A General in the Library by Italo Calvino

This is my 150th recommendation, and it also happens to be this website’s one-year anniversary. And you know what? It’s Continue reading →

Got a Letter from Jimmy by Shirley Jackson

As a reader I have my biases (who doesn’t), and one of them is that I am often left frustrated Continue reading →

Blessed by Helen Marshall

Sometimes I finish a collection of stories and I’m at a loss to choose which to talk about, because there Continue reading →

Negative Reinforcement by Chuck Palahniuk

I seem to be running a spate of second person stories. The received wisdom is that you shouldn’t use it. Continue reading →

The Three Marked Pennies by Mary Elizabeth Counselman

I own a lot of books. I also own a lot of books I haven’t read yet. Whenever there are Continue reading →

Disappearing Act by Richard Matheson

The story opens with a diary, kept because the narrator feels he has to confess somewhere. In short, spare prose Continue reading →

I Hold My Father’s Paws by David D. Levine

I don’t know about you, but I love this title. It suggests poignancy that overcomes the obvious question of what Continue reading →

The Soul Selects Her Own Society by Connie Willis

Sometimes you just need a story that makes you laugh out loud repeatedly, no matter where you are. Even if Continue reading →