I've just been reminded of 9th grade...
So, in 9th grade we read a LOT of good short stories... i shall link some of the best in case you guys care to read them (really, i would, they're all amazing. i'll give a short summary for you and a length.
1.The Most Dangerous Game- Richard Connell Widely anthologized, and the author's best-known work, "The Most Dangerous Game" features as its main character a big-game hunter from New York, who falls off a yacht and swims to an isolated island in the Caribbean, and is hunted by a Russian aristocrat. The story is an inversion of the big-game hunting safaris in Africa and South America that were fashionable among wealthy Americans in the 1920s 8,000-9,000 words
2.The Red-Headed League- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle It's just a sherlock holmes short-story. You know how those go. It's pretty good and not terribly long. Not sure about the length, but i'd say about the same as a medium length one-shot... probably around 10K words.
3.The Interlopers- Saki This story is really short and its about these two men that have been fighting over a piece of land for years and then when they finally make amends under a fallen branch its too late... its a chiller, dude. Like.... its one of those "OHSHIT!" endings. Realy short, probably not even like... 3K words.
4.The Gift of the Magi- O. Henry "The Gift of the Magi" is a short story written by O. Henry (a pen name for William Sydney Porter), about young married couple and how they deal with the challenge of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. As a sentimental story with a moral lesson about gift-giving, it has been a popular one for adaptation, especially for presentation during the Christmas season. Very sweet and very short. probably less than 2K
5.The Scarlet Ibis- James Hurst The Scarlet Ibis is a tragic story of two brothers, one, the narrator, called Brother, and the younger of the two, Doodle. If you can read this and not cry you are made of steel... in 9th grade boys would dare their friends who hadn't read it yet to not cry when they did read it in class, because it was really, REALLY hard to not cry... this story is so sad and if you HAVE a younger brother, it'll REALLY hit you. About 1,400 words
6. The Necklace- Guy de Maupassant This story is a good one about why lying for your pride is stupid. It's not as good as the last few but its good.
7.The Raven- Edgar Allen Poe You all know this one. you've probably all read it. it's the famous poem. But it's good so i'm including it.
8.The Cask of Amontillado- Edgar Allen Poe This is a bit more literary, but its a good 'chiller' again. Really good story. Not very long, but idk the actual length.
9.The Sniper- Liam O'Flaherty, Very short story set during the Irish Civil War, and the theme of the story is the tragedy of war. Barely over 1K words
10.Harrison Bergeron- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. This if is a dystopian satire about egalitariansm and it is REALLY GOOD! It's really short, like... MAYBE 1K and it is really good and really impacting. If you dont read any other stories on this list, read this one.
So, thats my 10 fave stories of 9th grade... Read them and post some reviews in the comments here. Tell me what you like, what you dont, and why either way. Even if you're 30 or older, its still good to read 9th grade literature to keep your brain young!
1.The Most Dangerous Game- Richard Connell Widely anthologized, and the author's best-known work, "The Most Dangerous Game" features as its main character a big-game hunter from New York, who falls off a yacht and swims to an isolated island in the Caribbean, and is hunted by a Russian aristocrat. The story is an inversion of the big-game hunting safaris in Africa and South America that were fashionable among wealthy Americans in the 1920s 8,000-9,000 words
2.The Red-Headed League- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle It's just a sherlock holmes short-story. You know how those go. It's pretty good and not terribly long. Not sure about the length, but i'd say about the same as a medium length one-shot... probably around 10K words.
3.The Interlopers- Saki This story is really short and its about these two men that have been fighting over a piece of land for years and then when they finally make amends under a fallen branch its too late... its a chiller, dude. Like.... its one of those "OHSHIT!" endings. Realy short, probably not even like... 3K words.
4.The Gift of the Magi- O. Henry "The Gift of the Magi" is a short story written by O. Henry (a pen name for William Sydney Porter), about young married couple and how they deal with the challenge of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. As a sentimental story with a moral lesson about gift-giving, it has been a popular one for adaptation, especially for presentation during the Christmas season. Very sweet and very short. probably less than 2K
5.The Scarlet Ibis- James Hurst The Scarlet Ibis is a tragic story of two brothers, one, the narrator, called Brother, and the younger of the two, Doodle. If you can read this and not cry you are made of steel... in 9th grade boys would dare their friends who hadn't read it yet to not cry when they did read it in class, because it was really, REALLY hard to not cry... this story is so sad and if you HAVE a younger brother, it'll REALLY hit you. About 1,400 words
6. The Necklace- Guy de Maupassant This story is a good one about why lying for your pride is stupid. It's not as good as the last few but its good.
7.The Raven- Edgar Allen Poe You all know this one. you've probably all read it. it's the famous poem. But it's good so i'm including it.
8.The Cask of Amontillado- Edgar Allen Poe This is a bit more literary, but its a good 'chiller' again. Really good story. Not very long, but idk the actual length.
9.The Sniper- Liam O'Flaherty, Very short story set during the Irish Civil War, and the theme of the story is the tragedy of war. Barely over 1K words
10.Harrison Bergeron- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. This if is a dystopian satire about egalitariansm and it is REALLY GOOD! It's really short, like... MAYBE 1K and it is really good and really impacting. If you dont read any other stories on this list, read this one.
So, thats my 10 fave stories of 9th grade... Read them and post some reviews in the comments here. Tell me what you like, what you dont, and why either way. Even if you're 30 or older, its still good to read 9th grade literature to keep your brain young!