An anthology is a collection of writings gathered together in one book. Think of it like a greatest hits album, but for stories, poems, or essays instead of songs. A poetry anthology might include fifty different poems by twenty different poets, each piece selected because the editor thought it was excellent or important.

Anthologies let you sample many writers' work without reading dozens of separate books. A science fiction anthology might collect the year's best short stories, giving you a taste of many authors' styles and ideas. Literature classes often use anthologies so students can read works from different time periods and writers all in one textbook.

Someone who compiles an anthology is called an anthologist. They might organize entries by theme (an anthology of sea adventures), by time period (an anthology of American poetry from the 1800s), or by type (an anthology of mystery stories).

Some famous anthologies have introduced readers to writers they might never have discovered otherwise, making these collections powerful tools for spreading great writing to new audiences.