"The Selfish Giant" is a fairy tale written for children by Oscar Wilde, an Irish writer. [A fairy tale is a children's story that features imaginary or magical places and beings.] Following is the summary of the story. Once upon a time there was a beautiful garden. The children of the village used to come... Continue Reading →

Writer: Kate Chopin (original name: Katherine O'Flaherty) (1851-1904) Characters: Mrs. Baroda Gaston, Mrs. Baroda's husband Gouvernail, Gaston's college friend Theme: inner conflict between unrestrained desire and social limitations of a respectable woman Summary plus Interpretation of the Story "A Respectable Woman" is a short story written by an American writer Kate Chopin. The story highlights... Continue Reading →

Writer: Tom Winton, full name Timothy John Winton (b. 1960) Characters: The young couple Macedonian family Polish widower The neighborhood little boy The neighborhood women The midwife Theme: Multiculturalism; establishment of friendly relationship among neighbours despite cultural and linguistic barriers. Summary of the story The short story "Neighbours" by an Australian writer Tom Winton raises... Continue Reading →

Writer: Romesh Gunesekera, a Sri Lankan-born British writer Characters: Donald Amaratunga A librarian Janice Conway Summary of the Story This story by Romesh Gunesekera, a Sri Lankan-born British writer, is about the search for one's traditional roots and the preservation of personal heritage. Donald Amaratunga had come to Britain from Ceylon, present Sri Lanka, with... Continue Reading →

Writer: Guy de Maupassant, French writer Characters: Matilda Loisel Mr Loisel, Matilda's husband Jeanne Forestier, Matilda's friend Summary of the Story This story is about a lower middle-class married woman, named Matilda Loisel, who suffers miserably for pretending to be a rich and high class woman. Matilda is young and pretty but was born into... Continue Reading →