The Four Million

By O. Henry

O. Henry, was an American writer. O. Henry's short stories are known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization and clever twist endings. O. Henry's work is wide-ranging, and his characters can be found roaming the cattle-lands of Texas, exploring the art of the con-man, or investigating the tensions of class and wealth in turn-of-the-century New York. O. Henry had an inimitable hand for isolating some element of society and describing it with an incredible economy and grace of language. Cabbages and Kings was his first collection of stories, followed by The Four Million. The second collection opens with a reference to Ward McAllister's "assertion that there were only 'Four Hundred' people in New York City who were really worth noticing. But a wiser man has arisen—the census taker—and his larger estimate of human interest has been preferred in marking out the field of these little stories of the 'Four Million.'" To O. Henry, everyone in New York counted.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jan 11, 2013
• ISBN: 9781300171843

O. Henry

O. Henry (1862-1910) was an American short story writer. Born and raised in North Carolina, O. Henry—whose real name was William Sydney Porter—moved to Texas in 1882 in search of work. He met and married Athol Estes in Austin, where he became well known as a musician and socialite. In 1888, Athol gave birth to a son who died soon after, and in 1889 a daughter named Margaret was born. Porter began working as a teller and bookkeeper at the First National Bank of Austin in 1890 and was fired four years later and accused of embezzlement. Afterward, he began publishing a satirical weekly called The Rolling Stone, but in 1895 he was arrested in Houston following an audit of his former employer. While waiting to stand trial, Henry fled to Honduras, where he lived for six months before returning to Texas to surrender himself upon hearing of Athol’s declining health. She died in July of 1897 from tuberculosis, and Porter served three years at the Ohio Penitentiary before moving to Pittsburgh to care for his daughter. While in prison, he began publishing stories under the pseudonym “O. Henry,” finding some success and launching a career that would blossom upon his release with such short stories as “The Gift of the Magi” (1905) and “The Ransom of Red Chief” (1907). He is recognized as one of America’s leading writers of short fiction, and the annual O. Henry Award—which has been won by such writers as William Faulkner, John Updike, and Eudora Welty—remains one of America’s most prestigious literary prizes.

Reviews for The Four Million

[phillipfrey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a good time I had with these 29 short stories. One or two of them per night before going to sleep. An excellent way to end the day. Written at the beginning of the 20th-century, there are terms and expressions that will mystify, but this doesn't take away from the impact of these stories.

[terris-7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

O. Henry is such a joy to read! Each story has that little unexpected twist that I just love!

[quondame · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A collection of 25 O. Henry stories, including Gift of the Magi, set almost entirely among those barely surviving in the rooming houses of New York. Certain racist elements are noticeable, and some of the slang has not been broadcast to posterity, but for the most part these short stories reliably deliver the surprise endings for which O. Henry is best known.