Today on the monthly book show with Mindy Todd on WCAI, we were trying to offer short reads for short attention spans. Joining us this month was Nelson Ritschel, a Professor in the Department of Humanities at Massachusetts Maritime Academy. Having trouble concentrating this year? Our book topic this month is short fiction, or as we like to think of them One-Night Reads. We shared short novels and short stories.
UPDATE: I have only just realized that during the course of our conversation I was talking about Laurie Colwin’s books being reissued, but managed to confuse her with Lorrie Moore, who is the author of the book I was actually talking about called Self-Help: stories. And I dearly love Laurie Colwin’s stories and novels, as well as her book Home Cooking: a writer in the kitchen. By all means you should read BOTH Laurie Colwin and Lorrie Moore! Pandemic brain strikes again!
Nelson’s Picks
“The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky” by Stephen Crane, https://public.wsu.edu/campbelld/crane/bride.htm
“The Dead” by James Joyce, Dubliners. London: Grant Richards, 1914—and http://online-literautre.com/
“A Jury of Her Peers” by Susan Glaspell, The Best American Short Stories of the Century, John Updike, ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999.
“Miss Brill” by Katherine Mansfield, The Garden Party and Other Stories. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1922—and https://katherinemansfield.org
“The Adventure of ‘The Western Star’” by Agatha Christie, Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories, New York: William Morrow, 2013.
Jill’s Picks
The Virgin In the Garden by A. S. Byatt (A LONG book, which made me realize I needed to read short books!)
Mrs. Caliban by Rachel Ingalls
Self-Help by Lorrie Moore (or really anything by Lorrie Moore)
Home Cooking by Laurie Colwin
High Rising by Angela Thirkell
Nothing Much Happens: cozy and calming stories to soothe your mind and help you sleep by Kathryn Nicolai
Desperate Characters by Paula Fox
Margaret The First by Danielle Dutton (Inspired by Virginia Woolf’s essay on Margaret the First.)
Listener Picks
Roughing It by Mark Twain
The Opposite of Loneliness: essays and stories by Marina Keegan
I Love Everybody (and other atrocious lies) by Laurie Notaro