Featured Stories

The Raft

The Raft: Short story by Stephen KingIn this story from Stephen King, the last swim of the season by four college students also proves to be the last swim of their lives. On an alcohol-fuelled whim, the foursome drive to a deserted lake to swim out to a raft moored fifty yards off shore, say good-bye to summer, and then swim back. As they reach the raft, they learn to their horror that a mysterious black mass floating on the surface is stalking them for its next meal(s). Themes include teenage exuberance, machismo, chauvinism, sexuality, fear, the unknown/supernatural.

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Naming the Names

Naming the Names: Short story by Anne DevlinSet during the Irish Troubles, the major themes of his story by Anne Devlin are love, loyalty and betrayal. Other themes include identity, the cyclical nature of violence, urban change/devastation, taking responsibility for one’s actions, and the humanization of terrorism. The plot is non-linear, with regular flashbacks to earlier times. An insecure woman who has been indoctrinated in the Republican cause since childhood joins the IRA. She plays a minor role until a decision is made to target a prominent British official, and finds herself perfectly placed to lure his son (who is also her lover!) into a deadly trap.

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How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife

How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife: Short story by Manuel E. AguillaIn this popular Filipino story from Manuel E. Arguilla, a son brings his city-based bride home to the countryside to “meet the family”, only to have the poor woman tested by his father before she even arrives. The father has his younger son meet them with a bullock cart rather than horse and carriage, and bring them home via a stony “short-cut” along a dry creek bed rather than the smoother main road. The apprehensive but charming girl (in high heels no less!) passes the tests with flying colors. Themes: love, fear, perseverance, patriarchy, reputation.

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Answer

Answer: Flash story by Fredric BrownA goodreads.com reviewer aptly describes Answer by Fredric Brown as one of the most concise SciFi horror stories I have ever read. There are uncanny similarities between the new supercomputer’s response to the first question asked of it and the final sentence of Isaac Asimov’s The Last Question. Both stories were published in the mid-1950s and reflect concerns about the future influence of computers on society. Some reviewers suggest that Brown’s one cybernetics machine that combines all the knowledge of all the galaxies already exists… it’s called the Internet! Themes include scientific hubris, the dangers of technology, unintended consequences.

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Immigration Blues

Immigration Blues: Short story by Bienvenido Santos This story by Bienvenido Santos deals with the plight of a Filipino woman wanting to make a future in the United States. Without a permanent visa, her only hope is to gain residence through marriage. Her sister learns of a retired Filipino widower with U.S. Citizenship. In a humorous visit laced with dramatic irony, the two women are initially too embarrassed to raise the topic of marriage. When the old man finally understands their purpose, he thanks God for allowing lightning to strike him twice. Themes include immigration, cultural isolation, hope, fear, pride, the emptiness of growing old alone.

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You Were Perfectly Fine

You Were Perfectly Fine: Short story by Dorothy ParkerThis entertaining “morning after” story by Dorothy Parker describes an embarrassed young man’s reactions as he tries to piece together what happened the night before. The beauty of the story is that, depending on how the reader interprets the dialogue, it can be taken several ways. One is that the woman is exaggerating or even making up events to teach the man a lesson. Another is that the events are true but she is playing them down because she wants to believe something he said during the cab ride home. Themes include alcohol abuse, memory, relationships, guilt, happiness and regret.

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Only the Dead Know Brooklyn

Only the Dead Know Brooklyn: Short story by Thomas WolfeNew arrivals in a city often learn things and visit places that long-term residents don’t know about. In this humorous story from Thomas Wolfe, a stranger demonstrates this to the annoyance of the well-meaning but increasingly agitated narrator. The highly opinionated men differ over the narrator’s warnings about the dangers of the “nice sounding” Brooklyn neighborhoods the stranger has chosen for his nightly walks. To make matters worse, the stranger insists that all one needs to feel safe and get to “know” the city is a good map. Themes: connection, pride, perception, fear, curiosity.

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Life in the Iron-Mills

Life in the Iron-Mills: Short story by Rebecca Harding DavisSet in the 1830s, this story by Rebecca Harding Davis highlights the desperate plight of mill and factory workers during the early stages of the industrial revolution. A young furnace attendant, ostracised by other iron-mill workers because of his mild manner and artistic leaning, lives in squalid conditions with his father and a mildly disfigured female cousin. The cousin, whose love for the man is not reciprocated, destroys both of their lives by stealing money to try to help him. Themes include social inequality, exploitation, poverty, artistry, lack of opportunity, unrequited love, crime and punishment, despair, redemption.

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