Audiobook · read by volunteers
Four Million
O. Henry (1862–1910)
Read by Marian Brown · 25 chapters · 5 h 31
About the book
A shabby couple in New York wonder how to buy each other a Christmas present. A self-declared citizen of the world holds forth in a cafe. A man named Tobin has his palm read, and the reading has surprising consequences. The Four Million is a collection of short stories by O. Henry set in the streets, rooming-houses and parks of early twentieth-century New York, each one ending with a twist that the reader never quite expects. Among them is The Gift of the Magi, one of the most beloved short stories in the English language. The stories are told with humour, sympathy for ordinary people and a love of coincidence. Marian Brown reads the twenty-five chapters in about five and a half hours, an easy and enjoyable companion for a commute or an evening.
Introduction
O. Henry was the pen name of William Sydney Porter (1862-1910), an American short-story writer. He adopted the pen name while in prison, and he published ten collections and over six hundred stories in his lifetime. The Four Million, published in 1906, is his second collection, written in New York some years after his time in an Ohio penitentiary for embezzlement. The title refers to the ordinary people of New York, in contrast to the so-called four hundred of high society.
The stories take place in New York City in the early years of the twentieth century and are representative of the surprise endings that popularised O. Henry's work. They also capture his use of coincidence or chance to create humour. He wrote about ordinary people in everyday circumstances: shop girls, clerks, drifters and dreamers, and he treats them with affection and a certain wry detachment.
The recording has 25 chapters, which begin with Tobin's Palm and The Gift of the Magi, and lasts about 5.5 hours. It is read by a single LibriVox volunteer, Marian Brown.
Why listen today? The stories are short, so you can enjoy one at a time. The twist ending, a form now so familiar, is here in its classic shape, and a good reading makes the sentiment and irony easy to appreciate. Many of the stories can be enjoyed individually, and the recording makes a handy source of short pieces for those who like to listen in small portions. The collection also gives a vivid picture of the city's streets, from park benches to restaurants, as they were seen by a writer who observed them closely and with great sympathy.
Public domain
O. Henry died in 1910: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text