Ambrose Bierce’s Followers (1,312)

Ambrose Bierce

Born

in Meigs County, Ohio, The United States

June 24, 1842

Genre

Short Stories, Nonfiction, Poetry

Influences

Robert Ingersoll, H.L. Mencken, Voltaire, Joseph McCabe, Jack London, ...more

edit data

died perhaps 1914

Caustic wit and a strong sense of horror mark works, including In the Midst of Life (1891-1892) and The Devil's Dictionary (1906), of American writer Ambrose Gwinett Bierce.

People today best know this editorialist, journalist, and fabulist for his short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and his lexicon.

The informative sardonic view of human nature alongside his vehemence as a critic with his motto, "nothing matters," earned him the nickname "Bitter Bierce."

People knew Bierce despite his reputation as a searing critic, however, to encourage younger poet George Sterling and fiction author W.C. Morrow.

Bierce employed a distinctive style especially in his stories. This style often embraces an abrupt begin ...more

Combine Editions
Ambrose Bierce’s books

Average rating: 3.87 · 100,088 ratings · 9,313 reviews · 2,444 distinct works • Similar authors

	An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge 4.01 avg rating — 27,242 ratings — published 1890 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary 4.05 avg rating — 11,109 ratings — published 1911 — 794 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ghost and Horror Stories of Ambrose Bierce 4.12 avg rating — 3,207 ratings — published 1964 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce by Ambrose Bierce, Ernest Jerome Hopkins (Editor), Cathy N. Davidson (Foreword) 4.19 avg rating — 1,550 ratings — published 2000 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Damned Thing 3.52 avg rating — 1,520 ratings — published 1893 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Civil War Stories 3.90 avg rating — 1,227 ratings — published 1956 — 40 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Can Such Things Be? 3.68 avg rating — 1,172 ratings — published 1893 — 255 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	An Inhabitant of Carcosa 3.69 avg rating — 1,159 ratings — published 1886 — 18 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Monk and the Hangman's Daughter 3.72 avg rating — 1,105 ratings — published 1892 — 127 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and Other Stories 3.81 avg rating — 662 ratings — 195 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Ambrose Bierce…

Series by Ambrose Bierce

Collected Fiction (2 books)
by

Ambrose Bierce,

S.T. Joshi (Editor)

4.50 avg rating — 6 ratings

Quotes by Ambrose Bierce (?)

“Love, n. A temporary insanity curable by marriage.”
― Ambrose Bierce, The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary

tags: insanity, love, marriage

1730 likes

“Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret.”
― Ambrose Bierce

1659 likes

“The covers of this book are too far apart.”
― Ambrose Bierce

tags: attributed-no-source, books, criticism, humor, wit

1598 likes

See all Ambrose Bierce's quotes »

Polls

April 2016 Monthly Short Story Poll

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, 98 pages, 1915

38 votes, 23.9%

A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen, 122 pages, 1851

32 votes, 20.1%

The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare, 112 pages, 1594

27 votes, 17.0%

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, 96 pages, 1922

21 votes, 13.2%

Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, 108 pages, 1872

10 votes, 6.3%

King Leopold's Soliloquy by Mark Twain, 95 pages, 1905

8 votes, 5.0%

The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder, 138 pages, 1927

7 votes, 4.4%

Everyday Use by Alice Walker, Title Story 16 pages, 1973

6 votes, 3.8%

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce, 36 pages, 1890

6 votes, 3.8%

Reunion A single short story as found in The Stories of John Cheever by John Cheever, 3 pages, 1978

2 votes, 1.3%

The Upper Berth by Francis Marion Crawford, 48 pages, 1846

2 votes, 1.3%

159 total votes

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