American Stories for English Learners
Text & MP3 Files

There are 57 fifteen-minute MP3 files. That is about 14 hours of listening.

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The Stories Sorted by Author

Bierce, Ambrose (1842-1914)

• The Boarded Window   (Ambrose Bierce)
• A Horseman in the Sky   (Ambrose Bierce) [Listen and Read Along Machine]
• An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge   (Ambrose Bierce)

Burroughs, Edgar Rice (1875-1950)

• A Princess of Mars - Part 1   (Edgar Rice Burroughs)
• A Princess of Mars - Part 2   (Edgar Rice Burroughs)
• A Princess of Mars - Part 3   (Edgar Rice Burroughs)
• A Princess of Mars - Part 4   (Edgar Rice Burroughs)

Butler, Ellis Parker (1869-1937)

• Pigs Is Pigs   (Ellis Parker Butler)

Cather, Willa (1873-1947)

• Paul's Case - Part 1   (Willa Cather)
• Paul's Case - Part 2   (Willa Cather)

Chopin, Kate (1850-1904)

• A Pair of Silk Stockings   (Kate Chopin) [Listen and Read Along Video]
• Athenaise   (Kate Chopin)

Crane, Stephen (1871-1900)

• The Open Boat   (Stephen Crane)

Folk Stories

• John Henry [Flash Listen and Read Along]
• Paul Bunyan   (An American Tall Tale)
• Pecos Bill   (An American Tall Tale)

Garland, Hamlin (1860-1940)

• The Return of a Private   (Hamlin Garland) [Listen and Read Along Machine]

Harte, Bret (1836-1902)

• The Luck of Roaring Camp   (Bret Harte)

Hawthorne, Nathaniel (1804-1864)

• Doctor Heidegger's Experiment   (Nathaniel Hawthorne) [Listen and Read Along Machine]
• The Ambitious Guest   (Nathaniel Hawthorne)
• The Birthmark   (Nathaniel Hawthorne)
• Feathertop   (Nathaniel Hawthorne)
• Rappaccini's Daughter, Part 1   (Nathaniel Hawthorne)
• Rappaccini's Daughter, Part 2   (Nathaniel Hawthorne)

Henry, O. (1862-1910)

• A Municipal Report   (O. Henry)
• The Exact Science of Matrimony   (O. Henry)
• The Gift of the Magi   (O. Henry)
• One Thousand Dollars   (O. Henry)
• The Ransom of Red Chief   (O. Henry)
• The Whirligig of Life   (O. Henry)
• The Last Leaf   (O. Henry)

Irving, Washington (1783-1859)

• The Devil and Tom Walker   (Washington Irving)
• The Legend of Sleepy Hollow   (Washington Irving) [Listen and Read Along Machine]

Jewett, Sarah Orne (1849-1909)

• The White Heron   (Sarah Orne Jewett) [Listen and Read Along Machine]

London, Jack (1876-1916)

• Keesh   (Jack London)
• The Story of an Eyewitness   (Jack London)
• To Build a Fire   (Jack London) [Flash Listen and Read Along]
• The God of His Fathers   (Jack London) [Flash Listen and Read Along]
• The Law of Life   (Jack London) [Listen and Read Along Video]
• Read about Jack London on American Mosaic (2010-05-20).

Melville, Herman (1819-1891)

• Bartleby   (Herman Melville)
• Benito Cereno - Part 1   (Herman Melville)
• Benito Cereno - Part 2   (Herman Melville)
• Benito Cereno - Part 3   (Herman Melville)

O'Brien, Fitz-James (1828-1862)

• The Diamond Lens - Part 1 [Listen and Read Along Video]
• The Diamond Lens - Part 2

Poe, Edgar Allan (1809-1849)

• The Cask of Amontillado   (Edgar Allan Poe)
• The Purloined Letter   (Edgar Allan Poe)
• The Tell-Tale Heart   (Edgar Allan Poe) [Teleprompter Player]
• Read about Edgar Allan Poe on This is America (2009-02-02).

Porter, Eleanor H. (1868-1920)

• The Lady in Black   (Eleanor H. Porter)

Stockton, Frank R. (1834-1902)

• The Lady, or the Tiger?   (Frank R. Stockton)
• A Piece of Red Calico   (Frank Stockton)

Twain, Mark (1835-1910)

• Luck   (Mark Twain)
• The Californian's Tale   (Mark Twain)
• The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County   (Mark Twain)
• Read about Mark Twain on People in America (2006-02-18).

Weaver, Caty

• The Boy on Graves-End Road   (By Caty Weaver)

Wharton, Edith (1862-1937)

• The Line of Least Resistance   (Edith Wharton) [Listen and Read Along Machine]
• Read about Edith Wharton on People in America (2007-06-15).

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About

• These will all print very cleanly (without printing the MP3 player and menu.)
• You can read the text as you listen to its MP3 file.
• The Voice of America (VOA) American Stories are good for people studying English
  because they can not only listen to the stories but also read them. These are in VOA's Special English.
• This site only hosts the American Stories that are not adaptations of copyrighted material.
  • "All text, audio and video material produced exclusively by the Voice of America
    is public domain. However, some images and graphics are licensed for use and
    covered by all applicable copyright laws."
• Please note that though the source files were in the public domain, I have done some editing.

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