Home > Books > Literature/General Fiction > A Selection of Classic Short Stories (Pre-1900)

This is a selection of classic (pre-1900) literary short stories written by various authors (with GEMs highlighted).  The list includes links for several associated items which may be available online for each book: (a) Wikipedia page, (b) e-book, and (c) audiobook.  There is also a column called “More info” with links to optional posts on each book.

Note that the list is sortable by each column. (Multiple levels of sorting are possible by sorting more than one column in succession, from lowest to highest.)  You can also do an instant filtering of the table by entering a character string in the ‘Search’ field.

Prior to the nineteenth century, short fiction generally took the form of legends, folk tales, fables, fairy tales, or tall tales.  The modern short story took shape in the early 1800s, and became an established form of fiction as the nineteenth century progressed.  One of the earliest short stories was Rip Van Winkle by the American author Washington Irving, which became immensely popular and is still a part of popular culture today.

Interestingly, some of the best short-story writers of the time were American or French, even though British authors dominated the writing of major novels.  Some of the best practitioners of the art of short-story writing during that period were Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Honoré de Balzac and Guy de Maupassant.

Please share any comments or suggestions on this list by filling out this form.  You can use the same form to express interest in becoming a contributor to the site and also request downloadable PDF files for many of the stories below.