a New England family of girls.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Little Women
26. The Way We Live Now Anthony Trollope
A majestic assault on the corruption of late Victorian England.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Way We Live Now
27. Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy
The supreme novel of the married woman’s passion for a younger man.
Rereading Anna Karenina, by James Meek
28. Daniel Deronda George Eliot
A passion and an exotic grandeur that is strange and unsettling.
A new novel from George Eliot — the Guardian’s first review of Daniel Deronda, from 1876
29. The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoevsky
Mystical tragedy by the author of Crime and Punishment.
Stuart Jeffries on the incorrect title
In Pictures: Readers suggest the 10 best long reads
Author snapshot: Fyodor Dostoevky
30. The Portrait of a Lady Henry James
The story of Isabel Archer shows James at his witty and polished best.
Profound and flawed: Claire Messud on rereading The Portrait of a Lady
Hermione Lee on the biography of a novel that changed literature
31. Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain
Twain was a humorist, but this picture of Mississippi life is profoundly moral and still incredibly influential.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels — Huckleberry Finn
32. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson
A brilliantly suggestive, resonant study of human duality by a natural storyteller.
Ian Rankin on The Strange Story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
33. Three Men in a Boat Jerome K. Jerome
One of the funniest English books ever written.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels — Three Men in a Boat
36. Jude the Obscure Thomas Hardy
Its savage bleakness makes it one of the first twentieth-century novels.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Jude the Obscure
37. The Riddle of the Sands Erskine Childers
A prewar invasion-scare spy thriller by a writer later shot for his part in the Irish republican rising.
Classics Corner — The Riddle of the Sands
38. The Call of the Wild Jack London
The story of a dog who joins a pack of wolves after his master’s death.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Call of the Wild
39. Nostromo Joseph Conrad
Conrad’s masterpiece: a tale of money, love and revolutionary politics.
Chinua Achebe and Caryl Phillips discuss the case against Conrad
40. The Wind in the Willows Kenneth Grahame
This children’s classic was inspired by bedtime stories for Grahame’s son.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Wind in the Willows
41. In Search of Lost Time Marcel Proust
An unforgettable portrait of Paris in the belle époque. Probably the longest novel on this list.
Melvyn Bragg rereads In Search of Lost Time
42. The Rainbow D. H. Lawrence
Novels seized by the police, like this one, have a special afterlife.
Rachel Cusk rereads The Rainbow
Adam Thorpe on The Rainbow
43. The Good Soldier Ford Madox Ford
This account of the adulterous lives of two Edwardian couples is a classic of unreliable narration.
Jane Smiley on The Good Soldier, stylistic perfection
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Good Soldier
44. The Thirty-Nine Steps John Buchan
A classic adventure story for boys, jammed with action, violence and suspense.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Thirty-Nine Steps
45. Ulysses James Joyce
Also pursued by the British police, this is a novel more discussed than read.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Ulysses
46. Mrs Dalloway Virginia Woolf
Secures Woolf’s position as one of the great twentieth-century English novelists.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Mrs Dalloway
47. A Passage to India EM Forster
Forster’s great love song to India.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: A Passage to India
Damon Galgut on the unrequited love at the heart of A Passage to India
48. The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
The quintessential Jazz Age novel.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Great Gatsby
What makes Gatsby great? by Sarah Churchwell
49. The Trial Franz Kafka
The enigmatic story of Joseph K.
John Banville on the story behind Kafka’s great novel of judgment and retribution
50. Men Without Women Ernest Hemingway
He is remembered for his novels, but it was the short stories that first attracted notice.
Chis Power salutes some of the greatest short stories ever written
51. Journey to the End of the Night Louis-Ferdinand Celine
The experiences of an unattractive slum doctor during the Great War: a masterpiece of linguistic innovation.
Tibor Fischer on Celine’s journey to the cutting edge of literature
Celine: great author and absolute bastard
52. As I Lay Dying William Faulkner
A strange black comedy by an American master.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: As I Lay Dying
Alison Flood on the anniversary edition of The Sound and the Fury in coloured ink
53. Brave New World Aldous Huxley
Dystopian fantasy about the world of the seventh century AF (after Ford).
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Brave New World
Read the original Guardian review from 1932
54. Scoop Evelyn Waugh
The supreme Fleet Street novel.
Ann Pasternak Slater on the journalistic experiences that shaped Waugh’s novel
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Scoop
55. USA John Dos Passos
An extraordinary trilogy that uses a variety of narrative devices to express the story of America.
Charlotte Jones on New York in books
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Nineteen Nineteen (the second book in the trilogy)
56. The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler
Introducing Philip Marlowe: cool, sharp, handsome — and bitterly alone.
John Dugdale on Chandler’s crime-writing revolution
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: The Big Sleep
57. The Pursuit Of Love Nancy Mitford
An exquisite comedy of manners with countless fans.
Olivia Laing on Mitford’s genius wicked humour
58. The Plague Albert Camus
A mysterious plague sweeps through the Algerian town of Oran.
Marina Warner’s review of The Plague
Tony Judt on the man behind the novel
Ed Vulliamy on The Plague, 55 Years later
59. Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
This tale of one man’s struggle against totalitarianism has been appropriated the world over.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Nineteen Eighty-Four
Sam Jordison discusses Will Self’s criticism of Nineteen Eighty-Four
From the Archives: the original review from 1949
60. Malone Dies Samuel Beckett
Part of a trilogy of astonishing monologues in the black comic voice of the author of Waiting for Godot.
Robert McCrum’s 100 best novels: Murphy (the first part of the trilogy)
Keith Ridgway rereads his favourite Beckett
Peter Conrad and Philip Hensher review the Collected Letters, vols 1 and 2
61. Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger
A week in the life of Holden Caulfield. A cult novel that still mesmerises.
Ten things you should know about The Catcher in the Rye
Stephen Bates on the possible sequel to The Catcher in the Rye
David Barnett offers his take on the controversy
Anne Roiphen rereads Salinger’s novel
62. Wise Blood Flannery O’Connor
A disturbing novel of religious extremism set in the Deep South.
The Reading Group takes on O’Connor’s debut
Peter Wild takes a look at O’Connor’s cartoons
Is Flannery O’Connor a Catholic writer?
63. Charlotte’s Web EB White
How Wilbur the pig was saved by the literary genius of a friendly spider.
John Updike on EB White
Stephen Amidon remains enchanted with Charlotte’s Web 50 years after its publication
Alison Flood on the spider that inspired Charlotte’s Web
64. The Lord Of The Rings J. R. R. Tolkien
Enough said!
Claire Armitstead remembers reading The Lord of the Rings in Lagos
Visuals: The Lord of the Rings family tree and demographics chart
Sarah Crown’s guide to The Lord of the Rings
65. Lucky Jim Kingsley Amis
An astonishing debut: the painfully funny English novel of the Fifties.
Olivia Laing on not reading Amis on the bus
John Mullan analyses Lucky Jim for the Guardian Book Club
John Crace «digests» Lucky Jim for the Guardian Podcast
66. Lord of the Flies William Golding
Schoolboys become savages: a bleak vision of human nature.
Writers’ desktops: William Golding’s former home in pictures
Steven Morris on the composition history of Lord of the Flies
67. The Quiet American Graham Greene
Prophetic novel set in 1950s Vietnam.
Zadie Smith on the genius of Graham Greene
Terry Eagleton reviews the collected letters of Graham Greene
68 On the Road Jack Kerouac
The Beat Generation bible.
Read more about Kerouac and his coterie in the Beats week special
David Mills’ response to Beats Week
69. Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
Humbert Humbert’s obsession with Lolita is a tour de force of style and narrative.
From the archives: Lolita and its critics
David Lodge on Nabokov’s sexual style
Baddies in Books: Humbert Humbert
70. The Tin Drum Günter Grass
Hugely influential, Rabelaisian novel of Hitler’s Germany.
The Tin Drum summarised the 20th century in three words
Jonathan Steele on Grass’s influence on Germay’s conscience
A life in writing: Günter Grass by Maya Jaggi
71. Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe
Nigeria at the beginning of colonialism. A classic of African literature.
Read the first page of Achebe’s great novel here
Nadine Gordimer remembers Achebe
Chinua Achebe in pictures
72. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Muriel Spark
A writer who made her debut in The Observer — and her prose is like cut glass.
James Wood on Muriel Spark
Muriel Spark didn’t just write novels. Adam Mars-Jones reviews Spark’s short stories
Martin Stannard writes about the influence of Spark’s life on her fiction
73. To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee
Scout, a six-year-old girl, narrates an enthralling story of racial prejudice in the Deep South.
To Kill A Mockingbird has been in and out of classrooms for decades. Read John Sutherland on Lee’s and other American classics
74. Catch-22 Joseph Heller
‘He would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn’t, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn’t have to; if he didn’t want to he was sane and had to.’
Stephen Bates on surprises in Heller’s Letters
Chris Cox reads Catch-22 fifty years after its publication
75. Herzog Saul Bellow
Adultery and nervous breakdown in Chicago.
Alex Clark reviews Bellow’s short stories
John Crace ‘digests’ Herzog
James Wood on Saul Bellow
76. One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel García Márquez
A postmodern masterpiece.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez — 5 Must reads
Gabriel García Márquez — a life in pictures
From the archive: the 1970 review of One Hundred Years of Solitude
One Hundred Years of Solitude tops world literature polls
77. Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont Elizabeth Taylor
A haunting, understated study of old age.
Charlotte Mendelssohn celebrates the other Liz Taylor’s short stories
Read Natasha Tripney’s review of an early novel here
78. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy John Le Carré
A thrilling elegy for post-imperial Britain.
William Boyd on the A-Z of Tinker, Tailor
The Reading Group discusses Tinker, Tailor and the spy novel genre
79. Song of Solomon Toni Morrison
The definitive novelist of the African-American experience.
Take the Toni Morrison quiz
Morrison on America, by Rachel Cooke
Read interviews with Morrison here and here
80. The Bottle Factory Outing Beryl Bainbridge
Macabre comedy of provincial life.
Laura Potter interviews Beryl Bainbridge at 74
Kate Kellaway on Bainbridge’s art beyond writing
Alex Clark asks, which is Bainbridge’s best novel?
Beryl Bainbridge earns a Booker at last
81. The Executioner’s Song Norman Mailer
This quasi-documentary account of the life and death of Gary Gilmore is possibly his masterpiece.
Dead Calm: Gordon Burn rereads The Executioner’s Song
Alpha Mailer: McCrum meets Mailer
Jay Parini weighs up Mailer’s journalistic and novelistic qualitites
82. If on a Winter’s Night a Traveller Italo Calvino
A strange, compelling story about the pleasures of reading.
John Sutherland (and quite a few Guardian readers) just can’t get to the end of the novel
David Mitchell thinks back on Calvino’s novel about writing
Chris Power writes about Calvino’s short fiction
Ian Thomson reviews the new collection of Calvino’s letters
83. A Bend in the River VS Naipaul
The finest living writer of English prose. This is his masterpiece: edgily reminiscent of Heart of Darkness.
Robert McCrum’s World of Books column on Naipaul
Naipaul as the summer read of 2008
The Shadow of Empire: DJ Taylor’s look at recent post-colonial novels
84. Waiting for the Barbarians JM Coetzee
Bleak but haunting allegory of apartheid by the Nobel prizewinner.
James Meek writes about Coetzee’s alter-egos
Rory Carroll on the South African novelist who’s unread at home
The Voice of Africa: Robert McCrum on Coetzee
85. Housekeeping Marilynne Robinson
Haunting, poetic story, drowned in water and light, about three generations of women.
Notes to Self: Robinson and others look back on their work
Read Emma Brockes’s interviews here
Marilynne Robinson talks to Robert McCrum
John Mullan on Housekeeping
86. Lanark Alasdair Gray
Seething vision of Glasgow. A Scottish classic.
Janice Galloway rereads Lanark
William Boyd on Lanark at 25
John Mullan considers Lanark’s cover for the Guardian Book Club
An interview with the ‘Clydeside Michaelangelo’
87. The New York Trilogy Paul Auster
Dazzling metaphysical thriller set in the Manhattan of the 1970s.
Hadley Freedman interviews Paul Auster about New York
Alison Flood in conversation with Paul Auster
Charlotte Jones on New York in literature
88. The BFG Roald Dahl
A bestseller by the most popular postwar writer for children of all ages.
Listen to Roald Dahl read from The BFG
Read about Chae Strathie’s favourite nonsense words in children’s books
Read Alison Flood’s piece on the planned film adaptation of The BFG
89. The Periodic Table Primo Levi
A prose poem about the delights of chemistry.
From the Archive: Michael Joseph’s review
Ian Thomson considers Levi’s influence on our moral history
The Periodic Table made its way into the hands of a Guardian Science journalist…
…and to the top of the Science book favourites list
90. Money Martin Amis
The novel that bags Amis’s place on any list.
Buy Money at the Guardian Bookshop
91. An Artist of the Floating World Kazuo Ishiguro
A collaborator from prewar Japan reluctantly discloses his betrayal of friends and family.
Buy An Artist of the Floating World at the Guardian Bookshop
92. Oscar And Lucinda Peter Carey
A great contemporary love story set in nineteenth-century Australia by double Booker prizewinner.
Read Angela Carter’s review of Oscar and Lucinda here…
…and find out what Sam Jordison thinks the second time around here
In Pictures: See Carey’s own annotations on his novel
Emma Brockes interviews the Booker winner
93. The Book of Laughter and Forgetting Milan Kundera
Inspired by the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, this is a magical fusion of history, autobiography and ideas.
Buy The Book of Laughter and Forgetting at the Guardian Bookshop
94. Haroun and the Sea of Stories Salman Rushdie
In this entrancing story Rushdie plays with the idea of narrative itself.
Buy Haroun and the Sea of Stories at the Guardian Bookshop
95. LA Confidential James Ellroy
Three LAPD detectives are brought face to face with the secrets of their corrupt and violent careers.
Hear Ellroy talk about the first novel in his LA quartet on the Guardian Books Podcast
Read a short interview with Ellroy here
96. Wise Children Angela Carter
A theatrical extravaganza by a brilliant exponent of magic realism.
Read an extract from Susannah Clapp’s memoir of Carter
Kit Buchan’s piece on Wise Children for the Families in Literature series
97. Atonement Ian McEwan
Acclaimed short-story writer achieves a contemporary classic of mesmerising narrative conviction.
Read the first chapter online
John Mullan writes on the weather in Atonement for the Guardian Book Club
John Sutherland’s interview with the author can be found here
Geoff Dyer is won over by Atonement, while Nick Lezard is less sure
98. Northern Lights Philip Pullman
Lyra’s quest weaves fantasy, horror and the play of ideas into a truly great contemporary children’s book.
Baddies in Books: Mrs Coulter might just be the mother of all evil
Northern Lights named the ‘Carnegie of Carnegies’
Read Kate Kellaway’s interview with Philip Pullman
99. American Pastoral Philip Roth
For years, Roth was famous for Portnoy’s Complaint . Recently, he has enjoyed an extraordinary revival.
Tim Adams’s review of American Pastoral
From our My Hero series: James Wood on Philip Roth
100. Austerlitz W. G. Sebald
Posthumously published volume in a sequence of dream-like fictions spun from memory, photographs and the German past.
Read the 2001 review of Austerlitz here
The Last Word: Maya Jaggi interviews Sebald
Robert McCrum on Sebald’s legacy
Who did we miss?
So, are you congratulating yourself on having read everything on our list or screwing the newspaper up into a ball and aiming it at the nearest bin?
Are you wondering what happened to all those American writers from Bret Easton Ellis to Jeffrey Eugenides, from Jonathan Franzen to Cormac McCarthy?
Have women been short-changed? Should we have included Pat Barker, Elizabeth Bowen, A.S. Byatt, Penelope Fitzgerald, Doris Lessing and Iris Murdoch?
What’s happened to novels in translation such as Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita, Hesse’s Siddhartha, Mishima’s The Sea of Fertility, Süskind’s Perfume and Zola’s Germinal?
Writers such as JG Ballard, Julian Barnes, Anthony Burgess, Bruce Chatwin, Robertson Davies, John Fowles, Nick Hornby, Russell Hoban, Somerset Maugham and VS Pritchett narrowly missed the final hundred. Were we wrong to lose them?
Let us know what you think. Post your own suggestions for the 100 best books on the Observer blog.