Short Story by Edgar Allan Poe. A selfish prince tries to escape a deadly plague known as the “Red Death” by locking himself and a large entourage inside a secluded abbey. They have a jolly time culminating in a lavish masquerade ball where the Red Death incarnate joins the party.
Short Story by Zora Neale Hurston. A mild-mannered man is killed when he bravely but foolishly confronts his cheating wife and her macho lover. Several weeks later, there is a rumor that the dead man has “sneaked back from Hell” and sure enough, his killer soon suffers a gruesome “accident”.
Chinese Folktale. A rich merchant offers a large reward to anyone who can cure his painful diseased eyes. With help from a magical centipede and thousands of ants a poor candy peddler becomes “One” with, he earns a large reward and lives happily ever after.
Grade 5-6 Story by Lensey Namioka. An entertaining story about a Chinese immigrant family’s efforts to “fit in” to American society. Chinese slurp soup; Americans slurp milkshakes. The message: despite cultural differences, we are all the same inside. This is expressed cryptically in the last line: All Americans slurp.
Short Story by Leslie Marmon Silko. When an aging Pueblo Native American dies tending their sheep, his people plan to give him a traditional tribal burial. They deceive a young Catholic priest, who would have insisted on a Christian ceremony, but later find they need something from him.