Mental illness runs keep in the Kain family, as do the family secrets. Why does Christopher’s mother leave when he’s finally home from school? Wilbur Daniel Steele, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

The Vintage Episode for the week is “The Battle of the Witchdoctors”, by H. Rider Haggard. Be sure to check it out on Tuesday.

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Classic Tales for Children: Volume 1 is now available. It includes the new recording of Pollyanna, bundled together with Winnie-the-Pooh, The Wind in the Willows, and Alice in Wonderland. I thought of titles that would really go well together, so I pulled out all the stops. This anthology is perfect to listen to again and again. You can pick it up at classictalesaudiobooks.com by following the link in the show notes.

https://store.classictalesaudiobooks.com/classic-tales-for-children-volume-1-p366.aspx

The O. Henry Memorial Prize nominees and winners series continues this week with a first-rate story by Wilbur Daniel Steele. Tackling the theme of mental illness in 1919 was a novel concept. Mental illness was and still is vastly misunderstood. The way this story was crafted really stood out to me, and I tried to modulate my pitch and pacing to reflect the sometimes-volatile narration. I hope the effect carries through.

And now, “For They Know Now What They Do”, by Wilbur Daniel Steele.

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How true is the saying, “In the Country of the Blind, the One-Eyed Man is King”? H.G. Wells, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to this Vintage Episode of The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

A Vintage Episode is released every Tuesday. If you have found value in the show, please help us to help more people like you by going to http://classictalesaudiobooks.com, and becoming a supporter. New stories are coming your way on Friday.

We have a new title available – Classic Tales for Children, Volume 1. This boxed set includes Pollyanna, The Wind in the Willows, and Alice in Wonderland. Hop on over to the website, and pick up your copy today.

And now, The Country of the Blind, by H.G. Wells.

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When the kids next door cross a line, Mrs. Shields can’t help but speak up about it. She knows it will set the gossip machine in motion, but right is right – isn’t it? Mary Stanbery Watts, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

The Vintage Episode for the week is “The Country of the Blind”, by H.G. Wells. Be sure to check it out on Tuesday.

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Have you ever read Pollyanna, by Eleanor H. Porter? Well, you should. Everybody should. With the way things have gotten so dark lately, I figured I just needed a shot of something bright and cheerful, and reading Pollyanna was just what the doctor ordered.

So, I recorded it. I’ll be releasing it as a boxed set, along with Winnie-the-Pooh, The Wind in the Willows and Alice in Wonderland. Keep an eye on your in box, and I’ll send the product link as soon as it’s available this week. You can preorder it now, by following this link:

https://store.classictalesaudiobooks.com/classic-tales-for-children-volume-1-p366.aspx

Mary Stanbery Watts was a rather prolific writer at the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries. She wrote many stories for McClures, and novels for MacMillan, several set during the Spanish-American war. Today’s story, “Nice Neighbors”, she wrote near the end of her writing career, in 1923. Just a heads up – this story does deal with violence toward animals.

And now, “Nice Neighbors”, by Mary Stanbery Watts.

Follow this link to preorder Classic Tales for Children, Volume 1, including Pollyanna, Winnie-the-Pooh, The Wind in the Willows, and Alice in Wonderland.

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Why does a stay at the Palace Hotel mean trouble? Stephen Crane, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to this Vintage Episode of The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

A Vintage Episode is released every Tuesday. If you have found value in the show, please help us to help more people like you by going to http://classictalesaudiobooks.com, and becoming a supporter. New stories are coming your way on Friday.

Please donate to the Kickstarter project to fund the audiobook production of Immortal, by Joanna White. It’s a prequel to her epic fantasy series, Valiant. In Immortal, the protagonist travels through different times without the ability to die. It’s very well-written, and I’m sure you’ll love it.

Once we raise the funds, Joanna has hired me to produce the audiobook! I’ll send out a newsletter with a link to the project once we’re ready to launch. Thanks for pitching in!

Stephen Crane is mostly known for his seminal novel: The Red Badge of Courage, and also for his short story, “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky”. While today’s story is seemingly simple, there are several complex themes underpinning the story. Also, the story breaks the stylistic norms of the period, venturing toward the realm of Expressionism.

And now, The Blue Hotel, by Stephen Crane.

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Do the English just not like Americans? Seriously, why won’t Chev’s family warm up to Skip? Margaret Prescott Montague, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

The Vintage Episode for the week is “The Blue Hotel”, by Stephen Crane. Be sure to check it out on Tuesday.

If you have found value in the show, please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Help us to help other folks like you.

Please go to http://classictalesaudiobooks.com and become a monthly supporter today.

Also, please follow the link in the show notes to support a Kickstarter campaign to fund the audiobook Immortal, by Joanna White: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/joannawhite/immortal-a-valiant-prequel

It’s a prequel to her epic fantasy series, Valiant. In Immortal, the protagonist travels through different times without the ability to die. It’s very well-written, and I’m sure you’ll love it.

Once we raise the funds, Joanna has hired me to produce the audiobook! I’ll send out a newsletter with a link to the project once we’re ready to launch. Thanks for pitching in!

Today’s story won the O. Henry Memorial Award in 1919. World War I had just ended, and there were many military stories written at the time, as most everyone in the world had some connection to the war.

Margaret Prescott Montague was a short story writer and novelist. Four of her stories were made into films in the 1920s. Winning the O. Henry Memorial Award is the most prestigious of her accomplishments. She lived from 1878 – 1955.

From the introduction to the O. Henry Memorial Award volume: “…the young Virginian of "England to America" will bring back, to all who read, their own heroes. It is fitting that Miss Montague's story should have received the first prize: poignant, short in words, great in significance, it will stand a minor climactic peak in that chain of literature produced during the actual progress of the World War.”

It is interesting to look back on this story over a hundred years later, and see how it fared. I think it’s safe to say that most people have never heard of the story, or its author, which is a shame. Let’s give it a go.

And now, “England to America”, by Margaret Prescott Montague.

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Why does Paul feel like he just doesn’t fit in with this world? What will “not fitting in” do to him? Willa Cather, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to this Vintage Episode of The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

A Vintage Episode is released every Tuesday. If you have found value in the show, please help us to help more people like you by going to http://classictalesaudiobooks.com, and becoming a supporter. New stories are coming your way on Friday.

Keep an ear open for our Kickstarter for The Golden Triangle – the seventh novel in the Arsène Lupin series. Two boxed sets are now available. We’ll let you know when we’re ready to kick off.

In today’s story, Paul just doesn’t fit in. Cather layers on the different woes that Paul has to deal with. He uses art as an escape from reality. He also has had issues with his home life, etc. The author gently layers on the struggles of a character so effectively. By the end, we fully understand his motivations, which as it turns out, is heartbreaking.

And now, Paul’s Case, by Willa Cather.

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Is money the root of all evil? Or does it change happiness to despair simply by existing? Booth Tarkington, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

The Vintage Episode for the week is “Paul’s Case”, by Willa Cather. Be sure to check it out on Tuesday.

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Please go to http://classictalesaudiobooks.com and become a monthly supporter for as little as $5 a month. As a thank you gesture, we’ll send you a coupon code every month for $8 off any audiobook order. Give more, and you get more! Thanks for helping us out.

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This summer we are showcasing short stories that have been nominated for the O. Henry Memorial Award from 1919-1923.

Booth Tarkington won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction twice. Once in 1919 for his novel The Magnificent Ambersons, and also in 1923 for Alice Adams.

He was well-known and prolific, penning many best-selling novels including Penrod and Seventeen. He was also an illustrator, playwright and politician, serving one term in 1905 in the Indiana House of Representatives.

In the 1910s and 1920s, Tarkington was regarded as “the most important and lasting writer in his generation”. By the end of the 20th Century, however, he had been completely ignored by academia, and in 2019 he was described by Robert Gottlieb as “America’s most distinguished hack”. Apparently, Tarkington’s penchant for glorifying the past, going beyond typical nostalgia, rubbed the modern academicians the wrong way.

I think it might be time we give him another chance.

And now, “The One Hundred Dollar Bill”, by Booth Tarkington.

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Why does the Reverend Mr. Hooper mysteriously don a black veil and never take if off in public? Nathaniel Hawthorne, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.

Welcome to this Vintage Episode of The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.

A Vintage Episode is released every Tuesday. If you have found value in the show, please help us to help more people like you by going to http://classictalesaudiobooks.com, and becoming a supporter. New stories are coming your way on Friday.

Keep an ear open for our Kickstarter for The Golden Triangle – the seventh novel in the Arsène Lupin series. Two boxed sets are now available. We’ll let you know when we’re ready to kick off.

Dealing with the concepts of sin, repentance and morality, and set in Puritan New England, the veil in today’s story is a critique of the Puritan’s concept of original sin. The acrimonious reaction of the townspeople to the minister’s behavior easily lends itself to exploring these concepts. I hope you like it.

And now, The Minister’s Black Veil, by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

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