The Best American Mystery Stories of the Nineteenth Century (The Best American Series ®)

An unparalleled treasury of crime, mystery, and murder from the genre's founding century With stories by Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mark Twain, Louisa May Alcott, L. Frank Baum, Edith Wharton, Stephen Crane, and Jack London, The Best American Mystery Stories of the Nineteenth Century is an essential anthology of American letters. It's a unique blend of beloved writers who contributed to the genre and forgotten names that pioneered the form, such as Anna Katharine Green, the godmother of mystery fiction, and the African-American writer Charles W. Chesnutt. Of course, Penzler includes "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," recognized as the first detective story, and with thirty-three stories spanning the years 1824–1899, nowhere else can readers find such a surprising, comprehensive take on the evolution of the American mystery story. The story of the young robber -- Washington Irving The rifle -- William Leggett Mr. Higginbotham's catastrophe -- Nathaniel Hawthorne The murders in the Rue Morgue -- Edgar Allan Poe The purloined letter -- Edgar Allan Poe Remarkable case of arrest for murder -- Abraham Lincoln The fatal secret -- Daniel Webster The danseuse -- Thomas Bailey Aldrich A double tragedy: an actor's story -- Louisa May Alcott The two sisters; or, The avenger -- Allan Pinkerton The lady, or the tiger? and The discourager of hesitancy -- Frank Stockton A thumb-print and what came of it -- Mark Twain My favorite murder -- Ambrose Bierce The sheriff's children -- Charles W. Chesnutt Gallegher -- Richard Harding Davis 'Round the opium lamp -- William Norr Lingo Dan -- Percival Pollard The nameless man and the Montezuma emerald -- Rodrigues Ottolengui The doctor, his wife, and the clock -- Anna Katharine Green A very strange case -- William M. Hinkley The long arm -- Mary E. Wilkins The mysterious card and The mysterious card unveiled -- Cleveland Moffett Tom Sawyer, detective -- Mark Twain The corpus delicti -- Melville Davisson Post The suicide of Kiaros -- L. Frank Baum The purple emperor -- Robert W. Chambers At Pinney's ranch -- Edward Bellamy The blue hotel -- Stephen Crane A cup of cold water -- Edith Wharton The detective's pretty neighbor -- Nicholas Carter A point in morals -- Ellen Glasgow A thousand deaths -- Jack London. A treasury of crime, mystery, and murder tales from America's nineteenth century includes Edgar Allan Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" as well as selections by such genre masters as Jack London, Washington Irving, and Mark Twain.