Extremely Entertaining Short Stories

by Stacy AUMONIER
— Classic Works of a Master

Stories of World War I and of the 1920s

'… in England, my first trip there in 25 years … I bought the new Phaeton collection of Extremely Entertaining Short Stories by Stacy Aumonier … Back now in New York, it's a heavy volume to cart back and forth as subway reading, but it's well worth the weight!' —Margaret Heilbrun, Library Journal, New York, 2009.

'Stacy Aumonier is one of the best short-story writers of all time. His humour is sly and dry and frequent… And can't he write!'
—John Galsworthy (winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature).

'… The recently published collection of Aumonier's Extremely Entertaining Short Stories has certainly helped bring this overlooked talent to a new audience. Aumonier's stories are not only hilarious, full of wit and genuine warmth for his subjects, but also beautifully constructed insights into the various absurdities of human behaviour, be it in the drawing rooms of London high society or the trenches of World War I.' —BBC Radio 4 Programmes, 2011.
[—Stories from this book were selected for Afternoon Reading programmes on BBC Radio 4 during 2011.]

'I think his very best works ought to be included in any anthology of the best short stories ever written.'
—James Hilton (author of Goodbye Mr Chips, and Lost Horizon), 1939.

'… a very elegant volume … short stories that invite comparison with those of Saki, O.Henry and even Guy de Maupassant.' —Books Ireland.

'… a great holiday read.' —Brentano's, Paris.

'Forgotten Author, Stacy Aumonier … , like O.Henry and Saki, could condense a life into a few pages. … In the 1920s, he became unrivalled as a short story writer. … Perfect with a hot toddy on a cold night.' —Christopher Fowler, The Independent, London, 2011.

In Hardback, ISBN (hbk): 978-0-9553756-51,
576 pages; r.r.p.: £19.50 / €25.99

and in Paperback, ISBN (pbk): 978-0-9553756-37,
576 pages; r.r.p.: £17.99 / €20.00

and in an eBook (both ePub & Kindle-format*):
ISBN (eBook): 978-0-9561055-54
r.r.p. £8.30 (excl.VAT) / €9.99 (excl.VAT) /$11.99
*available instantly from Amazon websites.

[• click on cover image, or here, to browse pdf sample pages of the print editions >]

The Author

[• For a fuller description of the author's life and work (including descriptions of several of the stories in this collection) click here •]

Stacy Aumonier was born in London in 1877 and died in Switzerland in 1928. 

It was as a short-story writer that he was most highly regarded. Nobel Prize winner John Galsworthy described Stacy Aumonier as “a real master of the short story” and predicted that, through the best of his stories, he would “outlive all the writers of his day.”

James Hilton (author of Goodbye Mr Chips and Lost Horizon) was asked to choose “My Favourite Short Story” for the March 1939 edition of Good Housekeeping. He chose as his favourite “The Octave of Jealousy” by Aumonier, which the magazine described as “a bitterly brilliant tale.”

Between 1913 and 1928, Stacy Aumonier published more than 87 short stories in more than 25 magazines; 6 novels; a volume of 15 essays; and a volume of 14 character studies.

 

Exceptional Books and Exceptional Authors !