Ambrose Bierce
Don't judge a book by its cover—if you're looking for tall tales about Greek gods or American folk heroes, you're in the wrong place. Instead, noted satirist Ambrose Bierce unleashes the full wrath of his wit on the leaders of industry, church, and state in this series of sharp-edged but hilariously spot-on short tales and vignettes.
The bone-chilling stories related in the collection The Parenticide Club vary widely in tone, style and setting, but they share one characteristic in common: all of the narrators have gravely injured or killed a family member, often a parent. Those with the constitution to make it to the end of the book will marvel at Bierce's inventiveness and writing skill.
Dive into this eclectic, entertaining collection of tales from Ambrose Bierce, one of the masters of the American short story. Cobwebs From an Empty Skull brings together fables, essays, observations, and other thoroughly engaging odds and ends that readers of all tastes and interests are sure to enjoy.
American satirist and critic Ambrose Bierce may be best remembered for his caustic wit, but he was also a first-rate prose stylist who put a lot of effort into shaping the next generation of journalists and writers. Write it Right is Bierce's tough-love compendium of unforgivable literary sins.
Today, Ambrose Bierce is best remembered for his blazingly satirical take on politics and society in general, which was probably best encapsulated in The Devil's Dictionary. However, Bierce paid his literary dues as a war reporter, and battlefield conflicts were a frequent topic of his fiction. A Son of the Gods, and A Horseman in the Sky brings together a pair of exquisitely observed short tales of the American Civil War.
Dive into a masterpiece of American satirical writing. The Devil's Dictionary, compiled by famed American journalist and fiction writer Ambrose Bierce, offers readers a compendium of words and phrases with dictionary-style definitions that are blisteringly hilarious and packed with spot-on cynicism and dark humor. The format makes this book a great text for dipping into any time you need a quick laugh.
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge opens with the story's hero, Peyton Farquhar, hanging bound from a bridge, awaiting hanging. Farquhar is a Confederate sympathizer in the American Civil War and has been brought to this end by a Union spy. The novel was unique in its time for its jumbled chronology and is also famous for its surprising conclusion.
Ambrose Bierce gained literary acclaim as a skilled satirist and chronicler of battlefield bravery. In the thrilling collection Can Such Things Be?, the Devil's Dictionary scribe turns his attention to all things spooky and fantastical. It's the perfect collection to read in front of the fire on a dark and stormy night.
11) The Damned Thing
Best known as a master of searing satire, American author Ambrose Bierce was also an accomplished short story writer. The engrossing tale The Damned Thing presents as its central theme the ultimately unknowable—and untameable—essence of nature and the natural world. Told from several different perspectives, the story focuses on a freak fatal accident that is written off as a wild animal attack. But does that description get at
...Misanthropes, grumps, and the hopelessly jaded will relish every ruthlessly witty word of Ambrose Bierce's essay collection A Cynic Looks at Life. Bierce unleashes his jaundiced eye and incisive insight on a number of topics that are still as resonant as they were at the time of the book's 1912 publication.
This highly entertaining novel about three Franciscan monks is something of a departure for author Ambrose Bierce, who typically wrote about his own time. The story, which takes the form of a diary penned by the main character, Ambrosius. Though he faithfully carries out the duties of his office, he struggles with temptation, particularly after meeting the beguiling Benedicta, who happens to be the hangman's daughter of the title.