Great to see the short story form being given the treatment! Knowing that you’re a connoisseur of both short fiction and Russian fiction, I wonder whether you’ve read George Saunders’s excellent book on the craft of writing short stories, A Swim in the Pond in the Rain? Saunders is a Pulitzer Prize winner and he’s taught in the famous Syracuse MFA program for like a million years. He collates his best workshops on Tolstoy, Chekhov et al-and he lays out a sensitive but systematic close-reading (from a craft perspective) of the chosen stories. It’s a really wonderful resource! Keep up the superb work. Happy to have found your channel!
The Pederson Kid was great! Need to check out the others. Five of my favorites: -A Rose For Emily: Faulkner -A Good Man Is Hard To Find: O'Connor -The Yellow Wallpaper: Gilman -The Paperhanger: Gay -The Death of Ivan Ilyich: Tolstoy
I really liked The Library of Babel by Borges. Then I read the novella A Short Stay in Hell by Steven Peck which is based off Babel. Great stuff. I'm interested in the Pedersen Kid. Added it to my Bookmory.
The Death of Ivan Ilytch by Tolstoy; In the Penal Colony by Kafka; A Good Man is Hard to Find by O'Connor; Her Smoke Rose Up Forever by James Tiptree, Jr (sci fi).
Edit... not The Snowstorm. I did read it but it's not nearly as good as Master and Man. It was The Snowstorm/ The Blizzard by Pushkin. Also What Men Live By by Tolstoy
Thanks for the great video as always. I’m only now starting to appreciate short stories but favorites so far are: 1. The Garden of Forking Paths (Borges); 2. The Night Face Up (Cortazar); 3. Le Maison Tellier (Maupassant); 4. The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber (Hemingway); 5. Good Old Neon (Wallace) I could’ve just listed all stories in Ficciones and The Aleph but that would’ve been an uninteresting list!
My favorite short story so far has got to be Nick Joaquin's sentimental yet devastating masterpiece "The Mass of St. Sylvestre". It tells a tale of a man who is so obsessed with immortality that he devises a plan to attend a once in a life time "divine" mass to complete his wish. The way Nick Joaquin describes the story is aesthetically breathtaking yet thematically heartbreaking as he attempts to piece together what remains of his childhood in war torn Manila after aggressive American bombings levelled the city for 1 month (February to March, 1945) to destroy any last remnants of Japanese occupation from the city.
@TheActiveMind1 Hopefully you get to read some of his works someday! Nick Joaquin is a household name in our country, even awarded by our government as a National Artist for Literature!
I have many favorite short stories, but for me the most important one is Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius by Jorge Luis Borges. It is deeply complex and at the same time an allegory about how fiction can create reality. Without a doubt, Jorge Luis Borges is the master of short stories.
Happy New year! I'd consider all of them novellas rather than short stories (word count seems to be the breakipoint between the two). I'm not a fan of Gass and have been putting off reading his ON BEING BLUE for years, but that's my problem. I see Citizenkane in the comments has already listed many of my favorite authors short story writers, including Millhauser, Trevor, Carver, and Cheever. I'd also add the short stories of Jane Gardam and T.C. Boyle, among more recent authors, and Henry James among the ancients.I have a volume of George Saunders' short stories awaiting reading on my nightstand, along with the Penguin edition of Chekhov's LADY WITH A LAPDOG. Coincidentally, I just finished Milan Kundera's (novel/novella) SLOWNESS (156pp with largish type), and he mentions an interesting French novel that I enjoyed reissued by NYRB, Vivant Denon's NO TOMORROW. It pairs well with another of my favorite novels, LES LIAISONS DANGEREAUSE. Give both of them a shot!
I'll have to keep these in mind. A bizarre short story that's stuck with me is 'Good Country People' by Flannery O'Connor. Not only is it a bizarre interesting read there is also a whole lot of underlying issues brought to the forefront.
You should read The Garden of Forking Paths and The Circular Ruins by Borges. Both are less than 10 pages and introduce concepts that you will be familiar with from Solenoid or similar works. (Ideas of a Micro-Macrocosm as well as an infinite web of time that diverges and bifurcates at times) The Secret Miracle is also one of my favorites!
Hmm .. well, de Maupassant would be up there. "The Horla" for example. M.R. James. "Count Magnus." Lovecraft, why not, "Haunter of the Dark." These are stories I have re-read many times . More recently, couple Canadians: Alice Munro , "The Turkey Season." Morley O'Callaghan "The Snob" (very short stories usually, 10 pages average) .. Salinger of course "Bananafish" .. Somerset Maugham "Mister Know-All" .. Isaac Singer :The Cafeteria" , . etc
My favorite short story writers, William Trevor and John Cheever, were, IMO, much better short story writers than novelists. I think that writing short stories takes a different skillset than writing novels. That said, John Updike and Steven Millhauser wrote great short stories and great novels, and Millhauser's short story "Rain" (not to be confused with Somerset Maugham's colossal masterpiece [is that the greatest short story ever written?], to which it bears not the slightest resemblance, is surreal and completely unforgettable. Raymond Carver was also at the pinnacle of short story writing. I've yet to try Chekhov and Hemmingway, but they're on my list for the new year.
My top five:
1. "Master and Man" - Tolstoy
2. "The Aleph" - Borges
3. "The Bear" - Faulkner
4. "Metamorphosis" - Kafka
5. "Ward Number 6" - Chekhov
Adding these to my list (that I haven't read)
Great to see the short story form being given the treatment! Knowing that you’re a connoisseur of both short fiction and Russian fiction, I wonder whether you’ve read George Saunders’s excellent book on the craft of writing short stories, A Swim in the Pond in the Rain? Saunders is a Pulitzer Prize winner and he’s taught in the famous Syracuse MFA program for like a million years. He collates his best workshops on Tolstoy, Chekhov et al-and he lays out a sensitive but systematic close-reading (from a craft perspective) of the chosen stories. It’s a really wonderful resource!
Keep up the superb work. Happy to have found your channel!
I haven’t but I’ll check it out!
My favorite short story:
Barn Burning by William Faulkner. It started my journey into the wild and crazy world of Faulkner.
I know you're a big Faulkner fan! Excited to read him here very soon
Being There sounds hilarious! I've not heard of any of these, and each one sounds excellent!
Bartleby The Scrivener, by Herman Melville.
I could mention a dozen more, but I would prefer not to. 😂
The Pederson Kid was great! Need to check out the others.
Five of my favorites:
-A Rose For Emily: Faulkner
-A Good Man Is Hard To Find: O'Connor
-The Yellow Wallpaper: Gilman
-The Paperhanger: Gay
-The Death of Ivan Ilyich: Tolstoy
I really liked The Library of Babel by Borges. Then I read the novella A Short Stay in Hell by Steven Peck which is based off Babel. Great stuff. I'm interested in the Pedersen Kid. Added it to my Bookmory.
The Death of Ivan Ilytch by Tolstoy; In the Penal Colony by Kafka; A Good Man is Hard to Find by O'Connor; Her Smoke Rose Up Forever by James Tiptree, Jr (sci fi).
All phenomenal stories!
My fav collection of short stories is The Witch by Shirley Jackson
The Lottery, who wouldn't like that, quite shocking...
Master and Man by Tolstoy and The Snowstorm by Tolstoy are both 🎉🎉🎉
Oooh! I'll have to check out both!
Edit... not The Snowstorm. I did read it but it's not nearly as good as Master and Man.
It was The Snowstorm/ The Blizzard by Pushkin.
Also What Men Live By by Tolstoy
@@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD I was going to write this and you beat me to it! You and I are soulmates. This is the most brilliant story I've ever read!
Mumu is really good story, when we studied it in school everyone in my class read it even those who didn't love to read
Thanks
Of course!
Thanks for the great video as always. I’m only now starting to appreciate short stories but favorites so far are:
1. The Garden of Forking Paths (Borges); 2. The Night Face Up (Cortazar); 3. Le Maison Tellier (Maupassant); 4. The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber (Hemingway); 5. Good Old Neon (Wallace)
I could’ve just listed all stories in Ficciones and The Aleph but that would’ve been an uninteresting list!
I’ve wanted to read Good Old Neon for a while!
@@TheActiveMind1 sdavidmiller.com/octo/files/no_google2/GoodOldNeon.pdf
ua-cam.com/video/9f-Q9GHmJGc/v-deo.htmlsi=Ai5Tj5t3UtHZwAt9
My favorite short story so far has got to be Nick Joaquin's sentimental yet devastating masterpiece "The Mass of St. Sylvestre". It tells a tale of a man who is so obsessed with immortality that he devises a plan to attend a once in a life time "divine" mass to complete his wish. The way Nick Joaquin describes the story is aesthetically breathtaking yet thematically heartbreaking as he attempts to piece together what remains of his childhood in war torn Manila after aggressive American bombings levelled the city for 1 month (February to March, 1945) to destroy any last remnants of Japanese occupation from the city.
Haven't heard of Joaquin before! I'll look into it. Thank you!
@TheActiveMind1 Hopefully you get to read some of his works someday! Nick Joaquin is a household name in our country, even awarded by our government as a National Artist for Literature!
All new to me, thanks!
My favourite is REM by Cartarescu, very close to perfection for me.
I'm trying to stop buying more books until the Spring. Stop swaying me!!
@@TheActiveMind1 Haha, if it's any consolation: you're making me buy more too!
I have many favorite short stories, but for me the most important one is Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius by Jorge Luis Borges. It is deeply complex and at the same time an allegory about how fiction can create reality. Without a doubt, Jorge Luis Borges is the master of short stories.
Happy New year! I'd consider all of them novellas rather than short stories (word count seems to be the breakipoint between the two). I'm not a fan of Gass and have been putting off reading his ON BEING BLUE for years, but that's my problem. I see Citizenkane in the comments has already listed many of my favorite authors short story writers, including Millhauser, Trevor, Carver, and Cheever. I'd also add the short stories of Jane Gardam and T.C. Boyle, among more recent authors, and Henry James among the ancients.I have a volume of George Saunders' short stories awaiting reading on my nightstand, along with the Penguin edition of Chekhov's LADY WITH A LAPDOG.
Coincidentally, I just finished Milan Kundera's (novel/novella) SLOWNESS (156pp with largish type), and he mentions an interesting French novel that I enjoyed reissued by NYRB, Vivant Denon's NO TOMORROW. It pairs well with another of my favorite novels, LES LIAISONS DANGEREAUSE. Give both of them a shot!
All of those recommendations sound intriguing! Thank you!
I'll have to keep these in mind. A bizarre short story that's stuck with me is 'Good Country People' by Flannery O'Connor. Not only is it a bizarre interesting read there is also a whole lot of underlying issues brought to the forefront.
She's a great short story writer. The collection "Everything That Rises Must Converge" is a great example Southern Gothic.
You should read The Garden of Forking Paths and The Circular Ruins by Borges. Both are less than 10 pages and introduce concepts that you will be familiar with from Solenoid or similar works. (Ideas of a Micro-Macrocosm as well as an infinite web of time that diverges and bifurcates at times) The Secret Miracle is also one of my favorites!
Hmm .. well, de Maupassant would be up there. "The Horla" for example. M.R. James. "Count Magnus." Lovecraft, why not, "Haunter of the Dark." These are stories I have re-read many times . More recently, couple Canadians: Alice Munro , "The Turkey Season." Morley O'Callaghan "The Snob" (very short stories usually, 10 pages average) .. Salinger of course "Bananafish" .. Somerset Maugham "Mister Know-All" .. Isaac Singer :The Cafeteria" , . etc
My favorite short story writers, William Trevor and John Cheever, were, IMO, much better short story writers than novelists. I think that writing short stories takes a different skillset than writing novels. That said, John Updike and Steven Millhauser wrote great short stories and great novels, and Millhauser's short story "Rain" (not to be confused with Somerset Maugham's colossal masterpiece [is that the greatest short story ever written?], to which it bears not the slightest resemblance, is surreal and completely unforgettable. Raymond Carver was also at the pinnacle of short story writing. I've yet to try Chekhov and Hemmingway, but they're on my list for the new year.