3 Review(s)

100 Selected Stories written by the ever popular O. Henry is a collection of some of his finest stories with surprise endings and ingenious themes, depicting the rich tapestry of human character and social classes from rich tycoons to conniving thieves. The stories are set largely in New York City at the turn-of-the-century. Summary Of The Book 100 Selected Stories brings together some of the most entertaining short stories written by O. Henry. His true to his trademark twist-in-the-plot style endings, never fail to surprise his readers. These stories, woven around a fascinating mix of everyday characters including tycoons, millionaires, swindlers, thieves, store clerks and sales girls, allow a glimpse into the life of New Yorkers and other places during the early 1900s. In 100 Selected Stories, O. Henry paints a vivid picture of New York City, through the lives and minds of the characters, their struggles, their predicaments, and the choices they make, revealing their hidden innate values. A few of the stories are love stories in which the boy and the girl meet under somewhat unexpected circumstances. In another story, a woman working in a departmental store seeking a wealthy husband turns down a prospective suitor after hearing his plans for their honeymoon, concluding mistakenly that he is not as per her expectations. Another story involves the character of Jeff Peters, a crook with a conscience who commits frauds, but later tries to compensate his victims who got shortchanged. 100 Selected Stories is a collection of highly imaginative, witty, and ironic tales with cunning plots. Some of the stories in the book are The Lost Blend, Brickdust Row, The Cop and The Anthem, An Unfinished Story, The Pendulum, Between Rounds, and The Gift Of The Magi. About O. Henry Celebrated short story writer William Sydney Porter (pen name O. Henry) was born in North Carolina, in 1862. O. Henry has written hundreds of popular short stories in his lifetime. Some of his stories include Cabbages and Kings, The Four Million, Heart Of The West, Makes the Whole World Kin, The Trimmed Lamp, The Ransom Of Red Chief, The Cop and the Anthem and The Last Leaf. An avid reader from a young age, he was educated at his aunt’s elementary school. He worked briefly at his uncle’s drugstore and became a licensed pharmacist. After moving to Texas, he worked as a ranch hand, baby-sitter, shepherd, journalist, bank teller and bookkeeper, and draftsman at the General Land Office, reading and writing storylines in his leisure time. During the time that he was incarcerated for 3 years in Ohio on embezzlement charges, he managed to write and publish his first fourteen short stories. Later, he moved to New York, and wrote almost four hundred stories, some of which were published in the New York World Sunday Magazine.