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An incomparable satirist, Ambrose Bierce became the 'laughing devil' of the San Francisco news media, for he was about as discreet as a runaway locomotive, according to H.L.Mencken. ... Read more

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This early works was originally published in 1911 and is an absorbing collection of verses. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Highly Educated Wit
These are about the only ghost stories that I like to read, and I usually like to think that I am a lot smarter than that.But I am inclined to think that some people were a lot better educated in the days of AmbroseBierce, or he wouldn't have written his poem about "poorSalmasius" in THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY's definition of the wordlogomachy, a concept which is like psychoanalysis in its quest foreffectiveness.What is absolutely lacking today is any evidence for thetruth of the final line of that poem, "For reading Milton's wit weperish too."(p. 295)In these days, it is far more likely that theTV news and entertainment will be competing for most of the attentiondevoted to whoever is being more fatal.

Bierce sees the darwinian world as it is.
These hard-hitting tales expose the human condition for what it is.They deserve much better than the incompetent criticism offered by Clifton Fadiman, whose preface is little more than a compilation of his ownshortcomings.

Bierce is always splendid, but Fadiman is utterly midcult.
This is a splendid selection of Bierce's work,andincludes The Devil's Dictionary, Tales of Soldiers and Civilians, Can Such Things Be?, and other works of importance. It does desire to be the definitive selection,however, and therefore omitssome extremely interestingcriticism,journalism,some proto-Dada plays and political satires.Theseomissions all confirm Clifton Fadiman's genteel bias, evident in hisIntroduction. He characterizes Bierce as merely a cynic--as though thatwere not a tenable position--but in fact Bierce was a satirist of the firstorder. A true "cynic" would not bother to satirize anything atall. By all means read the Introduction, but try to imagine, as I do,separate afterlives for Bierce and Fadiman, the ones they deserve. Bierceis having a roaring good time in Hell, while Fadiman is serving herbal teasin dull Eternity. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

A fine example of quality research
Owens extensive research is always apparent in this work. A wonderful read. Provides great insight to Bierce's life as a solider. Is a great source of new lines of thinking regarding Bierce's work. Highly recommend to anyone interested in the Civil War or Ambrose Bierce.

Any interested in Bierce's background must have The Devil's Topographer
The Devil's Topographer: Ambrose Bierce And The American War Story tells one who was billed 'the first writer of fiction ever to treat war realistically'. This realism came from Bierce's experiences as a Union soldier in the Civil War, where he moved from soldier to cartographer and saw major battles of the war. Any interested in Bierce's background must have The Devil's Topographer: it outlines an important part of his life and sets over twenty of his war stories chronologically according to the story's action. ... Read more

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Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce (1842-1914) was an American editorialist, journalist, short-story writer and satirist, today best known for his The Devil's Dictionary (1911). He wrote some of his books under the pseudonyms Dod Grile and J. Milton Sloluck. Bierce's lucid, unsentimental style has kept him popular when many of his contemporaries have been consigned to oblivion. His dark, sardonic views and vehemence as a critic earned him the nickname, "Bitter Bierce. " Such was his reputation that it was said his judgment on any piece of prose or poetry could make or break a writer's career. His short stories are considered among the best of the 19th century, providing a popular following based on his roots. He wrote realistically of the terrible things he had seen in the war in such stories as An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Killed at Resaca, and Chickamauga. His works include: The Fiend's Delight (1873), Cobwebs from an Empty Skull (1874), Black Beetles in Amber (1892), Fantastic Fables (1899), Shapes of Clay (1903), A Son of the Gods, and A Horseman in the Sky (1907), Write It Right (1909) and A Cynic Looks at Life (1912). ... Read more

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All the major categories of historical mystery are here--ancient riddles, biographical enigma's, hidden identity, "fakelore", questioned artifacts, suspect documents, lost texts, obscured sources, and scientific challenges. This highly readable book will intrigue the scholar and the history buff no less than the mystery lover. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

historical detective work
This book was both informative and entertaining. Nickell examines a number of historical mysteries. These mysteries include the disappearance of Ambrose Bierce mentioned in the title,the authenticity of historicalartifacts alleged to have belonged to Daniel Boone and others, establishingthe identity of Nazi war criminals, and several more. These cases arerather disparate, but Nickell uses them to illustrate the common use of theinvestigative method in historical studies.I enjoyed reading thisbook quite a lot. This is no dry academic treatise: it reads a lot morelike a good-paced detective novel. Rather than an just describing themethodology of historical investigations, Nickell shows it throughentertaining case studies. I learned a lot about how historians investigatequestions, as well. ... Read more

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Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork. ... Read more

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The thrill of horror in Ambrose Bierce's story, The Middle Toe of the Right Foot, is intensified by the fact that the dead woman who comes back in revenge to haunt her murderer, has one toe lacking as in life. And in a recent story a surgeon whose desire to experiment has caused him needlessly to sacrifice a man's life on the operating table, is haunted to death by the dismembered arm. Fiction shows us various ghosts with half faces, and at least one notable spook that comes in half. Such ability, it will be granted, must necessarily increase the haunting power, for if a ghost may send a foot or an arm or a leg to harry one person, he can dispatch his back-bone or his liver or his heart to upset other human beings simultaneously in a sectional haunting at once economically efficient and terrifying. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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A Twist in the Tale (Selections: Dusk, The Necklace, An Occurance at Owl Creek, The Gift of the Magi) ... Read more

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Classic short story. According to Wikipedia: "Ambrose Bierce (1842 -1914) was an American editorialist, journalist, short-story writer and satirist, today best known for his An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. Bierce's lucid, unsentimental style has kept him popular when many of his contemporaries have been consigned to oblivion. His dark, sardonic views and vehemence as a critic earned him the nickname, "Bitter Bierce". Such was his reputation that it was said his judgment on any piece of prose or poetry could make or break a writer's career. " ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Clever
A very well written short story from an early master of horror and satire. The ending drives home a very chilling point about human presumption in regards to our senses and nature. The use of vague descriptions keeps the events mysterious and terrifying, and the characters are enjoyable for the short time we get to experience them. Recommended for lovers of chilling old tales. ... Read more

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Granted her wishes for all the good things she never had, an impoverished orphan is so deluged with commodities that she opens a headquarters for distributing them to the world's poor. ... Read more

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This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more