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Chesnutt has never received the fame he deserves as an author. He was criticised first for his radical beliefs and then, when he was old, for being a racist himself. This comic story, tells how a slave got the better of his young master and an old one too. (3,975 words)

One of the first colour horror films, Poe’s story became a box office smash hit in 1960. It was already the author’s most famous work. In it, a young man visits his childhood friend, Roderick Usher, who is suffering from a mysterious disease of the senses, and his dying sister, Madeline. He watches as disaster seizes them and then one night there's a terrible storm... (2,825 words).

Britain ruled more of the world than any other country in history and became rich and strong. The best part of the Empire was India, a huge and wonderful country of mountains and deserts, different religions and ancient knowledge. Britain kept India by force and this is the terrible story of Amritsar and the killing of women and children. It illustrates the price India paid for the British Empire. (425 words)

Oscar Wilde was as famous for his sense of humour as he was for his plays and novel. In this short story, he builds a beautiful romance where a nightingale is prepared to give her life for a student’s love for a beautiful girl. Sadly, things do not end as we might hope. (1,840 words)

Today, calculus is an essential part of modern mathematics. In the English-speaking world, Isaac Newton is often credited with its discovery, while in Europe, that honour goes to Gottfried Leibniz. Both men seemed to arrive at the calculus from different perspectives and were interested in different areas of it, but that did not stop them arguing bitterly about who was its creator (1,330 words).

This story is about an old prize fighter who needs to win against a much younger but less experienced opponent to pay off his debts and feed his family. The tension builds and as we follow the fighter through every punch and tactic, we get to know the man and hope that he will win. (5,200 words)

W. S. Gilbert’s story of a poor and sick man, living alone in Venice and looked after by a housekeeper, is a beautiful love story. Forced to spend his days lying down next to his window, he watches a young girl year after year in the reflection she makes in the water of one of Venice’s canals. Slowly, they become friends and the man starts to feel love for the girl – a love he believes she shares, despite everything (1,700 words)

Tea has a long history in Asia but was first brought from China to Europe about four hundred years ago. In the beginning, merchants put ready-made tea into barrels and then shipped it from China to Europe. It took them quite a long time to realise that they could pack the leaves and add water back home! After water, tea is the most popular drink in the world, this is its extraordinary history (1,140 words).

Turgenev tells the tale of a provincial doctor who, glad of the chance of educated company in the village where he lives, tells his patient the tragic story of the love of his life (3,535 words).

Jack the Ripper killed many sex workers on the streets of nineteenth century London, girls who would not be noticed if they went missing. The police had no suspects and nobody was ever charged with the crimes. This made some people think that the killer was someone with power and the police were afraid to act. (500 words)

W. H. Davies led an action-packed life and one that made his family very unhappy as a young man. He got into trouble with the police, lost a leg when he was trying to jump onto a moving train without buying a ticket and lived as a homeless person all over Britain. And all the time he wrote poetry. Read his story (1,425 words).

Guy de Maupassant was a young man when Prussia (a part of what soon became Germany) attacked and defeated France in a few weeks. This story is one of many he wrote about that war and tells the story of two old fishing friends, who find themselves in deep trouble only because they decided to forget the war and enjoy their hobby for a few hours. (1,735 words)

If you love chocolate – if you are a chocoholic – you will be fascinated by this article. It looks at the history of this drink and sweet, its almost religious quality in Central America, its violent arrival in Europe and the industry that it has generated today. A delicious delight for all chocolate lovers (1,125 words).

Katherine Mansfield’s brother was killed in The First World War and, in this story, the writer shows the feelings of two fathers whose sons were also killed. She considers their different reactions and how they change as the years pass, and cleverly uses the struggles of an unlucky fly to make her ideas clearer to us (1,405 words).

Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in the world and makes a fortune for the industry that promotes and sells it. But what were its origins? In fact, it started as a way of making water safe to drink. Drunkenness is not a modern problem: two hundred years ago, men, women and children drank beer at breakfast, lunch and dinner. This is the fascinating story of this ever-popular drink (910 words).