Featured Stories

Cat and Mouse in Partnership

Cat and Mouse in Partnership: German folktale from the Brothers GrimmThis folktale is about a greedy cat that cheats a trusting friend. A cat and mouse decide to live together. They discover a pot of ‘fat’ (probably dripping) and hide it in a safe place so they will have something to eat over winter. Unfortunately, the cat cannot stop thinking about the pot and empties it well before time. In most folktales, something bad would happen to the cat to teach it a lesson. Not so here! When the mouse complains, the cat does what cats normally do. The moral: You can’t change the natural ways of the world.

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Grandpa’s Magic Hat

Grandpa's Magic Hat: Short story by Marilyn HelmerIn this story by Marilyn Helmer for Cricket Magazine, two brothers set out to prove their grandfather was joking when he told them an old straw hat he never wears has the magical ability to bring things to life. They decide to test the hat by placing it on the head of scarecrow standing in a neighbor’s garden. As they are doing this, the neighbor’s dog barks and the boy’s flee, leaving the hat behind. Later that night, they are shocked when a stranger dressed exactly like the scarecrow joins a neighbourhood barn dance.

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Because He Loved Them

Because He Loved Them: Short story by Samira AzzamThis story by Samira Azzam highlights the catastrophic effect of the 1948 creation of Israel on the half-million plus Palestinians it displaced. A man working in a government food distribution agency is wrongly suspected of embezzlement. He documents two examples of lives ruined by the partition and the story of a “sonofabithch” camp informer who profited by it, then torches a food warehouse. He believes that if his people are hungry enough they will rise up and rebel, and claims to have done this “because he loves them”. Themes include displacement, corruption, injustice, suffering, violence, betrayal, rebellion.

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The Diamond as Big as the Ritz

The Diamond as Big as the Ritz: Short story by F. Scott FitzgeraldThis grim fantasy by F. Scott Fitzgerald satirises America’s mega-rich and, in a broader sense, the “American Dream” in which for some the pursuit of wealth becomes the most important goal in life. A school “friend” invites a young man to holiday at his luxurious family home deep in the Montana Mountains. The narcissistic family’s wealth comes from a secret diamond mine, which is so rich that strangers who enter their hidden valley are never allowed to leave. Themes include the potential corrupting power of great wealth, middle-class preoccupation with wealth, racism, restricted freedom (slavery, imprisonment and/or death), isolationism, escape.

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The Pagan Rabbi

The Pagan Rabbi: Short story by Cynthia OzickThis story from Cynthia Ozick is about a highly respected Jewish scholar who is driven to suicide as he tries to reconcile the strict tenets of his religion with the philosophical (pagan) concept of immortal “free souls” existing in Nature. This so affects the rabbi’s mind that his suicide note refers to several encounters with a dryad (wood nymph). Some of these are sexual, which he clumsily tries to rationalize with: Scripture does not forbid sodomy with the plants! Themes: Jewish identity; marriage and family; friendship; philosophy (search for meaning in Nature); death; sanity/suicide; (lack of) understanding and forgiveness.

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A Boy and His Dog

A Boy and His Dog: Short story by Harlan EllisonWritten at the peak of the Cold War, this Harlan Ellison story takes place in a dystopic, post-apocalyptic world. ‘Civilized’ people have retreated to secure underground cities, leaving the desolate surface to ‘solo’ wanderers and lawless gangs who survive by foraging, violence and murder. The plot involves a young solo, his genetically manipulated telepathic dog, and an attractive young woman from the underground who almost comes between them. Despite the title, there is nothing “boyish” about the protagonist given what he and the girl get up to! Themes: anarchy, division, violence, loyalty, manipulation, betrayal, love.

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My Father Goes to Court

My Father Goes to Court: Short story by Carlos BulosanThe message of this Carlos Bulosan story is that money can’t buy health and happiness. The children of a poor family, full of vitality and laughter, spend a lot of time playing outdoors. Their rich neighbor, who keeps his children secluded indoors, files a legal complaint against the poor family for standing outside his house and enjoying the aroma of his food. Their father goes to court and uses a novel approach to win the case. Themes include family, social inequality, standing up for one’s rights, justice, the importance of fresh air, exercise and laughter for a healthy, happy life.

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Barney

Barney: Short story by Will StantonIt is hard to write an introduction to this Will Stanton story without giving the ending away. Like another of our featured stories, Flowers for Algernon, the plot involves a scientist conducting a bizarre experiment to increase the intelligence of a very special rat (in this case Barney). The major theme is the potential catastrophic effect of poorly controlled scientific experiments. Because Barney is humanized a little more than Algernon (he enjoys flipping through books in the library as opposed to simply running through mazes), a secondary theme is the ethics of animal testing. Other themes: deception, narrow-mindedness, revenge.

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