Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author's brain, their soul and heart. A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere.

In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted 'Top Tens' across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author?

The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme. Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature.

Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made. If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something.

In this volume our authors, from all the social classes, make their observations on life as they journey through a fascinating decade of need and greed. What they reveal may be all in hindsight for us but through their words, the reality of their prose the decade is beautifully dissected and captured.

01 - The Top 10 - The 1920's - The English - The Men - An Introduction

02 - The Horse Dealer's Daughter by D H Lawrence

03 - The Resurrection of Father Brown by G K Chesterton

04 - Rats by M R James

05 - The Death Room by Edgar Wallace

06 - Running Wolf by Algernon Blackwood

07 - Mrs Amworth by E F Benson

08 - Major Wilbraham by Hugh Walpole

09 - Smee by A M Burrage

10 - As the Crow Flies by John Davys Beresford

11 - The Dabblers by W F Harvey