At the heart of this collection of seven stories is the masterful tale "The Private History of a Campaign That Failed." Part autobiographical account of Twain's adventures in the Civil War and part fiction, the story is by turns brimming with satire and a sober indictment of the cruel realities of war. Also included are "A Curious Experience," the account of a boy whose fantasy world collides with the real world during war time, and "The Invalid's...

Fourteen-year-old Samantha Byrd is an excellent shot-she's even better than her brother at providing food for her family. Although the winds of war are blowing in Virginia, she knows that she could only ever use her skill for hunting-not for hurting another person. When the Revolutionary War finally begins, her brother is captured, and Samantha sets off to rescue him. But when she comes face to face with the enemy, will she still stand by her principles,...

Popular American writer Ambrose Bierce comes alive in the magnificent collection of short stories. Having been no stranger to the battlefield, Bierce draws upon his experience as a soldier and the stories he heard during the American Civil War in this collection. However, his tales do not happily reminisce about the good times; instead, Bierce's dry wit and love of the macabre guide his stories to much darker places. "Civil War Stories", includes...

The three-act play and the hitherto uncollected stories contained in this book represent the first literary fruits of the active months (1937-1939) Ernest Hemingway spent in Spain covering the Spanish Civil War as a correspondent for the North American Newspaper Alliance and helping to film battle scenes for the motion picture The Spanish Earth. He conveys the feverish life in Madrid under siege: the daily horrors of the Rebel bombardment, the incongruous...

During the Civil War, Union and Confederate soldiers lay down their arms to play baseball. The soldiers think they are beating the system--fraternizing with the enemy is forbidden--but in fact the command of one side is using the games to meet a spy in the other's camp. When the soldiers realize this they pick up their arms. A first novel.

Includes a brief biography of Stephen Crane, thematic and structural analysis of the work, critical views, and an index of themes and ideas.

War is a serious business-or is it? Christopher Anvil turns his sardonic sense of humor loose on the subject and considers what might happen if: • Someone devised a computer war game so realistic and addictive that the people in charge of battle on both sides didn't have time or inclination to start a real war. • Another device gave every homeowner the power to block off his property from any inxursion, even by nuclear weapons. • A secret...

In each of four stories, a soldier must find Christmas wherever he may be -- from the European front to the South Pacific -- while a young woman waits at home, worrying and praying.