WILLIAM SYDNEY PORTER (1862-1910), pseudonymously famous as O. HENRY, was one of the finest American short story writers. His writings were famously marked by ironic humour and surprise endings. Some of his major works are The Four Million (1906), The Trimmed Lamp (1907), Heart of the West (1907) and Whirligigs (1910). Porter began his writing career with the setting up of The Rolling Stone in 1894, a humorous weekly which did not do well. This was followed by a short stint at The Houston Post as a reporter, columnist and cartoonist. However, Porter was imprisoned for embezzlement of bank funds and served a sentence, eventually getting early release for good behaviour. While in jail, he started writing short stories under the pseudonym O. Henry to support his daughter, and became renowned. O. Henry died on June 5, 1910, aged 47.
American author William Sydney Porter, better known by his pen name br>o Henry (11 September 1862-5 June 1910), was a prolific short-story writer. Adept at handling comic and tragic themes, he used to great effect, both sentiment and surprise endings in his stories. Many of these trace the lives of ordinary new Yorkers who yearn for romance, passion and adventure, brilliantly capturing in the process The rhythms of American life at a time when slavery and the Indian Wars were a raw and recent memory. In his first book, he brought to life a colourful cast of characters whose stories unravel against a Honduran setting. This collection, featuring some of br>o br>Henry’s best stories—‘the gift of the Magi’, ‘the last leaf’, ‘the Skylight room’, ‘a municipal report’ and ‘the making of a new Yorker’ - showcases his mastery over the medium and the sheer range of his themes.
