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Originally published in the 1853 Christmas edition of Dickens' journal Household Words, "Nobody's Story" uses the differences between the Big Wig family and the Nobody family to call attention to class-based inequity. This version of "Nobody's Story" was recorded as part of Dreamscape's The Christmas Stories of Charles Dickens.

Originally published in the 1853 Christmas edition of Dickens's journal Household Words, The Schoolboy's Story recounts the tale of Old Cheeseman, a schoolboy who becomes the second Latin Master, and his former peers who consider him a traitor for doing it. This version of The Schoolboy's Story was recorded as part of Dreamscape's The Christmas Stories of Charles Dickens.

Originally published in the 1852 Christmas edition of Dickens's journal Household Words, The Child's Story is the account of a man's life from childhood to the present as told to his grandson in the form of a fairytale about a traveler and the people he meets. This version of The Child's Story was recorded as part of Dreamscape's The Christmas Stories of Charles Dickens.

In the air, there's a feeling of Christmas...so settle into your coziest armchair and enjoy four captivating tales that will make your holidays merry and bright....

Originally published in an 1896 edition of The Home Monthly, "The Burglar's Christmas" tells the story Crawford, a homeless man in Chicago who has not eaten recently and considers stealing food on Christmas Eve. Reminiscent of the parable of the prodigal son, this tale reflects on the nature of forgiveness. This recording of "The Burglar's Christmas" was recorded as part of Dreamscape's Classic Christmas Stories: A Collection of Timeless Holiday Tales.

Originally published in the 1876 Christmas edition of The Graphic, Christmas at Thompson Hall is a Victorian tale concerning the proper Mr. and Mrs. Brown and their journey from southern France to Thompson Hall to celebrate Christmas with their relatives - a trip that becomes a comedy of errors once Mr. Brown's throat condition, a malady that almost prevented the trip entirely, worsens.

Originally published in Harte's 1875 short-story collection The Tales of the Argonauts, "How Santa Claus Came to Simpson's Bar" is set in California in the early 1860s and, like the rest of the tales in that collection, features the gold-seeking Argonauts. In this tale, like many of Harte's others, the folly and grit of human existence balance any good intentions, good cheer, or hope, resulting in a more complicated and somewhat bleak ending than is commonly found in most Christmas tales.

First published in an 1849 edition of The Flag of Our Union, "Hop-Frog" is a revenge tale akin to "The Cask of Amontillado". Told from the perspective of a crippled jester who was taken from his homeland and has been abused by the king he serves, the story focuses on the revenge Hop-Frog takes after the king strikes his fellow countrywoman and performer, the dancer Trippetta.

First published in an 1843 edition of The Pioneer, "The Tell-Tale Heart" is one of Poe's best-known stories. In it, an unreliable narrator is increasingly troubled by the clouded eye of the old man he lives with. Similar to "The Black Cat", "The Tell-Tale Heart" focuses on the effects of mental instability, crime, and guilt.

First published in an 1844 literary annual The Gift: A Christmas and New Year's Present for 1845, "The Purloined Letter" is the third and final story that features Poe's detective, C. Auguste Dupin. In it, Dupin is approached by the prefect of the police to help with a case that involves a stolen letter containing compromising information.

First published in an 1842 literary annual The Gift: A Christmas and New Year's Present for 1843, "The Pit and the Pendulum" takes place during the Spanish Inquisition and follows the plight of a prisoner in a cell that has a pit and a pendulum. Unlike many of Poe's short stories, "The Pit and the Pendulum" does not rely on any supernatural elements to inspire fear but instead uses the narrator's heightened sensory experiences to do so.

First published in an 1841 edition of Graham's Magazine, "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is often cited as the first modern detective story. The first of three stories to center around C. Auguste Dupin, Poe's fictional detective, "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" involves Dupin's investigation of two women's murders. Establishing many of the tropes that would later become common to detective fiction, the story begins with an explanation of Dupin's theory of ratiocination, a concept that greatly influenced the creation of detective fiction.

First published in a 1842 edition of Graham's Lady's and Gentleman's Magazine, "The Masque of the Red Death" tells the story of Prince Prospero as he tries to avoid a plague by confining himself and his nobles to a masquerade in an abbey. Often considered a Gothic allegory, the story reflects on not only life and death but also the illusion of control.

First published in an 1839 edition of Burton's Gentleman's Magazine, "The Fall of the House of Usher" is the story of the declining physical and psychological health of the residents of the House of Usher - and the way in which the house itself reflects that. Gothic in theme and style, the story is an exemplar of Poe's philosophy of composition, which dictates that literary works should be short and methodological and have a unity of effect wherein all the elements of the story are related and relevant.

Inspired by an account in the Broadway Journal of a surgeon putting a patient into a magnetic sleep, "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar" is a suspenseful tale concerning the forestallment of death by hypnosis. Originally published without a clear indication of its fictionality, the story was assumed to be a true account by some of its original readers.

First published in an 1846 edition of Godey's Lady's Book, "The Cask of Amontillado" is widely considered to be one of the most perfect short stories ever written. Told by the unreliable narrator Montresor - a man who sought vengeance against his acquaintance for an insult that the listener is not privy to - the story details how Montresor accomplished his revenge.

From the snow-covered prairie to the remote Australian Outback, a cowboy's loving kiss makes this Christmas merry and bright in each of these novellas.

Always Happy Hour weaves tales of young women who are deeply flawed, intensely real, and who struggle to get out of their own way. These women love to drink and have sex; they make bad decisions with men who love them too much or too little; they haunt gas stations, public pools, and dive bars, seeking understanding in the most unlikely of places; and, although each shoulders the weight of different baggage, they all suspect they deserve better.

Presented in the first person, the story is a collection of journal entries written by a woman whose physician husband (John) has rented an old mansion for the summer and the couple moves into the upstairs nursery. As a form of treatment, she is forbidden from working, but encouraged to eat well and get plenty of exercise and air, so she can recuperate from what he calls a temporary nervous depression - a slight hysterical tendency, a diagnosis common to women in that period.

Lady Susan is a short, epistolary novel by Jane Austen. Lady Susan Vernon is a selfish, attractive, and unscrupulous woman, who tries to trap the best possible husband while maintaining a relationship with a married man. As a widow, she seeks a match for herself, as well as husband-hunting for her daughter. Lady Susan is not only beautiful but intelligent and witty; she's highly attractive to men and her suitors are always significantly younger.