本书精选法国著名作家莫泊桑的39篇中短篇小说，有《羊脂球》《我的叔叔于勒》《项链》等不朽名篇，内容丰富多彩，结构巧妙动人。

小说以主人公夏冲从4岁到31岁的经历、见闻为主要线索，时间跨度为1976年至2008年。 夏冲是一个对悲剧非常敏感的人，发现周围生活中到处是被忽略的悲剧，他的父母、少年时代的朋友等人都在各种悲剧之中，与传统悲剧不同的是，这些悲剧往往被看作是理所当然，不足为奇。小说叙述的半个爱情故事则是悲剧中的一抹暖色，女主人公戚敏与夏冲同样年轻、聪明，但更平静，也懂得安之若素。夏冲经历了三次“寂静”时期，他不清楚为什么生活如此平淡又令人激动，无论时代如何变化，这国家这生活都像一条龙，庞大、强力、野心勃勃，而主人公则像一只蝉，疏离、弱小、难以平静。当他到了成熟的年纪，成了一名律师，却仍受制于往日记忆，不得自由。2008年北京奥运会之前，中国已经成了一个崭新的国家，生活完全变了。这时夏冲回首往事，就像蝉发出了一

Callaghen's business is soldiering. For twenty years he'd foughtall over the world, from China to the deserts of California; nowhe's a private in the U.S. Cavalry, poorly paid, his enlistmentabout to run out. He's ready to move on...until he comes across astartling discovery: a treasure map belonging to a dead lieutenantwho may not have been all that he seemed. The map points the way toan underground river of gold...or does it? To find out, Callaghenwill have to fight the toughest war of his life: against a fierceIndian warrior, a vindictive commanding officer, and a ruthlessgang of outlaws who'll turn what may be a river of gold into ariver of blood.

It was just a godforsaken mountainside, but no place on earthwas richer in silver. For a bustling, enterprising America, thiswas the great bonanza. The dreamers, the restless, the builders,the vultures--they were lured by the glittering promise of instantriches and survived the brutal hardships of a mining camp to raisea legendary boom town. But some sought more than wealth. ValTrevallion, a loner haunted by a violent past. Grita Redaway, aradiantly beautiful actress driven by an unfulfilled need. Twofiercely independent spirits, together they rose above thechallenges of the Comstock to stake a bold claim on the future.

In Mojave Crossing," " Louis L'Amour takes William TellSackett on a treacherous passage from the Arizona goldfields to thebooming town of Los Angeles. Tell Sackett was no ladies' man, buthe could spot trouble easily enough. And Dorinda Robiseau was thekind of trouble he wanted to avoid at any time--even more so whenhe had thirty pounds of gold in his saddlebags and a long way totravel. But when she begged him for safe passage to Los Angeles,Sackett reluctantly agreed. Now he's on a perilous journey throughthe most brutal desert on the continent, traveling with a companionhe doesn't trust...and headed for a confrontation with a deadlygunman who also bears the name of Sackett.

In Sackett," " Louis L'Amour introduces readers to a wanderingman with a desire to settle down and build a good life. Hardcircumstances had made William Tell Sackett a drifter, but now hehungered for a place he couldn't name yet knew he had to find.South of the Tetons he came upon a ghost of a trail that led himthrough a keyhole pass into a lonely, alien, yet beautifulvalley--a valley that held a fortune in gold. Then he found an evengreater treasure: beautiful Ange Kerry, a courageous andresourceful woman. Yet the harsh ways it takes to preserve hisclaim and his life could be the one thing that drives Ange awayforever.

In Mustang Man," " Louis L'Amour takes Nolan Sackett on adangerous journey into family betrayal, greed, and murder. WhenNolan Sackett met Penelope Hume in a cantina at Borregos Plaza, thegirl immediately captured his attention. That she was heir to alost cache of gold didn't make her any less desirable. But Penelopeisn't the only one after her grandfather's treasure; Sylvie, Ralph,and Andrew Karnes, distant relatives with no legal claim to thegold, are obsessed with claiming the Hume fortune for themselves.Their all-consuming sense of entitlement recklessly drives them toambush and murder. Even if Sackett and Penelope are fortunateenough to escape this deadly trio and find the canyon where thegold is hidden, Indian legend has it that nothing will livethere--no birds or insects. They say it is filled with the bones ofmen.

His dream was to build magnificent steamboats to ply therivers of the American frontier. But when Jean Talon began hisjourney westward, he stumbled upon a deadly conspiracy involving ayoung woman's search to find her missing brother, and a ruthlessband of renegades. Led by the brazen Baron Torville, this makeshiftarmy of opportunists is plotting a violent takeover of theLouisiana Territory. Jean swears to find a way to stop this daringplan. If he doesn't, it will not only put an end to all his dreams;it will change the course of history--and destroy the promise ofthe American frontier.

《寄居者》的故事发生在抗战期间的上海，由女主人公玫在晚年讲述给一位传记作者听：玫在1939年的上海，爱上一名刚刚逃离集中营上岸的犹太男子。那时赶上约瑟夫·梅辛格臭名昭著的“解决方案”就要实施，为让爱人去美国，玫临时在上海抓了个救星另一位美国青年做自己的丈夫。乱世中，小人物们开始一串连环套式的命运救助，，玫用“爱人”的钱赎救了“丈夫”，用“丈夫”的护照让“爱人”脱险，同时，以毁掉对爱情的原始理解和信念的方式，去实现了爱情……故事结局在爱情的部分出人意料，令人叹惋。这部作品是严歌苓在题材、写作手法和女性角色塑造上又一次新鲜成功的尝试。同时，小说延续了作者独特的自述式与视觉化的叙事风格。

玛雅·卡斯特利克编图的《男孩与房子》是一本无字书，讲述了一个男孩跟随一只猫进入了一栋房子，然后根据猫咪或折纸等提示来到了这栋房子的阁楼。在这种阁楼里，又会有什么秘密在等着他去发掘呢？

本书精选法国有名作家莫泊桑的39篇中短篇小说，有《羊脂球》《我的叔叔于勒》《项链》等不朽名篇，内容丰富多彩，结构巧妙动人。