Winesburg, Ohio (1919) by Sherwood Anderson is a highly praised collection that features the story "Hands." Across its twenty-three tales, young George Willard forms connections with the lonely, isolated residents of his small town.

The Spoon River Anthology (1915) by Edgar Lee Masters is a series of poetic verses where the deceased men and women of Spoon River share their life stories from beyond the grave.

The Women of Brewster Place (1980) by Gloria Naylor, which won the American Book Award, is a compilation of stories that give voice to seven African-American women through seven interconnected narratives.

Ethan Frome (1911) by Edith Wharton portrays a farmer with a poetic soul who faces poverty, loneliness, and a difficult wife in rural New England.

Everything that Rises Must Converge (1965) by Flannery O’Connor is a collection of stories about grotesque characters grappling with religious dilemmas in the rural areas of Georgia.

The Collected Poems (1950) by Carl Sandburg, a friend of Anderson and a fellow voice of the Chicago Renaissance, celebrates American agriculture, industry, and the American populace.