Featured Stories

The Water of Life

The Water of Life: Short story by Howard PyleThe major themes of this fairy-tale by Howard Pyle are that money and status don’t necessarily reflect the inner man, and loyalty can sometimes bring great rewards. A princess vows to marry whoever brings her a cup of water from the “Fountain of Life”. A young king sends a servant on the long and dangerous journey to collect some, and falsely claims the prize. The doubtful princess sets him two more tasks, one of which requires cutting off the faithful servant’s hand. Thanks to the Water of Life, things end happily for the servant but not so for the king.

Continue ReadingThe Water of Life

Ckeckouts

Checkouts: Short story by Cynthia RylantThis story by Cynthia Rylant deals with the themes of loneliness, puppy love and lost opportunity. A teenage girl is lonely after her parents move to a new city. Her only joy is shopping for the family groceries. This helps the girl take her mind off problems and think more clearly. At the supermarket the girl finds herself strongly attracted to a bag boy operating one of the checkouts. The boy is also strongly attracted to her. Fast forward to the end of the story, and both are with another partner.

Continue ReadingCkeckouts

What I Have Been Doing Lately

What I Have Been Doing Lately: Short story by Jamaica KincaidThis circular narrative by Jamaica Kincaid takes the form of a dream in which the narrator, woken by her doorbell and finding no one there, embarks upon a surreal journey. An interesting aspect of the story is that although delivered in the first person, the narrator’s identity is neither given nor defined. When asked the titular question by an unknown woman, she gives a slightly different version of the journey so far, suggesting either personal growth (greater awareness), or that she has experienced multiple iterations of the journey. Themes include reality vs. fantasy, loss and longing, motherhood, personal growth, identity.

Continue ReadingWhat I Have Been Doing Lately

The Treasure of Abbot Thomas

The Treasure of Abbot Thomas: Short story by M. R. JamesIn this story by M. R. James, a British antiquary comes across an old book written in Latin that tells of a German monastery in which a fortune in gold is believed to have been hidden. He believes the key to the treasure lies on a stained-glass window removed from the Abby and returned to England when the monastery was closed. He finds the window, decodes the message hidden on it and, despite the warning contained in the message, finds the gold. His only problem… dealing with the treasure’s monstrous guardian. Themes include treasure hunting, cryptography, fear, the supernatural.

Continue ReadingThe Treasure of Abbot Thomas

Rain Frogs

Rain Frogs: Short story by Shiga NaoyaIn this story from Shiga Naoya, the naïve wife of a rural businessman is either seduced by or coerced into having sex with a predatory novelist. Surprisingly, in addition to appearing remarkably understanding, the woman’s husband is sexually aroused by her experience. The woman’s reaction is equally surprising. Initially, she is described as being a pleasure to look at but having no light in her tea-brown eyes. After the encounter, she has a knowing smile and “dreamy” eyes, as of someone experiencing a very sweet dream. Themes: tradition, attitudes to women in Japanese society, lack of fulfillment, sexual predation.

Continue ReadingRain Frogs

The Cheater’s Guide to Love

The Cheater’s Guide to Love: Short story by Junot DiazIt is hard to like or feel any sympathy for the American-raised Dominican Harvard professor at the centre of this story by Junot Diaz. The serial cheater who slept with fifty other women over the course of their six-year relationship belatedly realizes that the fiancé who dumped him was “the one”. Over the next six years he struggles to deal with the consequences of losing her while facing performance issues at work, debilitating physical conditions, and constant racial taunts and profiling. Themes include love vs. desire, infidelity and its consequences, heartbreak, depression and recovery, self-awareness and redemption, racism.

Continue ReadingThe Cheater’s Guide to Love

Astronomer’s Wife

Astronomer's Wife: Short story by Kay BoyleThis story by Kay Boyle explores an empty relationship between a woman and her astronomer husband, and how a brief encounter with a “down to earth” plumber opens her mind to what could be. The astronomer appears more in love with his work than his wife, treating her purely as someone whose role it is to maintain the household order. The plumber, who treats her with respect, communicates freely, and symbolizes the physical world, highlights the dysfunctional nature of her marriage. Themes: control, gender roles, loneliness and lack of fulfilment in marriage, the intellectual vs. physical worlds, epiphany/revelation.

Continue ReadingAstronomer’s Wife

The Piece of String

The Piece of String: Short story by Guy de MaupassantThis Guy de Maupassant story involves a frugal farmer whose reputation is forever tarnished after a rival falsely accuses him of finding and failing to return a lost pocketbook. Sadly, he is the victim of a stereotype about “Norman craftiness”. No matter how much he protests that he picked up a piece of string, and even in the face of another peasant coming forward with the pocketbook, nobody will believe him. This weighs so much on the proud man’s mind that he wastes away to an early death. Themes: false accusations, stereotyping, injustice, pride, obsession with image/reputation.

Continue ReadingThe Piece of String