A Municipal Report

A Municipal Report: Short story by O. HenryO. Henry wrote over 600 short stories, of which some critics consider this to be one of the best. The plot involves what happens between the unnamed narrator, three main characters, and a torn dollar bill that keeps coming back to its original owner. The characters: Azalea Adair, a self-educated, gentle lady of the old South; Major Caswell, a cruel husband who treats her badly; and Uncle Caesar, a kind African-American man with a royal bearing who tries to help Azalea. Themes include: pretense, pride, change, domestic violence, loyalty, self-learning and the power of imagination.

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The Jilting of Granny Weatherall

The Jilting of Granny Weatherall: Short story by Katherine PorterThis story from Katherine Porter describes the disoriented thoughts and recollections of a feisty eighty-year-old (Granny Weatherall) as she lies dying in the house of one of her daughters. Satisfied with her life, she awaits a sign from God to say that her time has come. In her last moments, she likens the absence of such a sign to being left standing at the altar sixty earlier. Major themes are perseverance, motherhood and faith. Other themes: aging and death, loss (over the death of husband John and daughter Hapsy), betrayal and repressed anger (over being jilted by George).

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Where Is Here?

Where Is Here?: Short story by Joyce Carol OatesOne of the beauties of this unsettling story by Joyce Carol Oates is that it is open to many interpretations depending on how much one reads into the visitor’s identity and purpose. At its simplest, the story involves a man behaving strangely as he confronts pleasant and unpleasant memories during a visit to his childhood home. More imaginative interpretations include revisiting a scene of child abuse and/or patricide, and a ghostly warning from the past or future about looming danger or a cursed house. Themes: (general) nostalgia, connection, domestic violence; (through the riddles) mortality, time, infinity.

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The Return

The Return: Short story by Roberto BolanoRoberto Bolaño’s The Return is not your usual Gothic ghost story. The mood (though not the storyline) is more like the Patrick Swayze movie Ghost, which is referred to in the story. When a man’s ghost finds that it can communicate with a famous French fashion designer, it decides to spend its time on earth with him. The two hadn’t known each other in real life, and only met because the fashion designer had paid to have sex with the man’s corpse! Themes: death, the afterlife, necrophilia, disillusionment, insecurity, isolation, empathy.

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Boys and Girls

Boys and Girls: Short story by Alice MunroThe major themes of this story by Alice Munro are coming of age and gender roles. Set on a Canadian fox farm, a young tomboy prefers to spend her time outdoors with her father rather than indoors helping her mother. When she overhears her mother talking about how happy she will be when the girl is older and can help more around the house, she feels betrayed. Her outlook slowly changes as she gets older, culminating in a rebellious act that her father dismisses with the words She’s only a girl. Other themes: family relationships, loss of innocence, self-awareness.

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Proper Library

Proper Library: Short story by Carolyn FerrellIn this acclaimed story by Carolyn Ferrell a gay, academically challenged African-American boy experiencing persecution at school faces a conflict between his ambition to make something of himself and his feelings for a former lover. In addition to learning words with his mother, a highlight of the fourteen-year-old’s day is acting as surrogate “big sister” to the nine-plus younger children living in their house. The boy appears more grounded and “maternal” than most of the women in the story, many of whom are suffering major insecurity issues. Themes include family, love, sexuality, identity, gender stereotypes, alienation, responsibility, determination.

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Exchanging Glances

Exchanging Glances: Short story by Christa WolfThis autobiographical story by Christa Wolf provides a unique perspective on the final days of World War II, told from the viewpoint of a middle-aged German woman looking back on her time as a teenager fleeing the Russians with her family. Part of a column of refugees, she recounts being strafed by American fighter planes, learning of Hitler’s death, encountering a retreating Wehrmacht unit, and coming face-to-face with liberated concentration camp survivors. Ironically, some confronting experiences on reaching the “safety” of American lines leave her in tears. Themes: war, the vagaries of memory/selective amnesia, changing perspectives, dislocation, loss, death.

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Why Don’t You Dance?

Why Don't You Dance?: Short story by Raymond CarverThis minimalist story from Raymond Carver captures a brief encounter between a middle-aged man holding a yard sale and a young couple interested in buying furniture. We learn very little about the man other than that he was once in a relationship, is selling almost everything he owns, and probably drinks too much. The man offers the couple whiskey, puts on some music, and suggests that they dance. Carver leaves it to the reader to interpret what happens next. All we know is that the girl is troubled by it for weeks. Possible themes: alcoholism, loneliness, despair, compassion, connection, confusion.

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