This third edition of a highly successful anthology traces the American short story from Irving, Poe, and Hawthorne to contemporary writers such as Cooper, Updike, Joyce Carol Oates, and Raymond Carver. Identifying strands of developmemt such as `Regionalism and Realism', and the establishment of the short story as `A National Art Form', the editor also includes a better representation of women writers and writers of colour in this new edition.