Before there was a lovable green ogre called Shrek and a bespeckled wizard named Harry Potter, there were the best fantasy short stories published in English during the first half of the nineteenth century. These 10 excellent stories were uncovered by awarding-winning editor Andrew Barger from old magazines and forgotten journals.

 

Andrew provides a list, at the back of the collection, of the stories considered for the anthology. Andrew further includes background introductions to each story and author photos, where available. But his treatment of some of the earliest stories in the genre gets even better with annotations of the stories, which allows readers to peek behind the stories. Read the best fantasy short stories by some of the world's greatest authors, including Mary Shelley, Charles Dickens and Washington Irving.

 

• 1836 The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton by Charles Dickens is thought by many to be a precursor to A Christmas Carol given the subject matter and goblins that a certain grouchy sexton meets on Christmas Eve.

• 1839 The Kelpie Rock by Joseph Holt Ingraham draws on the prior writings of Washington Irving in the Hudson River Valley while giving the world one of the best fantasy stories by an American during this important period in the genre.

• 1831 Transformation by Mary Shelleyis the best fantasy short story by the famous author of Frankenstein.

• 1819 Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving gives a look into the American Revolution by one of America's most famous authors and is also the oldest story in the collection.

• 1824 Lilian of the Vale by George Darley is a haunting fantasy short story that is the cornerstone of all modern fairy stories.

• 1835 The Doom of Soulis by John MacKay Wilson recounts a haunting legend of a wizard that will not soon be forgotten.

• 1827 The Dwarf Nose by Wilhelm Hauff provides one of the best dwarf short stories ever written by one of Germany's most talented authors who died way before his time.

• 1829 Seddik Ben Saad the Magician by D.C. is a mystical story that conjures thoughts of Arabia, astrology, and the black arts.

• 1845 The Witch Caprusche by Elizabeth F. Ellet tells a haunting fantasy story of a witch and the thirst for power that leads to a bitter end. The tale is also included in Witchcraft Classics: Best Witch Short Stories 1800-1849.

• 1837 The Pale Lady by George Soane recounts a peculiar visitor who comes to stay at a castle that came only stem from the mind of one of the most underrated English fantasy authors of the nineteenth century.