Portrait of Saki
Meet the Author

Saki

British · 1870–1916 · Short-story writer

The wickedly witty master of the twist ending, who skewered Edwardian society with a smile.

6 StoryBites Editions3 Short stories
Start with The Open Window → Browse the editions

Why read Saki?

Saki (H. H. Munro) wrote short, sharp, savagely funny tales where prim respectability gets its comeuppance and clever children run rings around dim adults. His stories snap shut on a final line that reframes everything, often with a dash of cruelty. Read him for elegant, poisonous comedy and some of the most satisfying endings in the form.

A life in six dates

  1. 1870Born Hector Hugh Munro in Akyab, Burma
  2. 1904First collection 'Reginald' published
  3. 1911'The Chronicles of Clovis' appears
  4. 1914'The Open Window' published in 'Beasts and Super-Beasts'
  5. 1916Killed by a sniper on the Western Front

Themes across the collection

British literatureSatireWorld literatureBritishGothicPsychologicalSuspenseIronyFate

The StoryBites Editions

Short stories 3

From the memorial archive 3

Context that actually matters

Edwardian satireSaki mocked the manners and hypocrisies of polite English society with elegant malice.
The twist endingHe perfected the short tale that pivots on a final revelation, influencing generations of storytellers.

Influence

Echoes of Saki run through Roald Dahl, P. G. Wodehouse, among many others.