Classic Short Stories with AR quizzes

1. The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County by Mark Twain - Old Simon Wheeler tells the narrator the amusing story of Jim Smiley and his trained frog.

2. Occurrence at Owl Creek by Ambrose Pierce - Peyton Farquhar thought it would be a good idea to burn a Union bridge during the Civil War, the same Union bridge on which he waits to be hanged...

3. The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant - Madame Mathilde Loisel is blessed with great beauty but little wealth. Her husband sets the story in motion when he manages to acquire an invitation to a society party in a quest to make her happy.

4. The Gift of the Magi by O’Henry - Buying someone the perfect gift sometimes turns out more than perfect.

5. The Ransom of Red Chief by O’Henry - Two small-time criminals, Bill and Sam, kidnap Johnny, the red-haired son of an important citizen named Ebenezer Dorset, and hold him for ransom. But the moment they arrive at their hideout with the boy, the plan begins to unravel.

6. The Lady, or the Tiger? by Frank Stockton - Imagine a woman in love. Would she rather see her man with another woman or see him mauled by a tiger?

7. Charles by Shirley Jackson - It is the story of a young boy's search for identity and his mother's struggle to accept his new role.

8. The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe - The narrator of "The Black Cat" is fully aware of his mental deterioration, and at certain points in the story, he recognizes the change that is occurring within him, and he tries to do something about it, but he finds himself unable to reverse his falling into madness.

9. The Ransom of Red Chief by O’Henry – O’Henry takes one smart father, two hapless con artists, and one willful child, then he animates the story with a hefty dose of unintended consequences.

10. The Rocking Horse Winner by D.H. Lawrence - "The Rocking-Horse Winner" introduces us to Hester, a woman who dreams of living a luxurious lifestyle she cannot afford. ... This makes Paul determined to prove that he is lucky to his mother.

11. The Open Boat by Stephen Crane - Four men in a life boat struggle to reach land. Who will survive?

12. Rikki-tikki-tavi by Rudyard Kipling - "This is the story of the great war that Rikki-tikki-tavi fought single-handed, through the bath-rooms of the big bungalow in Segowlee cantonment." So starts Rudyard Kipling's classic adventure tale about a family in India.

13. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber - A passive and put-upon man has a series of daydreams while driving his wife on her weekly errands.