The School

Post category:Quick Reads

The School: Short story by Donald Barthelme Strange things are happening in the school featured in this story by Donald Barthelme. First, all plants and animals in student projects die. Death seems to be everywhere when an adopted dog, sponsored Korean orphan, and higher than average numbers of parents pass on. Then, to cap it all off, two students are killed in an accident while playing on a building site. In order to experience renewal of life, students ask their teacher to demonstrate sex with his teaching assistant. But just as they kiss and things start to get interesting, something happens that makes the children cheer wildly.

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

Post category:Novellas

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich: Novella by Alexandr Solzhenitsyn This fictional account of life in a former Soviet Gulag (forced labor camp) is drawn from author Alexandr Solzhenitsyn’s personal experience as a prisoner under the Stalin regime. Its major theme is survival in a system designed to break inmates through a combination of harsh conditions, brutality and absurd camp rules. Some survive with dignity, others through theft, scavenging, and snitching on fellow prisoners. The weak and those who question the system don’t survive. Other themes include injustice, power and authority, corruption, cruelty, suffering, endurance, pride, camaraderie, competition, faith, memories and time.

Wandering Willie’s Tale

Post category:Novelettes

Wandering Willie's Tale: Short story by Sir Walter Scott Warning, this story by Sir Walter Scott can be hard going for inexperienced readers due to its use of original dialect and obsolete vocabulary. When a violent Scottish Lord presses a tenant for long outstanding rent, the man borrows the money and returns to pay it. The Lord dies as he hands it over, and the money disappears during the commotion. The Lord’s son doesn’t believe the rent was paid, and demands payment. A mysterious stranger helps the devastated tenant by accompanying him to hell to collect a receipt. Themes: changing times, the supernatural, beware who you travel with.

All About Suicide

Post category:Quick Reads

All About Suicide: Short story by Luisa Valenzuela Like many Luisa Valenzuela stories, a major theme of All About Suicide is the unchecked violence of daily life in 1960/70s Argentina. The story is notable for its unusual plot structure. It begins with a description of a shooting, travels back to (supposedly) irrelevant events in the distant past, fast forwards to the immediate past, and then re-describes the shooting. Thanks to the way Valenzuela playfully misleads readers with ambiguous possessive adjectives, the true nature of the shooting remains unclear until the last sentence. Other themes include treachery, suppression, guilt, courage, exposure, murder-suicide.

Disorder and Early Sorrow

Post category:Novelettes

Disorder and Early Sorrow: Short story by Thomas Mann The charm of this story by Thomas Mann lies in its relative uneventfulness… no crime, violence, madness or broken hearts! Set in the 1920s, it follows a day in the life of a close, middle-class German family. The major theme is resilience: the struggle of the German people to recover from the social disruption and deprivations of World War I and cope with emerging hyperinflation. Secondary themes are identity, the relationship between history and the present, and the emergence of a more independent youth culture embracing new styles in music, dance, fashion and the arts.

Mitya’s Love

Post category:Novellas

Mitya’s Love: Short story by Ivan Bunin This story by Ivan Bunin portrays the depths of love, and how insecurity and jealousy can destroy it. The story opens with a young Russian man (Mitya) so hopelessly in love with a woman that his jealousy stifles their relationship. They decide to separate for a short period to test their feelings, and he returns to his family estate in the countryside. The separation is torture as she fails to respond to his increasingly desperate letters, and when a “Dear Mikya” note finally arrives, things don’t end well. Themes include passion, sexuality, unrequited love, insecurity, jealousy, obsession, temptation, despair, death.

Testimony of Pilot

Post category:Novelettes

Testimony of Pilot: Novelette by Barry Hannah This powerful story by Barry Hannah follows the journey of a boy and several companions from youthful pranks to high school band competitions, musical success, fulfilling careers and, in two cases, premature death. Set between the mid-1950s and the late-1960s, the story highlights several aspects of the American South’s small-town culture of the day: family wholesomeness, racial segregation, the sexual revolution, the rise of rock and roll, and the Vietnam War. Themes include the transformative power of music, friendship and rivalry, sexuality, gender roles, misogyny, racism, isolation, patriotism, and social change.

Popularity

Post category:Grade 7-8 Stories

Popularity: Short story by Adam Bagdasarian The protagonist in this story by Adam Bagdasarian is a ten-year-old boy who has trouble making friends at school. His biggest wish is to be able to hang out at recess with the most popular group in fourth grade. He decides that the only talent he has that might gain him entry is his sense of humor. When the opportunity arises to make a joke, he is an instant success. However, he never feels secure among the group because his inclusion was at the expense of another member. Themes include alienation and loneliness, fitting-in, the shallow nature of teenage popularity.

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