This is the first volume to capture the literary history of the English short story. Written by international experts, it seeks to overcome obstacles that have hindered this venture by providing readers with a chronological account of the short story from its origins to the present day.

The Cambridge History of the English Short Story is the first comprehensive volume to capture the literary history of the English short story. Charting the origins and generic evolution of the English short story to the present day, and written by international experts in the field, this book covers numerous transnational and historical connections between writers, modes and forms of transmission. Suitable for English literature students and scholars of the English short story generally, it will become a standard work of reference in its field.

'? the book covers enormous ground - colonial stories, rural stories, queer stories, comic stories - and makes room for obscure writers beside the heavyweights ? with this approach, an expert writes each chapter. Highlights include Heather Ingman on the Irish short story and Roger Luckhurst on weird fiction, that amorphous zone between horror, fantasy and surrealism.' Chris Power, New Statesman