LitReading - Classic Short Stories

Humans have shared stories for millennia. For most of that time, telling tales was a verbal process. A storyteller would regale an audience with accounts of adventure, bravery, compassion, despair, enlightenment, and fear. Stories were a shared experience, until the advent of inexpensive mass-printing processes in the 19th century which allowed most of us to read to ourselves. Yet, that desire to have a story read aloud is still ingrained in our collective soul.

While we still read books for pleasure, most of today’s stories are told via newer forms of visual media like movies and television. Consuming stories via any visual medium requires an active commitment to the process. You probably shouldn’t read a book or watch a TV program while driving, but your brain still craves a good story.

An audio book is suitable for a long road trip. But what about those times when you only have a few minutes? Enter the audio short story.

Allow me to help you fill those moments and fulfill your need for a captivating tale with readings of some of the world’s greatest literary masters best brief works.

My love of the spoken word has been honed by a more than 30-year career in radio and voice acting with a modicum of performance passion from decades of stage performances.

This venture is my hobby (I have a great full-time job), so much of the content is free of cost. I hope you enjoy them.

If you would like to share thoughts or comments, please drop me a line. If you enjoy these stories, please spread the word, subscribe, and leave a review on your favorite podcast service.

Thanks for stopping by,

Don McDonald

Fiction
Performing Arts
Books
1
Uncle Richard's New Year Dinner by Lucy Maud Mo...
The end of the old year and the start of the new has traditionally been seen as an opportunity to start fresh by setting aside old grievances and moving forward with a clean slate.
11 min
2
A Visit from St. Nicholas or 'Twas the Night Be...
You've heard it dozens of times, so why not once more. Here's a Visit from St. Nicholas, was it penned by Clement Moore?
4 min
3
Christmas Every Day by William Dean Powells
For many children, Christmas is the best day of the year. Yet, often it’s for selfish reasons. Some kids like it so much that they might wish that Christmas day might never end. One little girl father explains what it might be like if it was...
17 min
4
Jimmy Scarecrow's Christmas by Mary E. Wilkins ...
While this is primarily a story for children, Christmas is the perfect time to explore our inner child and share that spirit with today’s kids. This story originally appeared on my Readastorus podcast.Being a scarecrow is a hard enough job in the...
15 min
5
Reginald's Christmas Revel by Saki
This holiday tale features Reginald, a fictional young-man born to the Victorian upper crust in England, who finds himself at a stuffy family Christmas party and tries to liven things up a bit.Saki, the pen name of British author H.H. Munroe,...
8 min
6
A Stolen Christmas by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman -...
Sometimes we fall so far that we are tempted to cross lines we never would have in better times. Feelings of inadequacy can become particularly acute during the holiday season, when we see so much apparent happiness. Our next story about one woman’s...
31 min
7
A Kidnapped Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum - A Cl...
Santa and his friends face the most challenging Christmas in their long history as Santa is kidnapped.
23 min
8
Christmas at Red Butte by Lucy Maud Montgomery ...
When a bad harvest on the Canadian prairie means no Christmas for her cousins, a young woman does the only thing she can to rescue their holiday.
18 min
9
The Gospel According to Joan by Mary E. Wilkins...
When does the end justify the means and who gets to decide? One person's definition of morality may not be shared by others.
42 min
10
A Set of Poe by George Ade
This seasonal story features a theme that will resonate with most couple’s in the weeks leading up to Christmas.Beginning his writing career as a newspaper reporter George Ade went on the become a nationally syndicated columnist, playwright,...
11 min
11
The Gift Of The Magi by O. Henry - A Classic Ch...
How many times have you read “A Christmas Carol” or seen it performed. Every year millions of families rewatch classic Christmas movies like “It a Wonderful Life,” "A Christmas Story" or even "Christmas Vacation?"For some reason these traditions...
14 min
12
The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
While Halloween is the season for scary stories, their popularity is timeless. That is why this dark tale of revenge still send chills down listeners spines after almost two centuries.The Cask of Amontillado was first published in the November...
17 min
13
The Furnished Room by O. Henry
Rather than your typical October horror story, This chilling tale is a unique variation on your run-of-the-mill ghost story with a wicked twist at the end from the master of narrative misdirection, O. Henry.O. Henry, whose real name was William...
17 min
14
A Wireless Message by Ambrose Bierce
As Halloween approaches we begin a time for scarier stories. For this short tale with a chilling twist we turn to prolific 19th century stories Ambrose Bierce for "A Wireless Message."Ambrose Bierce is considered one of the 19th Century finest...
6 min
15
The Damned Thing by Ambrose Bierce
As Halloween approaches, here is a bonus scary Litreading from one of my favorite authors. It’s the story of a mysterious death in the 19th-century American wilderness.
20 min
16
The Pale Man by Julius Long
A hotel guest is intrigued by a mysterious man down the hall.
16 min
17
The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs
25 min
18
A Haunted House by Virginia Woolf
8 min
19
Empire of the Ants by H.G. Wells
Late 19th and early 20th century science fiction writers were fascinated with the wild and relatively unknown regions of the world from which they imagined all manner of invaders from insects to lizards, even giant apes. H.G. Wells was a master of...
41 min
20
The Willow Walk by Sinclair Lewis
"The Willow Walk" is a dark, thriller by one of American’s greatest writers featuring some fascinating characters, shocking twists and powerful imagery. It is also one of our longest stories at over one hour.In addition to winning a Pulitzer...
78 min
21
The Boarded Window by Ambrose Bierce
A chilling tale of psycological terror.
13 min
22
The Black Cat by Edgar Allen Poe
As Halloween approaches, our tales of horror grow more grisly with a classic scary story, The Black Cat by one of America’s greatest devisers of dread, Edgar Allen Poe
25 min
23
The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell
This thriller is one of the most popular stories of all time.
47 min
24
Yuki-Onna by Lafcadio Hearn
Ghost stories have been told around the world and often based on mythical creatures or spirits. Those living in the cold, snowy regions of Japan created the legend of a winter spirit called Yuki-Onna (or snow woman) whose beauty allows her to prey on...
10 min
25
The Cats of Ulthar by H. P. Lovecraft
Who knows what powers cats might have.
10 min