"The Nail", and Other Stories

Author: Pedro Antonio de Alarcón
Publisher: Bucknell University Press
ISBN: 9780838753613
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
In this book, eight stories written by Pedro Antonio de Alarcon have been brought together in English for the first time. The nail in "The Nail" is found driven into a disinterred skull, and if some of the events are implausible and others incredible, it is also true that there is considerable suspense and mystery. "The Cornet" draws more heavily on historical reality, with its depiction of the horror of civil war and factual detail. Noteworthy for its first-person narration and rapid-fire dialogue, "The Cornet" paints an episode of fraternal love and the power of the will. "The Orderly," although set against the same Carlist War background, has more to do with a military "attitude" than a Carlist "War", and describes the transformation effected in one officer by one orderly. The War of Independence (1808-14) was fought against Napoleon and his attempt to place his brother Joseph on the Spanish throne. After years of horrendous carnage and the Duke of Wellington's victory at Vitoria, the "Little Corporal" renounced the Spanish crown. The War of Independence stories - "The French Sympathizer" and "The Mayor of Lapeza"--Have been known to generations of Spanish readers, especially for their theme of patriotism. These two, together with "Long Live the Pope!" and "The Guardian Angel," extol the heroism and courage of the Spanish people. "The Foreigner," the story of a young Pole who had been conscripted into Napoleon's army, looks at Spain and two of her soldiers through the eyes of a Spanish muleteer.

"The Nail", and Other Stories

Author: Pedro Antonio de Alarcón
Publisher: Bucknell University Press
ISBN: 9780838753613
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 148

Get Book Here

Book Description
In this book, eight stories written by Pedro Antonio de Alarcon have been brought together in English for the first time. The nail in "The Nail" is found driven into a disinterred skull, and if some of the events are implausible and others incredible, it is also true that there is considerable suspense and mystery. "The Cornet" draws more heavily on historical reality, with its depiction of the horror of civil war and factual detail. Noteworthy for its first-person narration and rapid-fire dialogue, "The Cornet" paints an episode of fraternal love and the power of the will. "The Orderly," although set against the same Carlist War background, has more to do with a military "attitude" than a Carlist "War", and describes the transformation effected in one officer by one orderly. The War of Independence (1808-14) was fought against Napoleon and his attempt to place his brother Joseph on the Spanish throne. After years of horrendous carnage and the Duke of Wellington's victory at Vitoria, the "Little Corporal" renounced the Spanish crown. The War of Independence stories - "The French Sympathizer" and "The Mayor of Lapeza"--Have been known to generations of Spanish readers, especially for their theme of patriotism. These two, together with "Long Live the Pope!" and "The Guardian Angel," extol the heroism and courage of the Spanish people. "The Foreigner," the story of a young Pole who had been conscripted into Napoleon's army, looks at Spain and two of her soldiers through the eyes of a Spanish muleteer.

Nail and Other Stories

Nail and Other Stories PDF Author: Laura Hird
Publisher: Canongate Books
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 220

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Book Description
In this collection of short stories: a ten-year-old boy uses Edinburgh buses to escape from his dysfunctional mother and her boyfriend; a retarded youth tries to join a female gang; a dead lesbian lover can't let go; and a British soldier loses the plot.

Homeland

Homeland PDF Author: Barbara Kingsolver
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061865931
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 276

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Book Description
“Extraordinarily fine. Kingsolver has a Chekhovian tenderness toward her characters. . . . The title story is pure poetry.” —Russell Banks, New York Times Book Review With the same wit and sensitivity that have come to characterize her highly praised and beloved novels, acclaimed author Barbara Kingsolver gives us a rich and emotionally resonant collection of twelve stories. Spreading her memorable characters over landscapes ranging from Northern California to the hills of eastern Kentucky and the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, Kingsolver tells stories of hope, momentary joy, and powerful endurance. In every setting, Kingsolver's distinctive voice— at times comic, but often heartrending—rings true as she explores the twin themes of family ties and the life choices one must ultimately make alone. Homeland and Other Stories creates a world of love and possibility that readers will want to take as their own.

The Devil and Other Stories

The Devil and Other Stories PDF Author: Leo Tolstoy
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191606138
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 556

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Book Description
'It is impossible to explain why Yevgeny chose Liza Annenskaya, as it is always impossible to explain why a man chooses this and not that woman.' This collection of eleven stories spans virtually the whole of Tolstoy's creative life. While each is unique in form, as a group they are representative of his style, and touch on the central themes that surface in War and Peace and Anna Karenina. Stories as different as 'The Snowstorm', 'Lucerne', 'The Diary of a Madman', and 'The Devil' are grounded in autobiographical experience. They deal with journeys of self-discovery and the moral and religious questioning that characterizes Tolstoy's works of criticism and philosophy. 'Strider' and 'Father Sergy', as well as reflecting Tolstoy's own experiences, also reveal profound psychological insights. These stories range over much of the Russian world of the nineteenth century, from the nobility to the peasantry, the military to the clergy, from merchants and cobblers to a horse and a tree. Together they present a fascinating picture of Tolstoy's skill and artistry. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Emerald City and Other Stories

Emerald City and Other Stories PDF Author: Jennifer Egan
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1780334648
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
These eleven masterful stories - the first collection from acclaimed author Jennifer Egan - deal with loneliness and longing, regret and desire. Egan's characters, models and housewives, bankers and schoolgirls, are united by their search for something outside their own realm of experience. They set out from locations as exotic as China and Bora Bora, as cosmopolitan as downtown Manhattan, or as familiar as suburban Illinois to seek their own transformations. Elegant and poignant, the stories in Emerald City are seamless evocations of self-discovery.

Moral Disorder

Moral Disorder PDF Author: Margaret Atwood
Publisher: Emblem Editions
ISBN: 0771008678
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
In these ten dazzling interrelated stories Atwood traces the course of a life and also the lives intertwined with it, while evoking the drama and the humour that colour common experiences—the birth of a baby, divorce and remarriage, old age and death. With settings ranging from Toronto, northern Quebec, and rural Ontario, the stories begin in the present, as a couple no longer young situate themselves in a larger world no longer safe. Then the narrative goes back in time to the forties and moves chronologically forward toward the present. In “The Art of Cooking and Serving,” the twelve-year-old narrator does her best to accommodate the arrival of a baby sister. After she boldly declares her independence, we follow the narrator into young adulthood and then through a complex relationship. In “The Entities,” the story of two women haunted by the past unfolds. The magnificent last two stories reveal the heartbreaking old age of parents but circle back again to childhood, to complete the cycle. By turns funny, lyrical, incisive, tragic, earthy, shocking, and deeply personal, Moral Disorder displays Atwood’s celebrated storytelling gifts and unmistakable style to their best advantage. This is vintage Atwood, writing at the height of her powers.

Steel

Steel PDF Author: Richard Matheson
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 9780765367617
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
A new collection featuring the story that inspired Real Steel, a major motion picture starring Hugh Jackman.

The Decapitated Chicken and Other Stories

The Decapitated Chicken and Other Stories PDF Author: Horacio Quiroga
Publisher: University of Texas Press
ISBN: 0292753519
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 172

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Book Description
Tales of horror, madness, and death, tales of fantasy and morality: these are the works of South American master storyteller Horacio Quiroga. Author of some 200 pieces of fiction that have been compared to the works of Poe, Kipling, and Jack London, Quiroga experienced a life that surpassed in morbidity and horror many of the inventions of his fevered mind. As a young man, he suffered his father's accidental death and the suicide of his beloved stepfather. As a teenager, he shot and accidentally killed one of his closest friends. Seemingly cursed in love, he lost his first wife to suicide by poison. In the end, Quiroga himself downed cyanide to end his own life when he learned he was suffering from an incurable cancer. In life Quiroga was obsessed with death, a legacy of the violence he had experienced. His stories are infused with death, too, but they span a wide range of short fiction genres: jungle tale, Gothic horror story, morality tale, psychological study. Many of his stories are set in the steaming jungle of the Misiones district of northern Argentina, where he spent much of his life, but his tales possess a universality that elevates them far above the work of a regional writer. The first representative collection of his work in English, The Decapitated Chicken and Other Stories provides a valuable overview of the scope of Quiroga's fiction and the versatility and skill that have made him a classic Latin American writer.

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories PDF Author: Ken Liu
Publisher: S&S/Saga Press
ISBN: 1982134046
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 432

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Book Description
Includes stories featured in Pantheon—now an animated series on AMC+ “I know this is going to sound hyperbolic, but when I’m reading Ken Liu’s stories, I feel like I’m reading a once-in-a-generation talent. I’m in awe.” —Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author “Captivating.” —BuzzFeed “Extraordinary.” —The Washington Post “Brilliant.” —The Chicago Tribune With the release of The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories, Ken Liu’s short fiction has resonated with a generation of readers. From stories about time-traveling assassins, to Black Mirror-esque tales of cryptocurrency and internet trolling, to heartbreaking narratives of parent-child relationships, The Hidden Girl and Other Stories is a far-reaching work that explores topical themes from the present and a visionary look at humanity’s future. This collection includes a selection of Liu’s speculative fiction stories over the past five years—seventeen of his best—plus a new novelette. In addition, it also features an excerpt from The Veiled Throne, the third book in Liu’s epic fantasy series The Dandelion Dynasty. Stories include: Ghost Days; Maxwell's Demon; The Reborn; Thoughts and Prayers; Byzantine Empathy; The Gods Will Not Be Chained; Staying Behind; Real Artists; The Gods Will Not Be Slain; Altogether Elsewhere, Vast Herds of Reindeer; The Gods Have Not Died in Vain; Memories of My Mother; Dispatches from the Cradle: The Hermit—Forty-Eight Hours in the Sea of Massachusetts; Grey Rabbit, Crimson Mare, Coal Leopard; A Chase Beyond the Storms (an excerpt from The Veiled Throne, Book 3 of the Dandelion Dynasty); The Hidden Girl; Seven Birthdays; The Message; Cutting

The "shavetail" and Other Stories

The Author: Israel Putnam
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Short stories, English
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description