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Original poster

Could anyone recommend short stories please?

35 replies

morelippy · 24/04/2023 23:14

Various life stresses, mainly a significant bereavement seems to have robbed me of my ability to concentrate enough to read. I've been an avid reader for 50 years and miss it!

I wonder if short stories would help get me back in to it..

Any genre other than fantasy really

Willing to give anything gripping a go.

Thanks

OP posts:
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Tiramumsu · 14/05/2023 22:18

I don't normally like short stories, but I love Curtis Sittenfeld and her collection 'You Think It I'll Say It' was brilliant.

JaneyGee · 14/05/2023 22:08

My personal favourites:

Saki
M. R. James
Roald Dahl
Oscar Wilde
P. G. Wodehouse

My favourite short story of all time is Roald Dahl’s Real Life of Henry Sugar. It makes cry (I mean the story as Roald Dahl actually wrote it, not as edited by the woke secret police).

Pixiedust1234 · 14/05/2023 22:07

Placemarking for when I can get to the library ❤

illiterato · 14/05/2023 22:02

Joan Didion and Z Z Packer ( Drinking coffee elsewhere). There’s also a good collection called something like “ the reason I won’t be coming” but can’t remember who by.

newtowelsplease · 14/05/2023 21:56

It was the type of thing that's made me look up and read everything she's ever written!

newtowelsplease · 14/05/2023 21:56

I've recently discovered Claire Keegan. I don't typically like short stories but was given a book of hers as a gift (Walk the blue fields) and absolutely loved it.

Firsttimecaller · 14/05/2023 21:53

Muriel Spark & Alice Munro are absolute masters of the craft.

VonThorn · 14/05/2023 21:52

Annie Proulx is my favourite author, but I can only take one or two of her short stories at a time. They're not exactly upbeat!

LysHastighed · 14/05/2023 21:51

I love Saki and I think I’m going to go and dig out some PG Wodehouse now, it’s been a while.
A short story has been on the tip of my tongue since watching the coronation and I finally remembered the title and author today, and it’s available online: https://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/YouKin.shtml

Short Stories: The Young King by Oscar Wilde

Full online text of The Young King by Oscar Wilde. Other short stories by Oscar Wilde also available along with many others by classic and contemporary authors.

https://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/YouKin.shtml

Time40 · 14/05/2023 21:47

.... oh, and the collection Not the End of the World by Kate Atkinson is very good

Time40 · 14/05/2023 21:45

penelope lively and also Saki stories are great

I agree.

Angus Wilson
Elizabeth Taylor - two absolutely brilliant mid-century English writers

Annie Proulx
Maggie Gee

SammyScrounge · 14/05/2023 21:28

William Trevor writes women well.

RomanMum · 06/05/2023 10:19

Notwithstanding by Louis de Bernieres.

TheDonsDingleberries · 05/05/2023 15:51

Homecoming by Yaa Gyasi
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

idrinkandiknowthings · 05/05/2023 13:31

"Salt Slow! by Julia Armfield. Weird as fuck but she's a wonderful writer. If you like that then check out her novel "Our Wives Under The Sea".

BeatrizViter · 01/05/2023 01:29

Shirley Jackson
anything by Jorge Luis Borges
Daphne Du Maurier
Saki
M.R. James

AspidistraFlying · 29/04/2023 07:57

SiouxsieSiouxStiletto · 29/04/2023 07:39

Binocular Vision by Edith Pearlman is one of the best collections of short stories that I've read in years.

Yes, that’s a brilliant collection!

Adding to the Alice Munro love — she’s a genius. Would also add Mavis Gallant, Elizabeth Bowen (if you want an individual collection rather than her Collected Stories, try The Demon Lover or The Cat Jumps), William Trevor, John McGahern, Colm Toibín’s Mothers and Sons. For something very contemporary, Louise Kennedy’s The End of the World is a Cul de Sac or Nicole Flattery’s Show Them a Good Time, both from the last couple of years.

SiouxsieSiouxStiletto · 29/04/2023 07:39

Binocular Vision by Edith Pearlman is one of the best collections of short stories that I've read in years.

LadyHag · 25/04/2023 15:39

All Alice Munroe, she is amazing
Edith Pearlman
Women's Hour books of short stories
Mark Haddon The Pier Falls collection (but a touch dark!)
William Trevor
Penguin do the following big anthologies that are really good:
The Penguin book of the British contemporary short story
The Penguin book of the British short storyb(two volumes, one in a black cover for appx 1sst half of 20th century then 2nd vol. In a white cover for later half - they were originally about £25 each but now you can get them second hand cheap)
Alice Ash Paradise Block
Joseph O'connor Where have you been?

Happy reading Op

WhatWouldJeevesDo · 25/04/2023 15:08

Jane Gardam

MsRead · 25/04/2023 15:04

The Penguin Book of Modern Women’s Short Stories, edited by Susan Hill.

This anthology I think is rather good. My very forward thinking A Level Lit teacher taught some of these to us in the mid 90’s and I’ve loved the anthology ever since. Angela Huth, Fay Weldon are two contributors. Some stories are funny, some tragic most have a wry humour underlying issues are still contemporary.
https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/633533

beastlyslumber · 25/04/2023 14:40

Roald Dahl
Robert Shearman
Kelly Link
Sarah Hall
Helen Oyeyemi
Alison Moore

All brilliant.

There are loads of good anthologies where you can try out new writers, too.

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 25/04/2023 14:33

Also Roald Dahl as pp suggested.

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 25/04/2023 14:20

I love Maeve Binchy short stories and always re visit them after periods of not reading. I find them very comforting.

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