At about half the length and a much lower price than comparable anthologies, this introductory anthology of short fiction, poetry, and drama is organized by genre and features chapter introductions and a bibliography of film adaptations. Readings have been chosen with an eye toward classic selections and gender balance, while allowing the book to retain the teachability and traditional emphases for which it has long been admired.

The third edition of "The Heath Guide to Literature" offers 407 selections of fiction, poetry, and drama, plus a lucid introduction to the study of the forms and themes of literature by authors who are themselves respected teachers and accomplished writers.

This affordable, chronologically arranged anthology features 72 short stories carefully selected for their representation of international voices and techniques, their significance in the development of fiction, and their educational and thematic value. Selections are weighted toward the modern and contemporary, with a fair representation of earlier stories. Story groupings help instructors shape thematic units, and help students recognize thematic and technical points of comparison between readings. Multiple stories by the same author allow students to compare works and analyze the evolution of the writer's literary technique.