<description>&lt;p&gt;Sometimes we fall so far that we are tempted to cross lines we never would have in better times. Feelings of inadequacy can become particularly acute during the holiday season, when we see so much apparent happiness. Our next story about one woman’s fall from grace and her Christmas redemption.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Brilliant short story author, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman ’s "A Stolen Christmas" was published in Harper's Bazaar on December 24, 1887&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, &lt;a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Short StoryVerses&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Sometimes we fall so far that we are tempted to cross lines we never would have in better times. Feelings of inadequacy can become particularly acute during the holiday season, when we see so much apparent happiness. Our next story about one woman’s...

Sometimes we fall so far that we are tempted to cross lines we never would have in better times. Feelings of inadequacy can become particularly acute during the holiday season, when we see so much apparent happiness. Our next story about one woman’s fall from grace and her Christmas redemption. Brilliant short story author, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman ’s "A Stolen Christmas" was published in Harper's Bazaar on December 24, 1887 We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, <a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Short StoryVerses</a>. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

A Stolen Christmas by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman - A Classic Christmas Story

<description>&lt;p&gt;This story is only available here during the holidays, but can be heard year-round at &lt;em&gt;Season's Readings&lt;/em&gt;, a part of Short Storyverses at &lt;a href="https://open.acast.com/networks/68a38d2ec29d1f9af2f00713/shows/68a38e07457a24bb950853fc/episodes/shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;shortstoryverses.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Out on the western chaparral, Christmas doesn’t soften the land so much as sharpen what’s already waiting there—old grudges, old loves, and old wounds that never healed quite right. Madison Lane and Rosita McMullen have built a life together in the years since their wedding was interrupted by a jealous suitor… and a bullet. But Christmas Eve has a long memory in the Frio country, and something—or someone—may be riding back through the brush. O. Henry’s tale unfolds with warmth, tension, and a frontier kind of mercy that arrives in a shape no one expects.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Chaparral Christmas&lt;/em&gt;&amp;nbsp;was written by O. Henry (William Sydney Porter), the American master of the gently-twisted tale. Known for his frontier characters, ironic turns, and deep affection for ordinary people under pressure, Porter captured both the humor and the heartbreak of American life at the turn of the 20th century. This story reflects his gift for revealing unexpected kindness in the harshest of places.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, &lt;a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Short StoryVerses&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

A Cowboy’s Christmas of Missteps and Mercy

This story is only available here during the holidays, but can be heard year-round at Season's Readings, a part of Short Storyverses at <a href="https://open.acast.com/networks/68a38d2ec29d1f9af2f00713/shows/68a38e07457a24bb950853fc/episodes/shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">shortstoryverses.com</a> Out on the western chaparral, Christmas doesn’t soften the land so much as sharpen what’s already waiting there—old grudges, old loves, and old wounds that never healed quite right. Madison Lane and Rosita McMullen have built a life together in the years since their wedding was interrupted by a jealous suitor… and a bullet. But Christmas Eve has a long memory in the Frio country, and something—or someone—may be riding back through the brush. O. Henry’s tale unfolds with warmth, tension, and a frontier kind of mercy that arrives in a shape no one expects. Chaparral Christmas&nbsp;was written by O. Henry (William Sydney Porter), the American master of the gently-twisted tale. Known for his frontier characters, ironic turns, and deep affection for ordinary people under pressure, Porter captured both the humor and the heartbreak of American life at the turn of the 20th century. This story reflects his gift for revealing unexpected kindness in the harshest of places.We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, <a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Short StoryVerses</a>. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

A Chaparral Christmas Gift – Classic Western Christmas Story by O. Henry

<description>&lt;p&gt;This holiday tale features Reginald, a fictional young-man born to the Victorian upper crust in England, who finds himself at a stuffy family Christmas party and tries to liven things up a bit.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Saki, the pen name of British author H.H. Munroe, loved skewering the upper class, wielding the weapon of character’s like Reginald, who appeared in several of his short stories.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, &lt;a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Short StoryVerses&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

This holiday tale features Reginald, a fictional young-man born to the Victorian upper crust in England, who finds himself at a stuffy family Christmas party and tries to liven things up a bit.Saki, the pen name of British author H.H. Munroe,...

This holiday tale features Reginald, a fictional young-man born to the Victorian upper crust in England, who finds himself at a stuffy family Christmas party and tries to liven things up a bit. Saki, the pen name of British author H.H. Munroe, loved skewering the upper class, wielding the weapon of character’s like Reginald, who appeared in several of his short stories. We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, <a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Short StoryVerses</a>. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Reginald's Christmas Revel by Saki

<description>&lt;p&gt;This story is only available here during the holidays, but can be heard year-round at &lt;em&gt;Season's Readings&lt;/em&gt;, a part of Short Storyverses at &lt;a href="https://open.acast.com/shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;shortstoryverses.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;When a bad harvest on the Canadian prairie means no Christmas for her cousins, a young woman does the only thing she can to rescue their holiday.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, &lt;a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Short StoryVerses&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Making the Best of a Bad Situation

This story is only available here during the holidays, but can be heard year-round at Season's Readings, a part of Short Storyverses at <a href="https://open.acast.com/shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">shortstoryverses.com</a> When a bad harvest on the Canadian prairie means no Christmas for her cousins, a young woman does the only thing she can to rescue their holiday.We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, <a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Short StoryVerses</a>. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Christmas at Red Butte by Lucy Maud Montgomery - A Classic Christmas Story

<description>&lt;p&gt;This story is only available here during the holidays, but can be heard year-round at &lt;em&gt;Season's Readings&lt;/em&gt;, a part of Short Storyverses at &lt;a href="https://open.acast.com/shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;shortstoryverses.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;When does the end justify the means and who gets to decide? One person's definition of morality may not be shared by others.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, &lt;a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Short StoryVerses&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Generosity and Compassion Put to the Test

This story is only available here during the holidays, but can be heard year-round at Season's Readings, a part of Short Storyverses at <a href="https://open.acast.com/shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">shortstoryverses.com</a> When does the end justify the means and who gets to decide? One person's definition of morality may not be shared by others.We are expanding our universe of short story podcasts on our new podcast channel, <a href="ShortStoryVerses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Short StoryVerses</a>. Listen to some of Don's new, original short stories on the "New Tales Told" podcast. Look it up on your favorite podcast player.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

The Gospel According to Joan by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman

Litreading delivers classic short stories—carefully selected, beautifully narrated, and updated every week.&nbsp;From Poe to Twain, O. Henry to Wharton, each episode presents a complete tale in a clean, immersive performance lasting anywhere from a few minutes to an hour. These timeless stories are read with clarity, warmth, and just enough character to bring them fully to life. Litreading is part of&nbsp;Short Storyverses&nbsp;(<a href="shortstoryverses.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">shortstoryverses.com</a>), a growing collection of podcasts devoted to exceptional storytelling. Explore&nbsp;New Tales Told—our companion series of original stories inspired by the tone and spirit of the classics;&nbsp;Season’s Readings&nbsp;to brighten your holidays any time of year;&nbsp;FRIGHTLY!&nbsp;for tales of terror; and&nbsp;Readastorus for for younger listeners. Search for all of these titles wherever you get your podcasts. <hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

LitReading - Classic Short Stories

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