The Best Short Stories (Wordsworth Classics) - Softcover

Kipling, Rudyard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1853261793 ISBN 13: 9781853261794

Publisher: Wordsworth Editions, 1997

Synopsis

With a new Introduction by Cedric Watts, Research Professor of English, University of Sussex.

The diverse tales selected for this volume display the astonishing virtuosity of Rudyard Kipling's early writings. A Nobel prize-winner, Kipling was phenomenally productive and imaginative, displaying a literary mastery of idioms, technology and technical terms, exotic locations, and social range. He gained immense popularity, becoming (as these stories indicate) the knowledgeable spokesman for a wide public.

Later, although Kipling's right-wing views increasingly incurred hostility, his creativity remained formidable. In this rich collection, we encounter bold realism, poignant nostalgia, dark comedy, the vividly horrific, the exuberantly fanciful and the disturbingly uncanny.

About this title

Review

Praise for "The Man Who Would Be King:
"One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, "The New York Review of Books
"Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, "Entertainment Weekly
"Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, "The Boston Globe
"Macintyre's riveting, scrupulously researched book [on Josiah Harlan] should place this remarkable man where he rightfully belongs." --Alexander Frater, "The New York Times Book Review
Praise for "The Man Who Would Be King": "One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, "The New York Review of Books""Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, "Entertainment Weekly""Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, "The Boston Globe""Macintyre's riveting, scrupulously researched book [on Josiah Harlan] should place this remarkable man where he rightfully belongs." --Alexander Frater, "The New York Times Book Review"

Praise for "The Man Who Would Be King":
"One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, "The New York Review of Books"
"Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, "Entertainment Weekly"
"Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging élan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, "The Bost

Praise for "The Man Who Would Be King"
"One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, "The New York Review of Books"
"Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, "Entertainment Weekly"
"Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, "The Bo

Praise for "The Man Who Would Be King"

"One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, "The New York Review of Books"

"Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, "Entertainment Weekly"

"Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, "The Boston Globe"

"Macintyre's riveting, scrupulously researched book [on Josiah Harlan] should place this remarkable man where he rightfully belongs." --Alexander Frater, "The New York Times Book Review"
"One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, "The New York Review of Books"
"Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, "Entertainment Weekly"
"Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, "The Boston Globe"
"Macintyre's riveting, scrupulously researched book [on Josiah Harlan] should place this remarkable man where he rightfully belongs." --Alexander Frater, "The New York Times Book Review"

One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life. "David Gilmour, The New York Review of Books"

Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+. "Raymond Fiore, Entertainment Weekly"

Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is. "Katherine A. Powers, The Boston Globe"

Macintyre's riveting, scrupulously researched book [on Josiah Harlan] should place this remarkable man where he rightfully belongs. "Alexander Frater, The New York Times Book Review""

"One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography . . . It is a far more adventurous tale than the one invented by Kipling: its twists and tensions and dangerous escapades make it more like a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson or John Buchan or Rider Haggard . . . It's a 'ripping yarn' as we used to say, and Macintyre is an excellent narrator, describing with skill a spirited and fast-moving life." --David Gilmour, The New York Review of Books

"Macintyre unearths a trove of unseen documents...and imparts a tactile understanding of Afghanistan's cultural impulses. B+." --Raymond Fiore, Entertainment Weekly

"Macintyre has been able to piece together this never-before-told story by a great archival find...[He] also tells with unflagging elan...There is so much tragedy, cruelty, and general badness afoot in this book that I wonder how to explain how really funny it is. But it is." --Katherine A. Powers, The Boston Globe

"Macintyre's riveting, scrupulously researched book [on Josiah Harlan] should place this remarkable man where he rightfully belongs." --Alexander Frater, The New York Times Book Review

Synopsis

This is a fascinating selection of Kipling's most famous short stories, bringing together the very best of his work. "Life's Handicap" reflects his experiences of India, and contains two horror stories which permeate the collection with an air of haunted destinies. Delusions and obsessions, past lives and the slums of London in 1890 are the diverse topics featured in "Many Inventions". While "Traffics and Discoveries" is Kipling's well-loved story about a polo pony.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wordsworth Editions
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1853261793
• ISBN 13: 9781853261794
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 240