1. The Cop and the Anthem by O. Henry
In this story, a bum does all he can in vain to get arrested, and then succeeds just after he decides to turn over a new leaf. It includes several of the classic elements of an O. Henry story, including a setting in New York City, an empathetic look at the state of mind of a member of the lower class, and an ironic ending.
2. A Service of Love by O. Henry
It is a story essentially identical to The Gift of the Magi in theme and style. Each of an artist couple gives up their art for the sake of the other without either knowing it.
3. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
A bestseller and Nobel Prize-winning novel by Buck, it tells a moving story of the joys and tragedies of the Chinese peasant farmer Wang Lung and his family. It has been translated into more than thirty foreign languages; it was made into a Broadway play and a motion picture.