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1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales

1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales

Jon Hagadorn 648 Episodes Oct 11, 2026

A huge collection of beautifully narrated and carefully chosen short stories from golden age authors (1850-1930) who knew how to deliver stories that reach the heart and soul of the reader and listener. Here you'll find short masterpieces from the likes of Charles Dickens, Edith Wharton, Edgar Allan Poe, Ernest Hemingway, Kathleen Norris, Jack London, Henry Lawson, Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, O. Henry, and many others. Great reviews and high ratings here and a host who chooses stories that entertain and enlighten.

Episodes

THE OVAL PORTRAIT by EDGAR ALLAN POE
THE OVAL PORTRAIT by EDGAR ALLAN POE Oct 11, 2026 13:04   ⭐ 1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales SHOW NOTES – THE OVAL PORTRAIT by Edgar Allan Poe Episode Summary Tonight's story is one of Edgar Allan Poe's shortest and most haunting works — a compact Gothic masterpiece first published in 1842. The Oval Portrait tells the eerie tale of a wounded traveler who takes shelter in a deserted chateau, where he discovers a portrait so lifelike, so arresting, tha
THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN CROSS (PART 2)  A FATHER BROWN MYSTERY
THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN CROSS (PART 2) A FATHER BROWN MYSTERY Oct 9, 2026 33:20 1001 CLASSIC SHORT STORIES & TALES SHOW NOTES THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN CROSS — PART TWO A Father Brown Mystery by G.K. Chesterton In the second half of The Curse of the Golden Cross, G.K. Chesterton brings all the threads of his mystery together in a way only he can — blending archaeology, paranoia, hidden identities, and the quiet, penetrating insight of Father Brown. Professor Smaill and Father B
THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN CROSS  (PART 1) A FATHER BROWN MYSTERY
THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN CROSS (PART 1) A FATHER BROWN MYSTERY Oct 7, 2026 29:23 ⭐ 1001 CLASSIC SHORT STORIES & TALES SHOW NOTES THE CURSE OF THE GOLDEN CROSS PART ONE A Father Brown Mystery by G.K. Chesterton G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown stories often begin quietly, but The Curse of the Golden Cross opens on the vast Atlantic Ocean aboard a great liner bound for England. Around one small dinner table sits a curious mix of travelers: a celebrated American archaeologist, a bo
NEMESIS AND THE CANDY MAN by O. HENRY
NEMESIS AND THE CANDY MAN by O. HENRY Oct 4, 2026 17:31   ⭐ 1001 CLASSIC SHORT STORIES & TALES SHOW NOTES NEMESIS AND THE CANDY MAN By O. Henry O. Henry had a gift for taking ordinary New Yorkers and turning their lives into small, sparkling comedies of pride, vanity, romance, and human nature. Nemesis and the Candy Man is one of his most delightful examples — a story that begins with a farewell on Madison Avenue and ends in a West Side alley where bea
SCARFACE (A BLACKFOOT INDIAN TALE) and FOR WANT OF A HORSEHOE NAIL  JAMES BALDWIN
SCARFACE (A BLACKFOOT INDIAN TALE) and FOR WANT OF A HORSEHOE NAIL JAMES BALDWIN Oct 2, 2026 22:25 SCARFACE- JAMES BALDWIN    AT 1001 CLASSIC SHORT STORIES & TALES Scarface tells the story of a young Blackfoot man whose facial scar becomes the subject of wild rumors and exaggerated legends. As the tales grow, he learns that he cannot control what others say — only how he chooses to live. Through courage, kindness, and steady character, he reshapes the meaning of his name and becomes the author
THE PLYMOUTH EXPRESS AFFAIR by AGATHA CHRISTIE
THE PLYMOUTH EXPRESS AFFAIR by AGATHA CHRISTIE Sep 30, 2026 33:09 1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales "The Plymouth Express Affair" by Agatha Christie" Episode Summary Agatha Christie's The Plymouth Express Affair (first published in 1923) is one of Hercule Poirot's early and tightly‑plotted murder mysteries. The story begins when a young naval officer discovers the body of a woman hidden beneath a seat aboard the Plymouth Express train. The victim is Florence Ha
THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY by JAMES THURBER
THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY by JAMES THURBER Sep 27, 2026 15:37 1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" by James Thurber Episode Summary James Thurber's The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (first published in The New Yorker on March 18, 1939) remains one of the most iconic American short stories of the 20th century. It follows the mild‑mannered Walter Mitty as he escorts his wife on routine errands—yet escapes constantly into vivid, he
HIS WIFE'S DECEASED SISTER by FRANK STOCKTON
HIS WIFE'S DECEASED SISTER by FRANK STOCKTON Sep 25, 2026 29:30 A tongue-in-cheek story about a young writer who is enjoying great success until he writes a story that meets with unusually great acclaim- so much so that editors won't accept anything else from him that doesn't meet the quality of that piece. He finds himself in a tough spot, unable to support his new wife, and not knowing which way to turn.  Join us at our new Facebook page WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/BES
THE FILLMORE ELDERBERRIES by LUCY MAUD MONTGOMERY
THE FILLMORE ELDERBERRIES by LUCY MAUD MONTGOMERY Sep 23, 2026 19:40 A young man who has just lost his father and needs to support his mother tries to find work but no one, inluding his own uncle, will hire him due to his deceased father's bad reputation as a shirker. Finally a local farmer offers the young man a job to clear an entire field of elderberries down to the roots for a pittance, provided he finishes the job. The young man has nowhere else to turn and ac
MESSAGE FOUND IN A BOTTLE by EDGAR ALLAN POE
MESSAGE FOUND IN A BOTTLE by EDGAR ALLAN POE Sep 20, 2026 27:56 SHOW NOTES — MS. FOUND IN A BOTTLE by Edgar Allan Poe 1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales Episode Summary In this early sea‑tale from Edgar Allan Poe—first published in 1833 and winner of a Baltimore literary contest—we follow an unnamed narrator whose voyage from Java becomes a descent into terror, isolation, and the unknown. After a catastrophic storm destroys his ship, he and an old Swede surviv
JONAH OF THE JOVE RUN by RAY BRADBURY
JONAH OF THE JOVE RUN by RAY BRADBURY Sep 18, 2026 41:21 ⭐ SHOW NOTES — 1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales JONAH OF THE JOVE RUN By Ray Bradbury Ray Bradbury's Jonah of the Jove Run is a character‑driven science‑fiction gem — a story about reputation, redemption, and the quiet courage of a man trying to reclaim the honor he once lost. Set against the vast backdrop of interplanetary travel, Bradbury focuses not on rockets and machinery, but on the human
LITTLE JOHN TURNS BAREFOOT FRIAR
LITTLE JOHN TURNS BAREFOOT FRIAR Sep 16, 2026 33:41 ⭐ SHOW NOTES LITTLE JOHN TURNS BAREFOOT FRIAR at 1001 Classic Short Stories & Tales By Howard Pyle From The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood (1883) In this lively and humorous tale from Howard Pyle's classic The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, Little John steps into one of his most memorable disguises — trading his yeoman's green for the short, ill‑fitting robes of a barefoot friar. What begins as a

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