Fast Asleep

343 - Just what was it that "influenced" Kurt Vonnegut?" Artistry and intellect are deemed dangerous in this familiarly unchecked government of the future. Tuck in for Vonnegut's satirical story that still intrigues and divides his critics.

342 - Tuck in as Miss Marple solves another one! "One look at the still figure on the bed was enough . . . Mrs. Pritchard had been dead at least eight hours!"

341 - What happens when the black veil comes off?The overbearing husband is dead and decades of the widow's life have passed. Tuck in for feminist author Charlotte Perkins Gilman's defiant story and its shocking twist, proving why she was a historic champion of the Women's Movement.

340 - "There is a wild beast in your woods." Tuck in for comic horror with a twist of cruelty from the dark master of the classic short story, H.H. Munro (Saki).

339 - Just a mundane, "ordinary" day . . . Tuck in for the dark humor of the awarding-winning Shirley Jackson as she again unsettles and disturbs us.

338 - "Suddenly death was inside the house here with me. And I couldn't move, I couldn't get up out of this chair." Tuck in to hear the origin of Hitchcock's thriller Rear Window, the conclusion of the classic story from the "Suspense Master" Cornell Woolrich.

337- My neighbor murdered his wife! Tuck in for theorigin of Hitchcock's Rear Window, the classic story from the"Suspense Master" Cornell Woolrich.

341 - What happens when the black veil comes off? The overbearing husband is dead and decades of the widow's life have passed. Tuck in for feminist author Charlotte Perkins Gilman's defiant story and its shocking twist, proving why she was a historic champion of the Women's Movement.

336 - Two loyal old friends are put tothe ultimate test . . . Will they sacrifice for their country and for oneanother? Tuck in to hear Guy de Maupassant's classic story.

335 - There's a tender side to Stephen King . . . Tuck in for it.Big brother, little sister: "I knew what had to be done. I saw right away. I was terribly afraid ... She was better than sixty feet above me."

334 - "I leave this package" (her letters) "to the care of my husband. With perfect faith in his loyalty and his love, I ask him to destroy it . . . UNOPENED." Will he uncover her secret? Tuck in to hear controversial author Kate Chopin's impassioned short story.

331- "Nowhere in the world was any voice calling him; on no hearth was therea waiting dish," but do NOT worry about this furry little survivor. Thispatient and persistent cat was quite capable of fending for himself andparticularly for others. Tuck in for this well-crafted tale of companionship.

333 - "He was falling. His handswere outflung against the stone-cold blackness of space, and his body tiltedhead over heels, heels overhead, as he fell." Tuck in and enjoy the suspense of"The House Party" as it earned author Stanley Ellin the first of histhree Edgar Allan Poe Awards.

333 - "He was falling. His handswere outflung against the stone-cold blackness of space, and his body tiltedhead over heels, heels overhead, as he fell." Tuck in and enjoy the suspense of"The House Party" as it earned author Stanley Ellin the first of histhree Edgar Allan Poe Awards.

332 - It's Miss Marple's turn! Tuck in for another murder mystery from the queen of crime, Miss Agatha Christie. Can YOU solve this one?

331 - "Nowhere in the world was any voice calling him; on no hearth was there a waiting dish," but do NOT worry about this furry little survivor. This patient and persistent cat was quite capable of fending for himself and particularly for others. Tuck in for this well-crafted tale of companionship.

330 - You may not believe this yet, but acclaimed author Katherine Mansfield will make you fall in love with a housefly! You may also fall for a grieving father, but . . . THEN what? Tuck in to hear this ever-changing classic short story.

329 - Even Roald Dahl was shocked by the ending of his own (autobiographical?) story! Tuck in for the lurid details. :)

328 - Louise, the new student at the academy: "The girls worshipped her, and the teachers jealously admired her both for her mind and for her uncanny beauty." Ethel, fellow student: "loathed everything about her." Tuck in for the genius of Truman Capote and his unforgettable characters in one of his "Early Stories."

327 - You can NOT guess this ending! Tuck in as Daphne du Maurier's peaceful rhythm and tone mesmerize you along to the most twisted of twisted endings. (No choice but to listen all over again!)

326 - Immerse yourself . . . in the wilderness of the historic Klondike Gold Rush with Jack London's authentic narrative. Tuck in to experience the harsh winter conditions along with the wicked antics of the claim jumpers in a story you won't soon forget.

325 - Ready for LOVE? Tuck in for a tender tale with a twist: a classic romance from O. Henry.

324 - Something bad happened out there in space, but of course it did -- Stephen King wrote it. Tuck in for this astronaut's disturbing story.

323 - Miss Marple solved it instantly. Can you? Tuck in and solve another Agatha Christie mystery, "Motive v. Opportunity."

322 - Don't miss this riveting conclusion! Tuck in for the extraordinary event that occurs in this genuine setting of "The Ice Palace" once again from the iconic author F. Scott Fitzgerald.

321 - Not a fantasy, this palace, made of ice, actually existed in the good old U.S.A., and F. Scott Fitzgerald wrapped a decidedly American love story around it. Tuck in for this "chilling" tale.

320 - Author of the unsettling short story, Shirley Jackson was anything but an ordinary housewife. Tuck in as her sinuous views on the subject twist their way through this tale.

319 - Was this the autobiography of the author with a tragic childhood? "The thing was above all a secret, something to be preciously concealed from Mother and Father; and to that very fact it owed an enormous part of its deliciousness." Tuck in for this dazzling, dreamlike short story from the Pulitzer Prize-winning Poet Laureate, Conrad Aiken.

318 - ". . . he opened his eyes and Mrs. Baines was there, her gray untidy hair in threads over his face . . . 'Where are they?' she whispered. 'Where are they?' " Tuck in for the acclaimed Graham Greene's dramatic thriller.

317 - It is December 24 and . . . "This is one day I'd like to cut out of the calendar permanently." Tuck in to discover why from the Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America.

316 - Madison Lane and Rosita McMullen were joyously married on Christmas Day, but not everyone was happy about it. Tuck in for this festive O. Henry story complete with (what else?) a surprising twist!

315 - "You can have no idea, if you've never been HIT ON THE HEAD WITH A GOOSE, how it hurts," said "The Man Who Did Not Believe in Luck." Tuck in for this lighthearted holiday tale from the quirky author, Jerome K. Jerome.

314 - Perhaps their long marriage wasn't perfect . . . "She noticed with a kind of horror that he was staring intently at . . . the corner of her left eye where she could feel the muscle twitching." Tuck in and learn why that eye twitches.

313 - "The summer folks go, but I stay here . . . and listen for the cries from the wrecks. I'm as busy in the winter as in the summer and terribly lonely, little mates." Tuck in to learn what happens to this heroic captain on Thanksgiving.

312 - There's a Spanish galleon wrecked off the coast of Cornwall, but was it ever brimming with gold bullion? Thanks to the most widely published author of all time, we once again solve the mystery with Miss Marple.

311 - Light and scrumptious and from Philip K. Dick! Tuck into not one -- but TWO -- tales from this gripping author of speculative and science fiction. Second story: “Roog” by Philip K. Dick :)

310 - Author Saki (H. H. Munro) loved to taunt the upper class with his short stories and his readers with his twisted endings. Tuck in and enjoy how he does it.

309 - What's scarier than something safe and familiar turning into dread and doom? Now add a dash of absurdity and that's the way we complete the spooky season: with our very first story from Stephen King!

308- She had "The Demon Lover" and wondered "After twenty-five years . . . What did he do to make me promise like that?"  Tuck in for this Irish-British author's classic horror story.

307 - "That shadow on the wall . . . It's been there every night since he died." Tuck in for this ghoulish ghost story from the prim New England author who heartily embraced the "weird."

306 - Completely isolated on a tiny island, loneliness is not his only concern . . . Tuck in for "A Haunted Island" from the master of the ghost story.

305 - "It is well known that the old Manton house is haunted." (Without a doubt!) Tuck in to navigate the abrupt twists of this disquieting ghost story from this week's author, who must still be smirking from his afterlife over this one.

304 - Alcohol and cherished pets do not always mix: "One night, returning home, much intoxicated from one of my haunts . . ." Tuck in for the man of the macabre and his supernatural masterpiece.

303 - " . . . one wanted, sometimes, to be alone." But she will NOT be alone on this day! She will be plagued by a strange young man full of (good?) intentions. Tuck in for another baffling tale from the distinguished author who suffered his own woes.

302 - A Sunday afternoon in a most idyllic place, idyllic save for the loneliness of Miss Brill . . . Tuck in for this poignant (autobiographical?) story from the New Zealand author loved 'round the world despite her early passing.

301 - Tuck in for a fascinating convo between these two . . . Mrs. Rittenhouse: ". . . he fell an enormous distance from over the bridge railing to the river . . ." Mrs. Green: "Had it been I - well, he might have had a little help getting over the rail."

300 - Everything would have been different if he would have just made it . . . "Across the Bridge." Tuck in for this slightly twisted, classic tale.

299 - Who -- or WHAT -- killed Sir Richard Haydon? Tuck in for the conclusion of this Miss Marple mystery.

298 - Prepare yourself to solve another tantalizing mystery from the Queen of Crime! Can you unlock it BEFORE Miss Marple?

297 - Don't we all have an obligation to care for our voiceless animal friends? Tuck in for this significant author's retelling of two treasured tales.

296 - "There was a soldier -- a mere boy --lying with his face to the sky. Around his neck hung a gold chain and locket." Tuck in for the tender, rediscovered work of the most frequently read author of Louisiana Creole.