Featured Stories

Dusk

Dusk: Short story by James SalterJames Salter’s Dusk is about the loneliness of reaching middle age and finding yourself alone in the world. Mrs Chandler is a cultured woman who once led an active social life. The narrator describes her as a fine woman whom no one now wanted. Her only son is dead, her other children have moved on, her husband has left her, and her lover is reuniting with his wife. It is hunting season, and she identifies with the wild geese being shot for sport: The rain was coming down, the sea was crashing, a comrade lay dead in the whirling darkness.

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Anandi

Anandi: Short story by Ghulam AbbasThis story by Ghulam Abbas illustrates how the “world’s oldest profession” can assist in regional growth. Concerned about the appearance of prostitutes plying their trade around the town bazzar, the authorities of a Pakistani city banish them to a bare patch of land twelve miles out of town. A small marketplace develops around them, and over the years the outpost grows into a thriving new city of 250,000 people. Concerned about the appearance of prostitutes, the new city’s authorities banish them to a bare patch of land twenty-four miles out of town… Themes include politics, prostitution, persecution, enterprise, urban development.

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The Balek Scales

The Balek Scales: Short story by Heinrich BöllThis story from Heinrich Böll is a social commentary about a rich family’s exploitation of farm workers. This occurs on three levels, characterized by different forms of “scales”: 1) systematic cheating, involving an incorrectly balanced set of weighing scales; 2) legal injustice, where the scales of justice are weighted firmly in favor of the landowners; and 3) social injustice, where the imbalance of power results in poor pay, long hours, and dangerous working conditions. The workers are incensed by the cheating, but accept the other injustices. Other themes: the whistle-blowing family’s courage and pride, church and wider community apathy.

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American History

American History: Short story by Judith Ortiz CoferAs the title suggests, this story by Judith Ortiz Cofer is not just about a teenage Puerto Rican girl who comes-of-age facing prejudice and heartache, but also the struggles throughout history of those who came to America for a better life. The girl and boy to whom she is attracted are both outsiders among their peers… she because of her thin, shapeless body and physical weakness; he because of his honor student status and Southern drawl. At the point of consolidating their friendship, her plans are cruelly thwarted. Themes include isolation, bullying, shame, the migrant experience (the American dream, racism).

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The Canal

The Canal: Short story by Richard YatesIn this story by Richard Yates, two men at a cocktail party learn that their army divisions fought alongside each other during a bloody World War 2 canal crossing. One boasts about his role in the operation; the other is reluctant to share information. As their wives compete to build up their respective husband’s roles in the fighting, readers learn that although the second man performed equally as bravely, due to some mistakes along the way he would rather forget what happened. Themes include memory, conceit, gender roles, glorification of war vs. the reality of war, self-esteem, humiliation and shame.

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The Night of the Ugly Ones

The Night of the Ugly Ones: Short story by Mario BenedettiThis story by Mario Benedetti examines the concept of “ugliness” and the feelings of exclusion experienced by people with physical deformities when others turn away or pretend not to notice them. A man and woman, both with significant facial blemishes, meet at a movie and connect over coffee. (You’d like a face as smooth as that young girl’s on your right, even though you’re intelligent and she, judging by her laugh, is a hopeless idiot.) Their lovemaking later that night takes a curious turn, with both ending up in tears. Themes include isolation and loneliness, humanity, internal vs. external beauty.

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My Milk Goes Dry

My Milk Goes Dry: Novelette by Minh QuanMajor themes of this humorous story by Minh Quan include alienation, indoctrination, insecurity, obsession and motherhood. An orphaned Vietnamese girl grows up constantly being told that, because she was brought up on an animal (cow milk) based baby formula, she will grow into a barbarous woman devoid of human sentiment. This and many other evils, her uncle says, is all the fault of the French. The comments not only reinforce her lowest in the household childhood inferiority complex, but also lead to an unhealthy obsession with her breasts and breast-feeding when she has her own children.

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A Vendetta

A Vendetta: Short story by Guy de MaupassantThe French writer Guy de Maupassant is said to be one of the fathers of the modern short story. This story is about an old widow who lives in a small village in Southern Italy with her only son and his dog. One evening, the son is murdered. The mother is so saddened by this that she swears a vendetta against the killer. Every day, she sits by the window and wonders how she, a weak old woman with no one to help her, can carry out her promise. Finally, she comes up with an idea and has her revenge.

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