Encompassing a period of almost fifty years, the stories of Henry James represent the most remarkable feat of sustained literary creation in modern times. For sheer richness, variety and intensity, they have no equal in fiction, enabling us to trace the evolution of a great writer in the finest detail. This collection reprints all the major stories together with many unfamiliar but equally intriguing pieces that illuminate their more celebrated companions.

Volume 1 covers the period from 1866 to 1891, the years in which James was evolving and perfecting his art as a storyteller. It includes such well-known masterpieces as “Daisy Miller,” ‘The Aspern Papers,” “The Siege of London,” and “The Lesson of the Master,” and many other tales in which James established his favorite characters and situations: the American girl in Europe, the solitary observer, the social climber, the literary lion.

Contents of Volume 1

A Landscape-Painter

A Light Man

A Passionate Pilgrim

The Madonna of the Future

Madame de Mauves

Benvolio

Daisy Miller: A Study

An International Episode

The Pension Beaurepas

The Point of View

The Siege of London

Lady Barberina

The Author of "Beltraffio"

Louisa Pallant

The Aspern Papers

The Liar

The Lesson of the Master

The Patagonia

The Pupil

The Marriages

The Chaperon

Sir Edmund Orme