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Short stories 31-35

The Tapestried Chamber”, by Sir Walter Scott. From Classic Victorian and Edwardian Ghost Stories. A fine example of a 19th century ghost story that manages to come across as if it were a real story, so understated and realistic is the horror. Recommended.

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, by Ambrose Bierce. From A Treasury of American Horror Stories. A terrifyingly effective horror story. Highly recommended.

The Gentle Boy”, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. From Nathaniel Hawthorne‘s Tales. A sentimental story about religious persecution. Not one of Hawthorne’s best.

“The Entertainer and the Entrepreneur”, by W.D. Valgardson. From The Divorced Kid’s Club. A moral tale about prejudice, for kids.

Faithful Johannes”. From The Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm, vol. 1. A bloody and violent fairy tale about the rewards of duty and gratitude, far from the sanitised tales I read as a kid. (This is probably a different translation from the one I read).

Comments

Term Papers said…
It seems good but dont understand it clearly share some more detail about this. thanks
Bibliophile said…
RTM, or in this case, click on the "365 short stories challenge" labels and start reading form the bottom post, and all will become clear.

BTW, I don't like spam, and this is borderline, but I will let it slip this one time.

P.S. If you write for the service offered in the link, it is clearly not something any sensible student who cares about their grades would ever use.

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