The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback)

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Key Phrases: San Francisco, Captain Ransome, New York (more...)

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Product Description

American journalist and satirist Ambrose Bierce is probably best known for his short stories about the American Civil War. The author's craft for story-telling is exemplified by his famous "An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge", which is the story of Peyton Farquhar, a Confederate sympathizer condemned to die by hanging upon the Owl Creek Bridge. That great short story along with 96 others forms this exhaustive edition of "The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce."

About the Author

In her foreword, Cathy N. Davidson, author of The Experimental Fictions of Ambrose Bierce, shows that Bierce, in form and mood, left behind the writers of his time and anticipated those of our own.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details Paperback: 332 pages Publisher: Digireads.com (January 1, 2008) Language: English ISBN-10: 1420930494 ISBN-13: 978-1420930498 Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1 inches Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #66,219 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
San Francisco, Captain Ransome, New York, Peter Pitchin, Silas Deemer, Captain Graffenreid, Captain Abersouth, Captain Madwell, Halpin Frayser, Sally Meeker, Private Grayrock, Good God, New Orleans, Mammon Hill, Captain Coulter, Charles May, Captain Armisted, William Shaw, Tottenham Court Road, Ramon Gallegos, Private Searing, Aunt Patience, John May, Macarger's Gulch, Henry Inxling

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	77% buy the item featured on this page: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce 4.1 out of 5 stars (10) $15.29
	7% buy The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary 4.9 out of 5 stars (11) $13.57
	6% buy Civil War Stories (Dover Thrift Editions) 4.6 out of 5 stars (13) $3.00
	5% buy Ghost and Horror Stories of Ambrose Bierce 4.1 out of 5 stars (9) $8.95

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10 Reviews 5 star:  (5) 4 star:  (3) 3 star:  (1) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:  (1)           Average Customer Review 4.1 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 46 of 47 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars I suppose this must be death, October 17, 2001 By  Doug Anderson (Miami Beach, Florida United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)       This review is from: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback) Ambrose Bierce's most famous story is An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and many of his stories follow that same kind of pattern: an event is related with some surprising or revelatory twist at the end. The stories of the Civil War are especially interesting as they are not at all typical writings about war. Bierce does not see the battle so much as one of North against South rather he sees the war as the child sees the war in his story Chickamauga, his attitude is one combining fascination at the spectacle and utter disgust. Life is an unresolved jumble of confused forces and mixed emotions for everyone in Bierce's haunting tales that read like dreams but dreams informed by much contact with reality as Bierce was wounded twice(once in the head)in the war he describes. The descriptions of Civil War battles are told with great precision(and alone make this volume worth having) though there is always an additional element to make them more than war reportage, Bierce turns his accounts into stories because he sees through all the cannon smoke to the small detail which encapsulates the essential thing about an event. In one of my favorites, Killed at Resaca, a courageous captain gallops across a field to deliver a crucial message only to find the field is impassable because of a deep gully, instead of turning around however he merely waits for the enemy to shoot him. Going through his personal things a fellow soldier, the narrator of the story, finds a letter which explains this resolve. The letter reads:"...I could bear to hear of my soldier- lover's death, but not of his cowardice." Later, when the narrator has a chance to return the letter to its author he is asked by her how her soldier-lover died. "He was bitten by a snake,"is the narrators reply. Bierce's pen was dipped in wormwood and acid said H.L. Mencken. His stories of soldiers and civilians are told with a bitter and venomous clarity. His humor was always of the sort aquainted with the gallows. He said at age 71,"I am so old I am ashamed to be alive." And so he rode off to Mexico. It's hard to imagine Stephen Crane existing without the example of Ambrose Bierce just as it is hard to imagine Bierce without Poe. What a strange tradition of independents we have. 20 of 20 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Civil War Survivor and Damn Good Author, August 21, 2001 By  glamarama (San Francisco Bay Area) - See all my reviews This review is from: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback) Ambrose Bierce was the one of the 2 writers of major significance to fight in and survive the Civil War (the other being Sidney Lanier). He was bitter to begin with, but the experience changed him into an even more cynical man. An eloquent writer, his best subject is fear: his ghost stories are dark and spooky - the civil war stories are as well, but with the added horror of a very real war and fear of battle. "Chickamauga" is one of my favorites - Bierce was actually at the battle but the story is fictional, and adds a supernatural angle to an infamous time and place. His writings are ghostly and vivid tales of America in the mid 19th century. The horrific experiences encountered in his tales are both real and imagined. If you are a ghost story fan or an American history/Civil War buff, you'll enjoy Bierce. 21 of 22 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Great collection of short stories, the title is incorrect, February 26, 2004 By  Tom "sleepytom" (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews This review is from: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback) Ambrose Bierce was a fine writer and this is a good sampling of his short stories. It is not, however, a complete collection of his short stories. I particularly missed "One Summer Night" and there are a number of other stories that could have been been included. Still, this collection is well worth reading.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 4.0 out of 5 stars Ambrose In Short I got interested in AB when seeing the part of movie trilogy 'From Dusk till Dawn'. Thanks to those people bringing that to my sight. Enjoying the book. Published 9 months ago by onni4me 5.0 out of 5 stars No Library is complete without this book! Truly an impressive collection of this wonderful author. Readers will quickly see why Ambrose Bierce was one of Ernest Hemingway and Kurt Vonnegut's favorite authors... Read more Published 23 months ago by AmericanMe 3.0 out of 5 stars Andrew's Review The story, An Occurance at Owl Creek Bridge, had vivid descriptions of the scenery. It gave me an idea of what people might think about before they die. Read more Published on November 12, 2006 4.0 out of 5 stars bitter wit Ambrose Bierce is as famous for the circumstances surrounding the end of his life as for his bitter fatalistic prose. Bierce was a journalist/author and a Civil War veteran. Read more Published on December 29, 2000 by Orrin C. Judd 5.0 out of 5 stars some of the creepiest stories ever! A master horror story teller Published on August 21, 1999 by S. Clark 5.0 out of 5 stars Bierce's command of the language is stunning. To anyone interested in the English language and its application by a master story teller, this author must be read. Read more Published on December 11, 1998 1.0 out of 5 stars Dull After reading about Ambrose Bierce and his fierce wit this book was a real let down. Too many stories, all of a similar vein. I should have gotten the Devil's Dictionary!!! Published on August 28, 1998 by puffinswan Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Paperback: 332 pages
• Publisher: Digireads.com (January 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1420930494
• ISBN-13: 978-1420930498
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #66,219 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I suppose this must be death, October 17, 2001

By	Doug Anderson (Miami Beach, Florida United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback)

Ambrose Bierce's most famous story is An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and many of his stories follow that same kind of pattern: an event is related with some surprising or revelatory twist at the end. The stories of the Civil War are especially interesting as they are not at all typical writings about war. Bierce does not see the battle so much as one of North against South rather he sees the war as the child sees the war in his story Chickamauga, his attitude is one combining fascination at the spectacle and utter disgust. Life is an unresolved jumble of confused forces and mixed emotions for everyone in Bierce's haunting tales that read like dreams but dreams informed by much contact with reality as Bierce was wounded twice(once in the head)in the war he describes. The descriptions of Civil War battles are told with great precision(and alone make this volume worth having) though there is always an additional element to make them more than war reportage, Bierce turns his accounts into stories because he sees through all the cannon smoke to the small detail which encapsulates the essential thing about an event. In one of my favorites, Killed at Resaca, a courageous captain gallops across a field to deliver a crucial message only to find the field is impassable because of a deep gully, instead of turning around however he merely waits for the enemy to shoot him. Going through his personal things a fellow soldier, the narrator of the story, finds a letter which explains this resolve. The letter reads:"...I could bear to hear of my soldier- lover's death, but not of his cowardice." Later, when the narrator has a chance to return the letter to its author he is asked by her how her soldier-lover died. "He was bitten by a snake,"is the narrators reply. Bierce's pen was dipped in wormwood and acid said H.L. Mencken. His stories of soldiers and civilians are told with a bitter and venomous clarity. His humor was always of the sort aquainted with the gallows. He said at age 71,"I am so old I am ashamed to be alive." And so he rode off to Mexico. It's hard to imagine Stephen Crane existing without the example of Ambrose Bierce just as it is hard to imagine Bierce without Poe. What a strange tradition of independents we have.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Civil War Survivor and Damn Good Author, August 21, 2001

By	glamarama (San Francisco Bay Area) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback)

Ambrose Bierce was the one of the 2 writers of major significance to fight in and survive the Civil War (the other being Sidney Lanier). He was bitter to begin with, but the experience changed him into an even more cynical man. An eloquent writer, his best subject is fear: his ghost stories are dark and spooky - the civil war stories are as well, but with the added horror of a very real war and fear of battle. "Chickamauga" is one of my favorites - Bierce was actually at the battle but the story is fictional, and adds a supernatural angle to an infamous time and place. His writings are ghostly and vivid tales of America in the mid 19th century. The horrific experiences encountered in his tales are both real and imagined. If you are a ghost story fan or an American history/Civil War buff, you'll enjoy Bierce.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great collection of short stories, the title is incorrect, February 26, 2004

By	Tom "sleepytom" (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce (Paperback)

Ambrose Bierce was a fine writer and this is a good sampling of his short stories. It is not, however, a complete collection of his short stories. I particularly missed "One Summer Night" and there are a number of other stories that could have been been included. Still, this collection is well worth reading.