Featured Stories

Federigo’s Falcon

Federigo's Falcon: Short story by Giovanni BoccaccioOfficials issued public pleas and advised residents on measures that would minimise risk of contagion, such as social distancing and increased personal hygiene. Sound familiar? This comes from the introduction to The Decameron, a 1353 collection of tales told by a fictitious group hiding from the plague (smallpox). Although most of the stories were borrowed from early Eastern and European sources, Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio cleverly re-wrote (and in some cases reinvented) them into a fascinating account of life at the time. In this story, a poor noble mistakenly sacrifices his prized hunting bird to impress the woman he loves.

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The Lesson

The Lesson: Short story by Toni Cade BambaraA well-educated woman living in a poor New York neighborhood takes a reluctant group of local children on day trips to teach them about the world. The Lesson in this Toni Cade Bambara story involves an excursion to Manhattan’s up-market FAO Schwarz toy store. The children soon realize that nothing in the store is in their family’s price range. The young narrator is disturbed by not only the point of the lesson (economic inequality), but also the condescending way the woman talks about their neighborhood and the people living in it. Themes include education, social class, inequality, ostentation, patronization, resentment.

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The Chef

The Chef: Short story by Andy WeirYou don’t need to get far into this story from Andy Weir to realize that things aren’t as the protagonist describes them. When the doctor finally reveals the truth following some unnecessary theatrics involving the difference between a teaspoon and tablespoon, most readers experience a mild “aha moment” and move on to something else. It is only the very perceptive and those who take the time to follow Weir’s advice and read the story again knowing the outcome, who realize the true horror of the life the poor woman must have lived.

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The Flowers

The Flowers: Short story by Alice WalkerIn this “coming of age” story from Alice Walker, a ten-year-old farm girl finds the decomposed body of a decapitated man while collecting flowers in a field. Surprisingly, this doesn’t seem to faze her; she gazes around the spot with interest, then stoops to pick a wild rose. It is not until she notices something else on the ground that we are told her summer was over. As a testament to Walker’s talent, the story contains no dialogue and minimal narrator interpretation of the girl’s emotions; changes in mood and atmosphere are almost solely engendered through actions and setting.

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Mahesh / The Drought

Mahesh / The Drought: Short story by Sarat Chandra ChattopadhyayThis story by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay highlights the plight of the rural poor in colonial India. After years of drought, a landless Indian farmer lives on handouts, sharing what little he and his daughter have with Mahesh, his beloved bull. After the starving animal escapes and raids his cruel zamindar’s garden, the poor man is severely beaten and given a heavy fine. Angry and frustrated when Mahesh later breaks a pitcher of precious water, he does the unthinkable. Themes include poverty, social injustice (exploitation and deprivation), devotion/human-animal bonding, the potential devastating effects of nature on rural communities.

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The Falling Girl

The Falling Girl: Short story by Dino BuzzattiThe meaning of this thought-provoking story by Dino Buzzati is reflected in both the building and the girl. The skyscraper is a metaphor for society: the idle rich party at the “top”, as the working class scurry about at the bottom. The story represents an attractive young woman’s journey from the glamor and excitement of the “high life” to the loneliness, frailty and fears of old age. In the sad conclusion, she has no one to mourn her (hear the “thud”) when she hits the ground. Themes include social class, consumerism, envy, lack of fulfilment, ageing, alienation and loneliness.

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The Legend of Nai Raeng

The Legend of Nai Raeng: Thai folktaleThis folktale from Southern Thailand is about a man who was so big when he was born that his parents named him Nai Raeng (in Thai ‘raeng’ means strength, energy or power). The boy eats so much that his poor parents cannot feed him. They get him a job as a sailor, but the captain also cannot feed him. As Nai Raeng grows, he proves to be so wise that he gets a high government job. He is also very honourable, and one day must order that his own head be cut off and placed above a buried treasure.

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The Guest

The Guest: Short story by Albert CamusIn this story by Albert Camus, a policeman orders Daru, a teacher from a remote Algerian school, to escort an alleged murderer to the nearest city. Camus was an early philosopher in the field of Existentialism. The story features several existential themes: the absurd (The situation Daru finds himself in.); the need to choose (Daru can follow the policeman’s order or set the man free; the man can go South to freedom or East to captivity.); and angst (Daru was in a “no win” situation. Whatever decision he makes will have unpleasant, and possibly deadly, consequences.) Other themes: honor, hospitality.

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