In this story by Hernando Téllez, a barber who secretly supports a revolutionary cause has a dilemma when an army captain who is particularly brutal in putting down the revolt asks for a shave. As the officer sits in the chair, the barber is torn between his professional duty (to give his customer the best possible shave), his revolutionary duty (to kill the captain, which will make him a hero but potentially force him to hide for the rest of his life), and moral qualms about murder. Themes include power and control, choices and consequences, violence, professionalism, duty, morality, trust. More…
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The Last Leaf
This story by O. Henry is one that most who read it never forget. Two young women trying to make a living as artists share an apartment in New York City. One of them becomes very sick, and believes that she will die when the last leaf falls from an ivy plant on the wall opposite her window. An unlikely figure (an old, alcoholic, failed artist who rarely has a nice word for anyone) helps to save her. However, his act of kindness comes at a very high cost. Themes include friendship, defeatism vs. hope, compassion, sacrifice, art. More…
All Over the World
This story by Vicente Rivera Jr. is set in Intramuros, the walled city within Manilla, shortly before the Japanese invasion of World War 2. It deals with an often-overlooked aspect of forced evacuation during war: the severing of personal relationships as families flee a conflict. A budding friendship between a protective young man and lonely eleven-year-old girl is put on hold as they go their separate ways. The friendship is clearly important to both, and their parting is especially bitter as neither has a chance to say goodbye. Themes include loneliness, friendship, war, displacement, regret. More…
The Shifty Lad
This Irish folktale is about a boy who likes to play tricks on people and wants nothing more than to grow up to be a thief. His mother warns him that if he does become a thief he will be caught one day and hang from the Bridge of Dublin. The boy does some rather terrible things on the way to becoming the most famous thief in the country. Luckily, there is still justice in some folktales and the Shifty Lad is soon lying dead under the Bridge of Dublin… but not for the reason his mother expected. More…
The Bridge on the Žepa
Although this story by Ivo Andrić describes the building of a famous Bosnian bridge, it is more about the two men responsible for its construction: a Grand Vizier who had recently emerged victorious from banishment and commissioned it as a tribute to his birthplace, and the meticulous master builder who completed it. Although the Grand Vizier was one of the most powerful men in the Ottoman Empire, the banishment experience had left him so insecure and isolated that he suffered delusions and decision-making paralysis. Themes include dedication, creative anxiety, political intrigue, isolation, fear, the transience of life and happiness. More…