Aleksandar Hemon's fictional alter ego drinks and writes his way through exile in these superb coming-of-age tales.
By Allen Barra Jun 4, 2009
-
Flannery O'Connor wrote two novels and died young, but her influence has been vast. Why has it taken half a century for her to get a definitive biography?
By Allen Barra
March 3, 2009
-
Kurt Vonnegut's new posthumous collection reveals the seeds of a modern masterpiece.
By Steve Almond
April 7, 2008
-
Eschewing the cold perfection of the literary short story, Connie Willis gushes screwball comedies, clever farces and sharp satires on a par with those of George Saunders.
By Laura Miller
January 17, 2008
-
The surrealist stunners in Haruki Murakami's new story collection take you to the creepy, sublime places that no author does better.
By Laura Miller
September 14, 2006
-
Painters, poets, writers and actors tortured by the weight of talent inhabit Valerie Martin's biting new collection.
By Laura Miller
June 28, 2006
-
Deborah Eisenberg's wondrous "Twilight of the Superheroes" offers an intimate, glowing portrait of post-9/11 America.
By Ben Cosgrove
January 31, 2006
-
Forget Scrooge and Tiny Tim -- James Joyce's "The Dead," with its distinctively Irish blend of music and tragedy, is the ultimate yuletide tale. And why isn't John Huston's marvelous film version available on DVD?
By Allen Barra
December 14, 2004
-
An ambitious new anthology crammed with today's big names (Gaitskill, Saunders, Wallace) proves that even in a postmodern age, good storytelling fulfills a primal need.
By Priya Jain
September 8, 2004
-
David Bezmozgis' extraordinary stories about life as an Eastern European immigrant in Canada deserve the praise lavished on them this summer. And I ought to know.
By Jana Prikryl
September 1, 2004
-
David Foster Wallace delves into the heart of human darkness in his chilling new story collection.
By Laura Miller
June 30, 2004
-
Matching sock, erotic target or fellow damned soul chained to your wrist? From the Epic of Gilgamesh to Kundera, a guided tour of the Big Two.
By Gary Kamiya
October 14, 2003
-
From short stories to sports and science writing, "Best of" anthologies prove that readers like their books preselected.
By JoAnn Gutin
December 6, 2000
-
The confessed minimalist's new book proves that the much-reviled genre can still break your heart.
By Jonathan Miles
November 15, 2000
-
In stories from nearly four decades, the writer demonstrates an astonishing range, a wonderful eye and a finely tuned talent for breaking hearts.
By Jonathan Miles
June 8, 2000
-
A new collection of tough, angry, dirty, funny, superbly accomplished stories by the Native American writer.
By Katharine Whittemore
June 5, 2000
-
She dreamed of being immortalized in literature -- until he showed her his manuscript.
By Abby Ellin
July 6, 1999
-
Although David Foster Wallace doesn't act the way an author should, his brilliant new book is filled with desperation, loneliness and addiction.
By Vince Passaro
May 28, 1999
-
Laura Miller reviews Ken Kalfus's short story collection, 'Thirst'.
By Laura Miller
July 23, 1998
-
For 44-year-old Ken Kalfus, who has just published his first book, "Thirst," success was worth waiting for.
By Dwight Garner
July 23, 1998
-
Stephanie Zacharek reviews Shirley Jackson's collection of short stories, "Just and Ordinary Day".
By Stephanie Zacharek
December 13, 1996
-
Maud Casey reviews the book "Short Stories of Langston Hughes".
By Maud Casey
August 6, 1996
What should I read next?
A Southern Gothic legend is hard to find
How "Slaughterhouse Five" was born
The raw stories
"Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman"
"The Unfinished Novel and Other Stories"
The world as we know it
The greatest Christmas story of all
"The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories" edited by Ben Marcus
Eating latkes in Toronto
The horror, the horror
Mates: A literary history
Freedom from choice
War Room
GigaOM Network
Glenn Greenwald