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O. Henry (1862–1910)

Author of The Gift of the Magi

829+ Works 16,118 Members 210 Reviews 40 Favorited

About the Author

O. Henry is the pen name of William Sidney Porter, who was born on September 11, 1862 in Greensboro, North Carolina. Porter was a licensed pharmacist and worked on a sheep ranch in Texas. He was a draftsman for the General Land Office and a teller for the First National Bank of Texas. He was show more convicted of embezzlement and eventually served five years in prison. While in prison, he began writing short stories under his pseudonym and eventually wrote over 300. As O. Henry, Porter is one of America's best known writers, and his stories, such as "The Gift of the Magi" and "The Ransom of Red Chief", are still taught in schools. In 1918, the O. Henry Awards, an annual anthology of short stories, was established in his honor. Porter died on June 5, 1910. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Courtesy of the NYPL Digital Gallery (image use requires permission from the New York Public Library)

Series

Works by O. Henry

The Gift of the Magi (1905) 2,192 copies
The Complete Works of O. Henry (1928) 1,008 copies
Selected Stories of O. Henry (2003) 875 copies
Stories (1962) 486 copies
41 Stories (Signet Classics) (1984) 470 copies
100 Selected Stories (1929) 456 copies
The Four Million (1906) 427 copies
Tales of O. Henry (1777) 421 copies
Heart of the West (1904) 392 copies
Cabbages and Kings (1904) 319 copies
The Gift of the Magi (2008) 285 copies
The Wild West (1993) 216 copies
O. Henry's Short Stories (1900) 196 copies
The Voice of the City (1908) 186 copies
The Gentle Grafter (1908) 179 copies
Roads of destiny (1911) 166 copies
Sixes and sevens (1911) 158 copies
Strictly business (1910) 153 copies
The trimmed lamp (1907) 149 copies
Options (1909) 137 copies
Whirligigs (1910) 131 copies
The Ransom of Red Chief (1774) 118 copies
Rolling Stones (1909) 118 copies
101 Stories {Folio Society} (2002) 114 copies
Great stories of O. Henry (1974) 103 copies
100 Eternal Masterpieces of Literature - volume 2 (2020) — Contributor — 71 copies
The Last Leaf (1907) 67 copies
Best Loved Short Stories (1986) 60 copies
Best stories of O. Henry (1945) 51 copies
21 Essential American Short Stories (2011) — Contributor — 25 copies
The Stories of O. Henry (1965) 24 copies
Waifs and Strays (1917) 23 copies
Historias de Nueva York (2012) 22 copies
58 SHORT STORIES (1956) 21 copies
Selected Works (1983) 20 copies
An O'Henry Reader (1980) 18 copies
The Cop and the Anthem (1972) 17 copies
The Best of O Henry (1989) 13 copies
Best of O' Henry (2002) 13 copies
Classic American Short Stories [2016] (2012) — Contributor — 12 copies
The Best of O. Henry (1966) 11 copies
Den rätta blandningen (1979) 10 copies
Best Of O. Henry, The (2004) 9 copies
Postscripts (2001) 9 copies
Betrogene Betrüger (1966) 8 copies
Cómo asaltar un tren (1982) 8 copies
O. Henry's New York (1940) 8 copies
Cuentos de Nueva York (1900) 8 copies
Verhalen (1966) 7 copies
After twenty years (2023) 7 copies
The Best of O. Henry (2007) 6 copies
The Green Door (2017) 6 copies
Waifs and Strays Part 1 (1990) 6 copies
O. Henryana (2009) 6 copies
Meistererzählungen (1991) 6 copies
A Service of Love (2019) 5 copies
Let Me Feel Your Pulse (2004) 5 copies
The Wild West (Great American Writers Series) (1989) — Author — 5 copies
Confessions of a Humorist (2011) 5 copies
Historias selectas (2010) 5 copies
A Ruler of Men 5 copies
A Blackjack Bargainer (2013) 4 copies
THE GIFT MUSIC (2010) 4 copies
Рассказы (2014) 4 copies
RANSOM RED CHIEF BR4ESO (2001) 4 copies
Gift of the Magi [2010 TV movie] (2010) — Author — 4 copies
Hikayeler (2006) 4 copies
Son yaprak (2020) 4 copies
Roads of Destiny (Vol. I) (1925) 4 copies
The Pendulum 4 copies
Memoirs of a Yellow Dog (1970) 4 copies
O Henrys Short Stories (1965) 4 copies
O. HENRY a la Carte (1973) 4 copies
The Unknown Quantity (1974) 3 copies
Katmerli Sahtekar (2020) 3 copies
O. Henry (2009) 3 copies
Best of O.Henry 3 copies
The Skylight Room (2012) 3 copies
Mammon and the Archer (1961) 3 copies
A Classic Tales Christmas (2012) 3 copies
Le profil magique (1995) 3 copies
Glück, Geld und Gauner (1967) 3 copies
Tobin's Palm (2013) 3 copies
Cuentos de Navidad (2003) 3 copies
Obras selectas 1 (1959) 3 copies
The Princess and the Puma (1980) 3 copies
Law and Order (1997) 3 copies
Best seller 3 copies
Cops and Robbers (2001) 3 copies
Short Stories of O. Henry (2016) 3 copies
The Sleuths (2014) 3 copies
O. Henry (1994) 3 copies
Texas Christmas Tales (2011) 2 copies
Tietäjien lahja (1906) 2 copies
The Lost Blend 2 copies
The Admiral 2 copies
Stori1s by O.Henry (1999) 2 copies
Contos de O. Henry (2016) 2 copies
Tales of O. Henry (1969) 2 copies
O. Henry encore 2 copies
101 Stories {unspecified edition} — Author — 2 copies
An Unfinished Story (2021) 2 copies
Ladrones y mentirosos (2002) 2 copies
Between Rounds (1997) 2 copies
Dunya Vatandasi (2012) 2 copies
Le cadeau des rois mages (2008) 2 copies
Brickdust Row 2 copies
Buried Treasure 2 copies
O Henry- More Stories (2011) 2 copies
The Handbook Of Hymen (1980) 2 copies
Apsakymai 2 copies
Quatro contos 2 copies
From The Cabby's Seat (2021) 2 copies
Two Renegades 2 copies
Le langage des cactus (2013) 2 copies
The Very Best of O. Henry (2010) 2 copies
The Marionettes 2 copies
Girl 2 copies
A Tempered Wind 2 copies
Calloway's Code 2 copies
The Memento 2 copies
A Strange Story 2 copies
Tictocq (2010) 2 copies
The Detective Detector (2014) 2 copies
Witches' Loaves 2 copies
The Fifth Wheel 2 copies
The Head-Hunter 2 copies
Die klügere Jungfrau (1991) 2 copies
The Dream 2 copies
Quattro milioni (1946) 1 copy
Les chemins du destin (2011) 1 copy
Cuentos cuentos (2010) 1 copy
[No title] 1 copy
Tres Contos (2008) 1 copy
KUKLALAR 1 copy
Cuentos (1982) 1 copy
Anadan Dogma Diktator (2002) 1 copy
Pinti Aşık 1 copy
Christmas Short Works Collection 2014 — Contributor — 1 copy
Contos 1 copy
New Yrokers 1 copy
Un atto d'amore (2008) 1 copy
La Chasse au trésor (2010) 1 copy
Kiz (2015) 1 copy
KAKTÜS 1 copy
Racconti 1 copy
A Call Loan 1 copy
By Courier 1 copy
Man About Town (2021) 1 copy
The Duel 1 copy
The Snow Man 1 copy
The Cactus 1 copy
Phoebe 1 copy
An Apology 1 copy
Elsie In New York (2006) 1 copy
Storie di New York (2008) 1 copy
Drei Erzählungen (1965) 1 copy
Les cadeaux inutiles (2011) 1 copy
YESIL KAPI 1 copy
HIKAYELER 1 1 copy
Cisco Kid, Volume 1 (2015) 1 copy
A Poor Rule 1 copy
Rus In Urbe 1 copy
No Story 1 copy
Two Recalls 1 copy
Dicky 1 copy
Ships 1 copy
Shoes 1 copy
Money Maze 1 copy
Caught 1 copy
Smith 1 copy
Kız 1 copy
Short of O Henry (2012) 1 copy
New Yorker Geschichten (1966) 1 copy

Associated Works

50 Great Short Stories (1952) — Contributor — 1,266 copies
The Story and Its Writer: An Introduction to Short Fiction (1983) — Contributor — 1,136 copies
Great Tales of Terror and the Supernatural (1944) — Contributor — 646 copies
Great American Short Stories: From Hawthorne to Hemingway (2004) — Contributor — 594 copies
The Oxford Book of Short Stories (1981) — Contributor — 513 copies
Black Water: The Book of Fantastic Literature (1983) — Contributor — 505 copies
Great American Short Stories (1957) — Contributor — 498 copies
The Best American Mystery Stories of the Century (2000) — Contributor — 457 copies
Fifty Great American Short Stories (1965) — Contributor — 438 copies
The Spy's Bedside Book (1957) — Contributor — 359 copies
100 Ghastly Little Ghost Stories (1993) — Contributor — 341 copies
75 Short Masterpieces: Stories from the World's Literature (1961) — Contributor — 300 copies
A Treasury of Short Stories (1947) — Contributor — 294 copies
The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries (2013) — Contributor — 293 copies
Writing New York: A Literary Anthology (1998) — Contributor — 281 copies
Extraordinary Tales (1955) — Contributor — 277 copies
The Treasury of American Short Stories (1981) — Contributor — 269 copies
100 Dastardly Little Detective Stories (1993) — Contributor — 213 copies
Russell Baker's Book of American Humor (1993) — Contributor — 208 copies
The Penguin Book of American Short Stories (1969) — Contributor — 189 copies
The Best Christmas Stories Ever (Apple Classics) (1992) — Contributor — 186 copies
Stories to Remember {complete} (1956) — Contributor — 181 copies
The Penguin Book of Gaslight Crime (2009) — Contributor — 179 copies
100 Crooked Little Crime Stories (1994) — Contributor — 165 copies
New York Stories (Everyman's Pocket Classics) (2011) — Contributor, some editions — 155 copies
Stories to Remember, Volume I (1956) — Contributor — 148 copies
The Fireside Book of Dog Stories (1943) — Contributor — 146 copies
The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories (2015) — Contributor — 145 copies
An Anthology of Famous American Stories (1953) — Contributor — 140 copies
Short Stories from the Strand (1992) — Contributor — 139 copies
The Saturday Evening Post Treasury (1954) — Contributor — 136 copies
Stories to Remember, Volume II (1956) — Contributor — 126 copies
Best Dog Stories (1990) — Contributor — 118 copies
The Big Book of Adventure Stories (2011) — Contributor — 115 copies
The Arbor House Treasury of Great Western Stories (1982) — Contributor — 103 copies
American Short Stories (1976) — Contributor, some editions — 95 copies
Murder for Christmas, Vol. 2 (1982) — Contributor — 87 copies
The Best American Humorous Short Stories (1945) — Contributor — 85 copies
A Treasury of Civil War Stories (1985) — Contributor — 77 copies
Great American Mystery Stories of the 20th Century (1989) — Contributor — 77 copies
British and American Short Stories (1960) — Contributor — 75 copies
The Folio Book of Comic Short Stories (1805) — Contributor — 74 copies
Selected Stories from the 19th Century (2000) — Contributor — 73 copies
Bedside Book of Famous American Stories (1936) — Contributor — 72 copies
Haunted House Short Stories (Gothic Fantasy) (2019) — Contributor — 72 copies
200 Years of Great American Short Stories (1975) — Contributor — 68 copies
The Mammoth Book of Thrillers, Ghosts and Mysteries (1936) — Contributor — 67 copies
The Big Book of Rogues and Villains (2017) — Contributor — 66 copies
American Christmas Stories (2021) — Contributor — 62 copies
65 Great Tales of the Supernatural (1979) — Contributor — 60 copies
Desert Island Decameron (1945) — Contributor — 57 copies
Great Tales of Fantasy and Imagination (1945) — Contributor — 56 copies
Reading for Pleasure (1957) — Contributor — 51 copies
Manhattan Noir 2: The Classics (2008) — Contributor — 49 copies
Modern Short Stories (1939) — Contributor — 49 copies
The Mammoth Book of Thrillers, Ghosts and Mysteries (1936) — Contributor — 47 copies
Pearl S. Buck's Book of Christmas (1974) — Contributor — 46 copies
Great Tales of the American West (1945) — Contributor — 45 copies
Prose and Poetry for Appreciation (1934) — Contributor — 44 copies
The Misadventures of Sherlock Holmes (1944) — Contributor — 40 copies
Stories Selected from The Unexpected (1948) — Author — 39 copies
New Orleans Noir 2: The Classics (2016) — Contributor — 37 copies
Round the Christmas Fire: Festive Stories (2013) — Contributor — 35 copies
Tales of Terror (1943) — Contributor — 35 copies
Famous Stories of Code and Cipher (1965) — Contributor — 30 copies
Great Tales of the West (1982) — Contributor — 30 copies
The Mystery Book (1934) — Contributor — 29 copies
Classic Ghost Stories: Spooky Tales to Read at Christmas (2017) — Contributor — 29 copies
King Solomon's Mines and Other Adventure Classics (2016) — Contributor — 29 copies
A Treasury of Old-Fashioned Christmas Stories (2006) — Contributor — 29 copies
Manhattan Mysteries (1987) — Contributor — 28 copies
Rogues' Gallery: The Great Criminals of Modern Fiction (1945) — Contributor — 27 copies
Great Ghost Stories: 34 Classic Tales of the Supernatural (2002) — Contributor — 27 copies
The Best Ghost Stories (1990) — Contributor — 27 copies
101 Mystery Stories (1986) — Contributor — 26 copies
American short stories, 1820 to the present (1952) — Contributor — 26 copies
Trial and Error: An Oxford Anthology of Legal Stories (1998) — Contributor — 24 copies
Best Ghost Stories (1977) — Contributor, some editions — 23 copies
The Great Book of Humour (1935) — Contributor — 22 copies
Stories to Remember: Literary Heritage Series (1967) — Contributor — 22 copies
Great Tales of Detection (1936) — Contributor — 21 copies
Currents in Fiction (1974) — Contributor — 20 copies
The Tenth Fontana Book of Great Ghost Stories (1974) — Contributor — 20 copies
Racconti Gialli (1992) — Author — 20 copies
Short Stories II (1961) — Contributor — 18 copies
Short Story Classics [American], Volume 4 (1905) — Contributor — 17 copies
Tales to Freeze the Blood: More Great Ghost Stories (2006) — Contributor — 17 copies
Horrors in hiding (1973) — Contributor — 16 copies
Tales of the Occult (1975) — Author, some editions — 16 copies
Specter! A Chrestomathy of Spookery (1982) — Contributor — 15 copies
Modern American Short Stories (1945) — Contributor — 15 copies
The Ghost's Companion (1975) — Contributor — 15 copies
Christmas classics: A treasury for Latter-Day Saints (1995) — Contributor — 14 copies
The Favourite Wonder Book (1938) — Contributor — 13 copies
Love Stories: Classic Tales of Romance (2010) — Contributor — 13 copies
Fifty Masterpieces of Mystery (1937) — Contributor — 13 copies
Graphic Classics: Canine/Feline Classics (2014) — Contributor — 12 copies
Loaded for Bear: A Treasury of Great Hunting Stories (1990) — Contributor — 12 copies
Christmas Classics: Stories for the Whole Family (2006) — Contributor — 12 copies
The World of Law, Volume I : The Law in Literature (1960) — Contributor — 12 copies
Selected English short stories XIX & XX centuries (1914) — Contributor — 11 copies
Classic American Short Stories [1996] (1996) — Contributor — 11 copies
International Short Stories American (Volume 1) (1910) — Contributor — 11 copies
American Poems 1779-1900 (1922) — Contributor — 11 copies
Of Leaf and Flower: Stories and Poems for Gardeners (2001) — Contributor — 11 copies
Great Classic Mysteries: Thirteen Unabridged Stories (2010) — Author, some editions — 10 copies
Classic Ghost Stories (1993) — Contributor — 9 copies
Classic Dog Stories (Macmillan Collector's Library) (2020) — Contributor — 9 copies
More Classic American Short Stories (2007) — Contributor — 9 copies
World's Great Humorous Stories (1944) — Contributor — 9 copies
Famous Stories (1966) — Contributor — 8 copies
Classic Ghost Stories (2001) — Contributor — 8 copies
Great Classic Mysteries II (2012) — Contributor — 7 copies
The Black Cabinet (1989) — Contributor — 7 copies
The Moth and Other Stories (1991) — Contributor — 6 copies
Dealers Choice: The Worlds Greatest Poker Stories (1955) — Contributor — 6 copies
Library of Southern Literature, Vol. VI: Hearn-Johnston (1909) — Contributor — 6 copies
The Story Survey (1953) — Contributor — 6 copies
Our lives : American labor stories — Contributor — 6 copies
Representative American Short Stories — Contributor — 5 copies
Thirteen Short Stories (1968) — Contributor — 5 copies
The Fireside Treasury of Modern Humor (1963) — Contributor — 5 copies
The Anthology of Love and Romance (1994) — Contributor — 5 copies
Golden Tales of the Southwest (1939) — Contributor — 4 copies
30 Eternal Masterpieces of Humorous Stories (2017) — Contributor — 4 copies
Best crime stories. 4 (1971) — Contributor — 4 copies
Famous Stories of Five Centuries (1934) — Contributor — 4 copies
Fifty thrilling wild west stories — Contributor — 3 copies
Tails to Wag: Classic Canine Stories (2014) — Contributor — 3 copies
10 Best Loved Christmas Classic Stories for All Ages (2010) — Contributor — 3 copies
Die schönsten Hunde-Geschichten (1978) — Contributor — 3 copies
The Bathroom Reader (1946) — Contributor — 3 copies
American Short Stories (1978) — Contributor — 3 copies
Americans All: Stories of American Life To-Day (1971) — Contributor — 3 copies
Immortal Stories (2013) — Contributor — 3 copies
Best Legal Stories 2 (1970) — Contributor — 2 copies
Enjoying Stories (1987) — Contributor — 2 copies
A Book of Narratives (1917) — Contributor — 2 copies
American Humor and Satire (1992) — Contributor — 2 copies
Representative Modern Short Stories (1929) — Contributor — 2 copies
Eyes of Boyhood (1953) — Contributor — 2 copies
Short Stories: The Timeless Collection (Unabridged) (2007) — Contributor — 2 copies
El cuento literario (2008) — Contributor — 2 copies
14 American Masterpieces Vol.1 — Contributor — 1 copy
American short stories (2018) — Contributor — 1 copy
America through the short story — Contributor — 1 copy
American Short Stories (1992) — Contributor — 1 copy
An O. Henry Gift from Henry — Contributor — 1 copy
The Last Leaf [1983 film] — Original book — 1 copy

Tagged

19th century (103) 20th century (163) American (189) American fiction (72) American literature (498) anthology (1,310) Christmas (504) classic (325) classic literature (74) classics (489) collection (195) crime (56) ebook (100) essays (60) fantasy (110) fiction (3,182) Folio Society (186) hardcover (96) history (51) horror (149) humor (331) Kindle (74) Library of America (57) literature (769) mystery (429) New York (108) non-fiction (71) O. Henry (142) own (88) paperback (49) picture book (74) read (103) Sherlock Holmes (90) short fiction (97) short stories (3,265) short story (194) stories (159) to-read (648) unread (161) writing (60)

Common Knowledge

Members

Reviews

Wonderful classic stories by O. Henry.
½
 
Flagged
sfj2 | 3 other reviews | May 8, 2024 |
I guess death, loss, and deception were popular concerns in the late 19th, early 20th century. The writing styles are fun to experience, but the stories weren't my cup of tea.
 
Flagged
TraSea | 3 other reviews | Apr 29, 2024 |
 
Flagged
betty_s | Sep 16, 2023 |
$48 The first edition of O. Henry's collection of short stories with illustrations. First edition of Options by O. Henry, in the original publisher's cloth binding.?O. Henry was the pen name for William Sydney Porter, a well renowned American writer best known for his short stories. He is also commemorated with the O. Henry Award, an American annual award for outstanding short stories.?Options is a collection of sixteen short stories, including 'The Rose of Dixie', 'The Third Ingredient', and more.?Illustrated with eight monochrome plates of drawings. Collated, complete. In the original publisher's cloth binding.… (more)
 
Flagged
susangeib | 2 other reviews | Aug 24, 2023 |

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Associated Authors

Bennet Cerf Editor, Introduction
Harry Hansen Editor, Foreword
James Fenimore Cooper Contributor, Author
Mark Twain Contributor
Bret Harte Author
Charles Dickens Contributor
Jack London Contributor
Ambrose Bierce Contributor
H. G. Wells Contributor
Edgar Allan Poe Contributor
Herman Melville Contributor
H. P. Lovecraft Contributor
Susan Coolidge Contributor
Washington Irving Contributor, Author
Jonathan Swift Contributor
Margaret Cavendish Contributor
Arthur Conan Doyle Contributor
Maxim Gorky Contributor
Daniel Defoe Contributor
Marcel Proust Contributor
Elizabeth Gaskell Contributor
Bram Stoker Contributor
Victor Hugo Contributor
G.K. Chesterton Contributor
Stendhal Contributor
Jules Verne Contributor
Thomas Mann Contributor
Benjamin Disraeli Contributor
Lucius Apuleius Contributor
Vatsyayana Contributor
Jr. Horatio Alger Contributor
Alexandre Dumas Contributor
James Joyce Contributor
D. H. Lawrence Contributor
Arthur Morrison Contributor
Grant Allen Contributor
Jane Austen Contributor
Wilkie Collins Contributor
Pieter Harting Contributor
George Gissing Contributor
Dale Carnegie Contributor
John Cleland Contributor
H. Rider Haggard Contributor
Hollis Godfrey Contributor
George Sand Contributor
Marcus Aurelius Contributor
Mary Shelley Contributor
Upton Sinclair Contributor
Rebecca West Contributor
Stephen Crane Contributor
Barry Moser Illustrator
William Faulkner Contributor
Shirley Jackson Contributor
Carl Stephenson Contributor
Frank Stockton Contributor
Edith Wharton Contributor
James Thurber Contributor
Ernest Hemingway Contributor
Howard Hawks Director
Henry King Director
Henry Koster Director
William Dean Howells Contributor, Author
Garrick Hagon Narrator
Liza Ross Narrator
Christina Rossetti Contributor
Owen Seaman Contributor
Robert Frost Contributor
Willis Boyd Allen Contributor
Edwin. Lees Contributor
Owen Oliver Contributor
Jehan Rictus Contributor
Henryk van Dyke Contributor
Tommaso da Celano Contributor
Leonard Larkin Contributor
Shepherd Knapp Contributor
Pansy Author
Leigh Hunt Contributor
Grace S. Richmond Contributor
Viktor Rydberg Contributor
Bruce Bairnsfather Contributor
Eliza Cook Author
Anton Pann Author
Karl May Contributor
Eugene Field Contributor
Franz Grillparzer Contributor
Robert Herrick Contributor
Giovanni Pascoli Contributor
Tim Maran Translator
Michael Dooling Illustrator
Miles Hyman Illustrator
Frank R. Stockton Contributor
Sapper Editor
Fermin Rocker Illustrator
Kate Chopin Contributor
Matt Renzi Activities by
P. J. Lynch Illustrator
Sonja Danowski Illustrator
Lisbeth Zwerger Illustrator
C. Alphonso Smith Contributor
Pam Muñoz Ryan Introduction
Justin Leiber Foreword
Cedric Watts Introduction
Paul Frame Illustrator
Rod Waters Illustrator
Fred Chappell Introduction
Oliver Wyman Narrator
James Hilton Introduction
Kurt Löb Illustrator
Woodrow Wyatt Introduction
Mattias Bostrom Translator

Statistics

Works
829
Also by
198
Members
16,118
Popularity
#1,410
Rating
3.9
Reviews
210
ISBNs
1,330
Languages
20
Favorited
40

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