The Best Short Stories of O. Henry (Modern Library) [Hardcover]

O. Henry (Author), Bennett Cerf (Editor), Van H. Cartmell (Editor)

Book Description

Release date: March 22, 1994 | Series: Modern Library

The more than 600 stories written by O. Henry provided an embarrassment of riches for the compilers of this volume.  The final selection of the thirty-eight stories in this collection offers for the reader's delight those tales honored almost unanimously by anthologists and those that represent, in variety and balance, the best work of America's favorite storyteller.  They are tales in his most mellow, humorous, and ironic moods.  They give the full range and flavor of the man born William Sydney Porter but known throughout the world as O. Henry, one of the great masters of the short story.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The more than 600 stories written by O. Henry provided an embarrassment of riches for the compilers of this volume.  The final selection of the thirty-eight stories in this collection offers for the reader's delight those tales honored almost unanimously by anthologists and those that represent, in variety and balance, the best work of America's favorite storyteller.  They are tales in his most mellow, humorous, and ironic moods.  They give the full range and flavor of the man born William Sydney Porter but known throughout the world as O. Henry, one of the great masters of the short story.

From the Back Cover

"Such tales as 'A Municipal Report,' 'An Unfinished Story,' 'A Blackjack Bargainer,' 'A Lickpenny Lover,' 'The Gift of the Magi,' 'Mammon and the Archer,' and 'Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen' (by actual count the O. Henry stories most often reprinted in anthologies) are gems of their kind; mellow, humorous, ironic, ingenious and shot through with that eminently salable quality known as 'human interest.'" --Bennet Cerf and Van Cartmell

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Modern Library; First Edition edition (March 22, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679601228
• ISBN-13: 978-0679601227
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 1 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 60 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Master of the ironic twist. April 9, 2002

By Godly Gadfly

Format:Hardcover

A collection of 100 or more short stories by O. Henry? My mouth waters already! It's hard to imagine any literary treat that can be enjoyed in small doses more pleasurable than this. I have spent over a year savouring these stories, reading them one by one, tasting his delightful choice of words, digesting his fascinating story-lines, and the warm satisfying afterglow that comes after a typical twist at the end. O. Henry began writing short stories as a prison inmate, and he quickly fine tuned his skills behind the bars and developed into an excellent storyteller. Born William Sydney Porter (1862-1910), he produced 270 stories under the pseudonym O. Henry. His stories are superbly outstanding in at least four ways, each illustrated with five of my personal favorites.

Firstly, his brilliant use of language. These stories were written in the first half of the twentieth century, and O. Henry's use of language easily surpasses that of most contemporary writers. Not only does he have an extensive vocabulary, but his writing abounds with similes and metaphors that breathe sparkling life and depth into his stories, marred only by the occasional "Lordy". "Ulysses and the Dogman" is a fine example of his skills with a language, metaphorically portraying dog owners as victims of Circe, in a hopeless enchantment to their leashed pets. Also exemplary is "Madame Bo-Peep of the Ranches" where a ranch manager has a heart fenced by barbwire just like the ranch on which he lives, and yet the twist at the ending suggests that perhaps we were completely mistaken. "A Comedy in Rubber" uses wonderfully elevated language to farcically portray a class of people today known as ambulance chasers.... And "Sisters of the Golden Circle" revolves around the profound bond that exists between two married women who are strangers but yet sisters "of the plain gold band." "An Unfinished Story" employs profound metaphors of angelic hosts to tell the tragic story of poor Dulcie's struggle for survival.

Secondly, his unique insight into the social conditions of his time. O. Henry has a great understanding of the trials of the lower class, and he frequently pictures the lives of ordinary people of early twentieth century America with warm and sympathetic colours. His characters are frequently the overlooked: the struggling shop girl, the unsuccessful artist, the impoverished. Admittedly, some of his images can be hard to comprehend for modern readers, and the distance that time has placed between us and O. Henry's beloved New York means that some of his verbal pictures will be harder to understand and identify with. But his genuine sympathy for the oppressed cannot be missed. "The Gift of the Magi" is the signature O. Henry story, probably his most famous tale which recounts a poor young couple who both give up a prized possession in order to purchase a gift for one another - but ironically a gift intended to complement the other's prized possession that they have just given up. Another story which display his ability to picture the social conditions of his time - but always with the trademark twist - is "The Pendulum", a wonderful portrait of the daily routines of an poor couple and the bursting anxiety of a married man, until the bubble bursts. "The Cop and the Anthem" was the first O. Henry story I ever read, and humorously recounts the unsuccessful attempts of a man to get into jail for the winter - it remains vivid in my mind as a memorable favorite. "The Furnished Room" is a tragic and shocking story of suicide, depicting the depths of despair and desperation of the impoverished.

Thirdly, his warm humour. O. Henry has an uncanny ability to portray the mundane and the ordinary in the most elevated language. Frequently he pits two characters together in a remarkable way so that one outshines and complements the other. And on other occasions he crafts the most ingenious and humorous schemes for outwitting others. One of his most popular stories is "The Handbook of Hymen", recounting the tale of two men in a winter cabin, one armed with the hilarious Herkimer's handbook of Indispensable Information. And then there is O. Henry's fictional character Jeff Peters, a man who comes with the most ingenious money-making schemes, two shining examples displayed in "Jeff Peters as a Personal Magnet" and "The Exact Science of Matrimony". "Let Me Feel Your Pulse" pokes fun at doctors, while in "Next to Reading Matter" an overly eloquent character wins the heart of a senora with streams of articulate talk about the mundane.

Fourthly, his ironic twist. One of the distinctive characteristics of O. Henry's short stories is the ironic twist at the end, which never fails to surprise and entertain, sometimes reversing the entire story line in a concluding one-liner. O. Henry's suspense and trademark ironic twist ensures that readers who have a good literary taste in short stories will not be disappointed. Like the Jeff Peters stories, "The Love-philtre of Ikey Schoenstein" also feature a brilliant scheme - but a scheme of romance - and the way it backfires is unforgettable. Other delightful examples of ordinary stories with a glorious ironic twist include "Witches' Loaves" and "While the Auto Waits". The twist that comes at the end of "The Hypotheses of Failure" is so perplexing, that you'll have to re-read the entire story after reading the ending - but completely delighted at the way in which O. Henry has misled you. But perhaps one of O. Henry's best uses of the ironic twist comes in "The Last Leaf", a warm and tragic tale describing how a dying artist proves as resilient as the last leaf on the wall outside, and through the self-less sacrifice of another.

The Wordsworth collection is superlative, because it contains more than 700 pages of literary gems. It consists of 100 stories, showcasing a wide range of O. Henry's short-story talents. A few popular favorites are missing, such as "Schools and Schools", "Shearing the Wolf", "The Green Door", and "The Pimienta Pancakes." But the reality is that nearly all O. Henry's stories feature his trademark ironic twist, as they do his warm humour, his unique insight into the social conditions of the time, and his brilliant use of language, and that every story in this collection is a literary delight worthy of inclusion. The inaccessibility of some references for modern readers does not prevent these stories from being always entertaining and enduring! Don't pass up on these! - GODLY GADFLY Read more ›

56 of 70 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I hate it so much ! September 18, 2002

By Vlad

Format:Hardcover

Yes ! I hate this book so much ! I'll never fogive myself for picking it up !? This is an evil book - it made me vanish from the fields of internet for days . My cat hated it even more - how many times , during this few days , I forget to feed him . My girlfriend probably wants to burn it - I had to send her my picture ... she forgot , how I look like. This book made me lie to all my friends ! I am so sorry , I lied to you , my dear friends : I wasn't writing ... I was reading O'Henry's masterpiece !!!
If you want to loose your family and friends ; If you want to burn you house all the way to the ground ; if you need exscuse to brake up with you girlfriend - a must read for you !

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars a great collection December 24, 2003

By doc peterson VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

O. Henry's short stories are tiny masterpieces. Each story takes literally only minutes to read (they're an average 6 - 12 pages long), but they are brilliant in plot and character development, each with an unexpected twist of some sort at the end, and each different from the other.

The stories are set in New York City at the dawn of the 20th century, so there is much that is slighly unfamiliar, especially some of the language (who knows what a "masher" is, anyway?). This aside, I found myself laughing out loud more than once, and frequently shaking my head at the entertaining and masterful way in which each story unfolded. A recommended read.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Stories with a Twist November 14, 2006

By Randy Keehn VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

My father recently sent me some of his books after my parents moved to a smaller home in Oregon. Included in the mostly newer books were a few old ones from his college days. Among them was the original 1945 version of "Best Stories of O. Henry". Anyone familiar with American Literature knows of William Sydney Porter, better known as O. Henry. He is famous for his short stories that lead you down a path which swerves, at the end, in a direction you hadn't anticipated. Along the way are many colorful characters out of American life around the Turn of the Century (That's the Turn of the Century BEFORE this latest one). Not only are his characters a worthwhile part of every story, his settings often give another interesting view of life 100 years ago. All this evolves in stories that often are no more than 4-5 pages in length. These snapshots almost always conclude with an ironic and/or surprise ending. His best known story, which is the opening selection in this collection, is "The Gift of the Magi". The other story of his that I always recalled, "The Ransom of Red Chief", is also in this book. It's one of the handful of longer stories and runs a whole 12 pages. Among my favorites "discoveries" in this collection are "The Cop and the Anthem", "A Blackjack Bargainer", "Squaring the Circle", "The Pendulum", "The Last Leaf", and "The Count and the Wedding Guest". There are 30 other stories in addition to the ones I've cited. Some went a bit long which sounds strange to say about a short story. However, one gets used to the rhythim of O. Henry and certain stories take you out of that rhythim. Some stories may not conclude in as surprising a manner as others but they are still worth a look at life and customs a century ago.

According to the Editorial Review shown above, O.... Henry wrote over 600 stories in his life. I'm not interested in reading that much of his work. However, I'm glad I read these 38. Read more ›

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Collection December 30, 2003

By David P Oller

Format:Hardcover

This is a very good collection of my favorite short story author.

It's hard to imagine anyone who hasn't read and loved O. Henry, but if for some reason you have discovered this work yet, this collection is a great place to begin.