Saki

Saki tells a very funny tale about a man on a train listening to the boring stories of an aunt as she tries to keep three small children interested and well-behaved. She does not succeed. The man takes her place and tells the little ones a story that makes their aunt very worried (1,760 words).

In this very short story, Saki explores the idea that money is more important than blood. A very wealthy family has bought an old castle and are sitting down to dinner there with an old lady who works for them and some guests, when the wolves outside start to howl. The old lady announces that a member of the ancient family that once owned the property is about to die … (1,580 words)

Saki was a master of short, comic but sometimes cruel stories which made fun of the English upper-middle classes. Here, he describes the atmosphere between a married couple after an argument. But there is a surprising twist in the end which might shock you. (740 words)

A great comic tale in which Saki describes the complicated plans made by an Englishwoman as she tries to go one better than her friend who has had an exciting adventure. The plan is to impress her friends by shooting a tiger but it ends up costing her more than she'd expected. (1,065 words).

Saki is the master of comic short stories which have surprising – even shocking – endings. Here, a young man who is staying in the country because of a nervous illness visits a neighbour. The young girl he meets though has an unusual story to tell him that only make his nervous problems much worse. (1,020 words)

Saki's miserable childhood, brought up by his aunts in a very strict home, is reflected in this story where a child’s life and imagination is suppressed by a thoughtlessly cruel guardian. It is told, however, with Saki’s usual sense of humour and ends with a surprise for the reader. (1,520 words)

Saki’s very funny short story is about a young boy who is so badly behaved that he cannot go out to the beach with his family. In fact, he didn't want to go because he has something else he wants to do at home. But to do this, he must play a trick on his boring aunt (1,540 words).

This is a delightful story, told by one of the funniest writers in English, about a fiercely intelligent child who manages to escape a boring excursion to the seaside so that he can explore hidden treasure. To do so, he has to deceive his aunt but, just for once, the young seem more inventive and intelligent than the old. (1,850 words)