Pop Culture Classics

• Pop Culture Classics:You’ve more than likely heard of these famous short tales– even if you’ve never read them.

• "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"
 by Mark Twain: This colorful tale about a man and his famous jumping frog earned Twain fame and acclaim and is well worth a read.
• "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi " by Rudyard Kipling: If you never enjoyed the tale of this dedicated mongoose as a child, pick it up today.
• "The Body" by Stephen King: Adapted into the movie Stand By Me, this short tale documents both the depth of friendship and the horrors of misfortune.
• "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving: You’ve more than likely seen one of the film adaptations of this famous tale, but see how they compare with the original for the full experience.
• "The Telltale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe: There are few out there who haven’t read or at least heard of this classic tale. Over a few short pages, Poe builds the suspense as a murderer begins to feel the guilt of his crime.
• "A Sound of Thunder" by Ray Bradbury: This work is the most re-published sci-fi short story of all time, documenting with great aplomb the devastating consequences of the "butterfly effect."
• "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" by James Thurber: The most famous of Thurber’s stories, inspiring the term "Mittyesque," focuses on a man who is bored with his mundane life and escapes through a series of grand, heroic fantasies inspired by his surroundings.
• "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell: Adapted into a movie starring Ice-T, the literary version of this story is perhaps more serious and compelling than the pop culture it has inspired.