This book may be used in four ways. First, it may serve as an
appetizer. Even the casual reading of good literature has a
tendency to create a demand for more. Second, it may be made the
basis for discussion and comparison. By using these stories, the
works of recognized authors, as standards, the student may
determine the value of such stories as come into his home. Third,
these selections may be studied in a regular short-story course,
such as many high schools have, to illustrate the requirements and
the types of this form of narration. The chapter on "The
Requirements of the Short Story" will be found useful both in this
connection and in the comparative study of stories. Fourth, the
student will better appreciate and understand the short story if
he attempts to tell or to write one. This does not mean that we
intend to train him for the literary market. Our object is
entirely different. No form of literature brings more real joy to
the child than the story. Not only does he like to hear stories;
he likes to tell them. And where the short-story course is rightly
used, he likes to write them. He finds that the pleasure of
exercising creative power more than offsets the drudgery
inevitable in composition. A plan that has been satisfactorily
carried out in the classroom is here briefly outlined.

The teacher reads with the class a story in which plot furnishes
the main interest. This type is chosen because it is more easily
analyzed by beginners. The class discusses this, applying the
tests of the short story given elsewhere in this book. Then a
number of short stories of different types are read and compared.
Next, each member of the class selects from some recent book or
magazine a short story he enjoys. This he outlines and reports to
the class. If this report is not satisfactory, the class insists