short stories

Every January, new reading challenges float around the bookish realm of the internet. No matter what your reading time is like or what you want to achieve in a year of reading, there's probably a reading challenge out there for you. For the past few years, I've been interested in the Book Riot Read Harder challenge, which encourages readers to "break out of your reading bubble and expand your worldview through books. With new genres, new authors, and new points of view, the challenge will (hopefully) help you discover amazing books you wouldn’t have otherwise picked up." Some of the tasks in

Magical.

Marvelous, otherworldly, enthralling, haunting, wonderful. Magical.

Working in libraries has cured my of my book-hoarding obsession. I have such easy access to nearly anything I want on a daily basis, I no longer feel much need to own the books myself. This is one of the rare exceptions. It's not enough for me to have consumed this book; I want to possess it. I want to repeatedly immerse myself in it and dwell in it. I want to become a part of it and make it a part of me.

Explanation is a luxury we can't afford these days, and reality doesn't care for it, being far too busy

Once upon a time, not so long ago, a viral Tumblr post fell across the dashboard of an established author. This inspired a search for stories written around the theme: as far as alien species go, humans are strange and weird and wonderful. The result is this collection.

I only rate this three stars (really, three and a half) because the stories don't all resonate with me. There are some exciting adventures: "Sidekick," featuring a kidnaped child and their view of the human that's rescuing them and "The Sound of His Footsteps," which exemplifies why you really want a human if you crash on a

In Broccoli and Other Tales of Food and Love, Lara Vapnyar brings the lives of recent immigrants to New York into crystal clear focus. Using the universal language of food, Vapnyar illustrates the sadness of Nina’s wilting marriage with the broccoli in her refrigerator; Sergey’s loneliness cured, not by companionship, but by Borscht; Katya crafts her memory of puffed rice and meatballs specifically for her lover’s entertainment.

In these, and other stories, Vapnyar illustrates both experiences unique to Russian immigrants, as well as those universally shared. It’s reminiscent of Will Eisner’s

I picked up a book of C. S. Lewis’s short stories for a staff exercise in genres with Faith-Based and Inspirational Fiction. The Dark Tower and Other Stories contains some of his science fiction as well as faith-based works, so as a sci-fi fan I was eager to combine the two. Then I started reading, and my hopes swiftly plummeted. The first story is “The Man Born Blind,” a heavy-handed tale of religious allegory. Our main character has been blind all his life and has recently undergone an operation to cure it, but remains puzzled and frustrated afterwards by his inability and others’ inability

A strikingly illustrated graphic novel featuring short horror stories told in bold blacks, reds, blues and whites. The stories are ones that will stay with you. Each story felt familiar to me, probably inspired by classic fairy tales but each has its own horrific twist. One of my favorites has tones of Little Red Riding Hood, about a girl traveling through the woods to her mother’s house. Her father warns her to travel fast to avoid the wolves in the forest. She travels over hills, between the trees and safely reaches her mother’s home. The reader, ready to celebrate her safe journey is jarred

Flawed yet relatable characters in Nine Inches: Stories confess their inner thoughts and motivations as they recount the events that lead to their ultimate downfall.

The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume I is a creative, charming compilation of 1-5 sentence stories, poems, and artwork. The dainty book features 67 of the more than 8500 contributions originally submitted for the volume. Some made me laugh, others made me pause and reflect, and I kept flipping back to certain illustrations just to savor them a little longer. My favorite tiny story:

One day before breakfast, an

orange rolled off the counter

and escaped its fate, bounding

happily through the kitchen door.

Filled with hope,

the egg followed.

You can thumb through it in a matter of minutes

This is a collection of 12 short stories. Twelve different science fiction authors were asked to predict what the future may hold in fifty years (This book was published in 1991). Well known authors such as Bruce Coville, Ann McCaffrey, and Jane Yolen contributed short stories. I was intriqued by several of the stories.

Much Ado About (Censored) is the story about excessive centership when a class decides to read  Shakespeare in the local high school. "The National Cutlery Council objects to the depiction of swords as deadly weapons."

A Quiet One recounts the story of a young girls's

Livability is a collection of nine short stories written by Jonathan Raymond. These stories all take place in Oregon. Many of the stories involve drifters, failed relationships, and missed opportunities in life. They are both touching and sad. Two of the stories Old Joy and Train Choir were adapted into indie films. Suckling Pig tells the story of a wealthy asian homeowner who invites two hispanic day laborers to an elaborate multicourse dinner. Diego and Javier were recruited from a downtown street corner to perform yard work. Tom Chen has prepared a gourmet dinner for his friends' weekly get

This little paperback was full colorful and creative fantasy short stories that have a twist of mystery and humor. There is a story of magical murder by Donna Andrews.  Simon Green has a short story from, "the Nightside, Needless to say", where death comes to visit.  Mystery of a fantasy story includes bad guys and magic. Mike Doogan clever fantasy about alien delegates and Federated Plates Corps Diplomatique who shout out famous bad guy names instead of cussing. Overall the book was full of humor and mystery and it makes for a great short story read.

Drift is a very appropriate title for this collection of 13 short stories. The dysfunctional characters in these stories drift through life struggling with various addictive behavior including drugs and sex. Many of the stories are interconnected and all take place in Newport Beach, California. Each story follows many of the same characters during different times in their life. The stories held my interest, revealing that nothing is as it seems in wealthy Newport Beach.

This book of 13 short stories is written by Jincy Willett. Jenny and the Jaws of Life is populated by quirky people, many who lead a poignant life. Each story describes individuals who are faced with a personal crisis and how they manage to cope. Melinda Falling is the story of well to do lawyer Edwin Foote who becomes infatuated with and marries Melinda an awkward accident prone secretary. My Father, at the Wheel recounts the special bond created by a father and daughter during roadtrips in the family automobile. The Best of Betty is about a newspaper advice columnist who slowly becomes

This book of 12 short stories was written by Sallie Bingham. Many of the stories deal with interpersonal relationships between men and women. I found most of the stories did not hold my interest and all ended abruptly. The best stories in my opinion were: His Sons which tells about the relationship between a divorced father and his two sons as viewed by the father's new girlfriend. Also, That Winter a story about a middle aged woman living alone in Colorado who unexpectedly encounters two strangers on a cold winter night . This story began well, but the conclusion left the reader hanging with

This collection of 24 short stories is written by different authors to benefit the owners of Once Upon A Crime, a mystery book store located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This book contains stories written by several award winning authors. I enjoyed the variety of mysteries which ranged from 5-25 pages in length. One of my favorite stories, Puck, is about a retired grifter couple living in the suburbs. Another story, Dumb Luck, involves husband and wife traveling carnies and Buddy their diving mule. Many of the stories are humorous and have a twist to their ending. A great feature of this book