The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

A wonderfully written story of the men who fought in Vietnam and the burdens they carried with them. Part of this story describes in vivid detail the physical objects that these men packed around. The lists of items seem like overkill to list in such detail, but it works by forcing the reader to really see what these soldiers carried. Another part of this story shows the inanimate objects that they carried: love for women waiting back home, sorrow, anxiety, etc. A great read!

The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick

A brutally sad story of the love of a mother who must eventually watch one of her daughters die. The setting is in what I presume is a concentration camp in Germany. Rosa, the mom, has two daughters, Stella, 14, and Magda who is a baby. Both must get their nourishment from their mother. It is cold and both daughters must share the only shawl to keep them warm. Magda gives up trying to nurse on empty breasts and discovers that she can suck on the shawl for nourishment. Sadly, Stella becomes jealous of Magda. Rosa believes that "Stella was waiting for Magda to die so she could put her teeth into the little thighs." No one else knew of this baby hidden away in the barracks all day, and Rosa knew that one day Magda would be discovered. One night Stella pulled the shawl onto herself. Magda ends up toddling away outside of the barrack in search of her mother and shawl. Suddenly, Magda has a voice for the first time and cries out "Maaa---" She is carried on the shoulder of a soldier to the electric fence and thrown against it. Rosa can only watch from across the square.
"She only stood, because if she ran they would shoot, and if she tried to pick up the sticks of Magda's body they would shoot, and if she let the wolf's screech ascending now through the ladder of her skeleton break out, they would shoot; so she took Magda's shawl and filled her own mouth with it and stuffed it in until she was swallowing up the wolf's screech and tasting the cinnamon and almond depth of Magda's saliva; and Rosa drank Magda's shawl until it dried."

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? by Joyce Carol Oates

This is by far one of my most favorite short stories. I have read it several times, and feel a sense of foreboding every time I read it. Joyce Carol Oates shows a rite of passage of a young girl trying to grow up too quickly. "Her name was Connie." opens the story and leads the reader into a riveting story of a young teenager trying to act grownup and be accepted by those older than her. She hangs out one night with friends and she meets a new guy. The next day he drives up to her house. He introduces himself "I'm Arnold Friend and that's my real name..." Upon reading this sentence, the reader will put up a red flag. I mean, how many people introduce themselves that way. The description of Arnold reminds me of the Danny from "Grease"; I don't know why but he does. Here is where there is a juxtaposition going on in the story. Not only is Connie trying to act grown up, Arnold is trying to act younger. Connie suspects that he is much older than he is and he is trying to be hip by knowing where the kids hang out, what music they listen to, and how they dress.
Arnold's car can tell a whole story by itself. The paint on the car and type of car tell who he is. One must carefully read between the lines when any new information is given that is on the car itself. The numbers 33,19,17 are a special code. "Man the flying saucers" etc all add to the story.
Joyce Carol Oates leads the reader on though suspense and yet there is little action in the story. Her masterery of the English language and its power draws the readers in and makes this one of the best short stories ever.

The German Refugee by Bernard Malamud

The voice of this story is powerful. From the spelling of the words to how the broken English is spoken, this story demonstrates the power of words and how others view the English language.
Oskar Gassner is a German refugee who has fled Germany for religious reasons. He was a professor in Germany, but now finds himself in a strange world and struggling to learn a language he so desperately needs to learn in order to give an important lecture on English translation. His tutor struggles to help teach him pronunciation, but most of the words come out in a broken English. The hardest part of Oskar's learning process is stage fright. He knows that when the time comes to take the podium that he will freeze up. He successfully gives his speech but in a twist of fate, the story ends rather sadly. The power of religion and language forces Oskar and others in the story to do things that they never thought they would.

Defender of the Faith by Philip Roth

Philip Roth does a wonderful job at bringing one's faith to the realm of the short story. Not only is the basis of this story faith it is about a Jewish solider in the army trying to live his religion. Sheldon Grossbart is a trainee only wanting to practice his religious beliefs and tries to get some sympathy from his new Sergeant. But the Army is not the most forgiving place, and Grossbart has numerous obstacles to overcome. This short story helps not only Grossbart find how he can be Jewish in the Army, but also helps his Sergeant find out his true devotion to his religion as well. This is definitely a great story for those who want to see how one stands for courage to live their religion when everyone is against them.

The Ledge by Lawrence Sargent Hall

An old fisherman awakes at dawn on a cold Christmas morning to go on a boat trip with his son and nephew to an island where he can do some duck hunting without getting caught. Only one part of the trip would be treacherous: the crooked channel between the islands. The timing of the trip couldn't be better for duck hunting. However, the fisherman's plan begins to fall apart when he discovers that he has forgotten his smoke tobacco. After shooting nearly one hundred ducks, they settle in for the next round of ducks. As the fisherman gets out of the blind to discover the skiff nowhere in sight, the story takes a sharp turn toward danger. A blizzard forms at sea and begins to encompass them. During this time, they are standing on a ledge that the sea slowly begins to swallow. The fisherman knows that soon there will be no land left to stand on. The end of this story is powerful and blunt...not for the faint of heart.

Greenleaf by Flannery O'Connor

A delightful story about a bull who gets loose on Mrs. May's lawn. Mr Greenleaf and his wife live on the property, and have had several animals of his get loose where she doesn't want them (on her property). Now, it seems, that this animal is the last straw. She prods and bugs Mr Greenleaf to get the animal where he can't get loose. Mr Greenleaf is employed by Mrs May in helping her take care of her land. The focus of the story is to get what she has always gotten: her way. She has pushed others around her whole life. In the end she...well, you'll have to read it to find out.

The Resemblance Between a Violin Case and a Coffin by Tennessee Williams

Told from the perspective of a little boy, this story is a fascinating tale of the coming of age and leaving behind childhood. His sister (always referred to as "my sister") is a piano prodigy who falls madly obsessed with Richard, a violinist who was to play a duet with her in the fall concert. The younger brother also falls in love with Richard, rather follows suit with everything his sister does. His sister is able to perform with her practices with her teacher, but the moment she accompanies Richard, she blunders and is as if she were a novice. The climax is the night of the recital, which in order to find out you will have to read.
The story as a whole depicts both a young boy and his older sister going through monumental phases in their lives. Truly a must read for anyone wishing to know the inner workings of prepubescent minds.
One must always remember that an author's life could play a large role in stories they write. Tennessee Williams was gay (as is the boy), and he has an older sister named Rose, (as does the boy in this story)

The Farmer's Children by Elizabeth Bishop

A farmer, his wife (step mother to boys), and two son's Cato and Emerson, and three daughters, Gracie Bell, Lea Leola, and Rosina, the farm hand, Judd, and an assortment of farm animals make up the cast of the story. One night Cato and Emerson are playing with Gracie Bell only to make her cry. Because the farmer and Judd are away to town that night, Cato and Emerson take over keeping watch over the farm equipment in the barn. The mother on the other hand makes sure the girls have extra blankets on them for the long cold night. The hired man, Judd must have taken the blankets out in the barn, because when the boys get there, there aren't any for them. Cato brings into the story the children's story of Hansel and Gretel, which plays into part of the storyline. There are several side stories being told in this short story, which the reader must be aware of (ie Hansel and Gretel come to mind when Cato takes bread and drops pieces on the ground while they walk to the barn)
The boys cuddle up to keep warm that night: "He turned to Emerson and called his name, but Emerson only moaned in his sleep. So he fitted his knees into the hollows at the back of his brother's and hugged him tightly around the waist."
I don't want to ruin the ending to this story, so you'll have to read it to find out how it ends. Also, think about relationships between the farm implements and Cato and Emerson, and why does Cato drop the bread?

Miami--New York by Martha Gellhorn

This is a story about an air force sergeant on a flight from Miami to New York. Also about a woman who is also on the same flight. They spend the entire trip thinking about what the other one thinks of them. "I wonder what she's sore about, the man thought mildly behind his complicated face." ...
"No doubt he has a splendid little wife waiting for him, the woman thought." They spend the flight together without speaking until she tells him her name "I'm Kate Merlin" (this is after they have kissed etc...)
"How did you know?" the woman said.
"Know what?"
"That you could kiss me?"
The point of the story is the idea that what we think that others think of us is probably not correct.
An all around pretty well written story.

That in Aleppo Once... by Vladimir Nabokov

This story is in the form of a story or letter written to a man's friend in his voice. He tells of his marriage and honeymoon trip. "Although I can produce documentary proofs of my matrimony, I am positive now that my wife never existed." The voice of the narrator is almost schizophrenic in that he beleives that he is married, that he took a trip with his wife, and then got off when there was a ten minute stop only to come back to find the train gone and everyone that he meets from then on think he is crazy. He makes it back to his home town only to find his wife at the entrance of a food store and the first thing she says is that "she hoped it was oranges" (being sold). Then she changes her story and says she was elsewhere all the while he is "crushing and crushing the mad molar till [his] jaw almost burst with pain"
The story line is both serious and comical and the reader isn't sure if they are to be smiling and quitely giggling to themselves or if they should be fretting what the outcome might be.
One paragraph puts much of this writer's narrative into perspective:
"And mark, in between the periods of this inquest we were trying to get from reluctant authorities certain papers on the strength of which one might hope to obtain other papers which in their turn would make it lawful to apply for a third kind which would serve as a steppingstone towards a permit enabling the holder to apply for the other papers which might or might not give him the means of discovering how and why it had happened."
This is definately one of the most fun stories I have read...

The Hitch-Hikers by Eudora Welty

Tom Harris, a travelling salesman decides to pick up a couple of hitch hikers one day. One of the hitch hikers has a guitar with him. When they get to town, Tom goes into the motel for them to get them a room. When he comes back, the man with the guitar is badly wounded. The man does not make it through the night and his co-hitch hiker confesses to the killing. This story is an intense one, but must be read slowly to catch the story between the lines...

Christmas Gift by Robert Penn Warren

This is a wonderful story about what we give to others. Throughout the story different characters give a boy something. He is poor and in need of help. The story is set in a rural town of yesteryear buggies, mackinaws and talking with thick poor people accents: "Hit ain't worth nuthin'. Cain't even grow sassafras on hit." The story leaves one with a sense of sadness, but only for the little boy on his way to find a doctor for his sister: "She's my sister (he tells the doctor) on my maw's side. That's what she says and that's what my maw says." But there is also a sense of community as certain individuals leave the boy with gifts...

My Dead Brother Comes to America by Alexander Godin

This story takes one back to Ellis Island and the time of mass immigration to America. A father is already in America and has sent for his family. At the immigration station both he and his wife are questioned and their answers are compared. Suddenly everything stopped.
There was the brutal statement: "Your husband says he has four children, madam, and you have only three. How do you explain that, madam? What are we to think of it, madam?"
Mother stammered; her lips grew white. Tears streamed from her eyes, and she began to explain things to the clerk in a halting manner.
Unlike other short stories, this one shows that what is not said is just as important as to what is said. This story is such a sad but very good story.

Here We Are by Dorothy Parker

For anyone who is married, whether you are newly weds or will be celebrating your golden anniversary, this story is for you. "Here we are" tells of a train ride that a newly married couple takes to get to their honeymoon destination. Along the way there are several misunderstandings between them. There are several underlying themes that run through this story: time, marriage and why we get married, sex, and our perspective on life. Throughout the story the exchanges become simple misunderstandings that seem to blow up into larger than life issues. The boy is obviously excited he is on his honeymoon and has his idea of what the perfect honeymoon night will be like. She, on the other hand, is thinking of letters she must write and simply trying to avoid the honeymoon. Ironically they are fighting on their wedding day and he states: "We won't ever fight any more, will we?" The statement "here we are, aren't we?" recurs throughout the story. It is as if this couple is unsure of what the future will hold, but they already have a precursor to the rest of their married life.

Theft by Katherine Anne Porter

Yet another short short story - a mere 3 pages long, but the story envelopes so many ideas. This story is about having "lost" not only physical possessions but also the loss of youth. A woman in the story leaves her purse sitting out while she takes a bath. The janitress comes in to clean and when the woman goes to get a cigarette from the purse she discovers that it is missing. She decides to confront the janitress who first claims she never saw the purse to forcing it back into the woman's hands along with a guilt trip. The woman has taken everything she has ever had or done for granted, and the janitress is just trying to give something nice to her daughter.

Wild Plums by Grace Stone Coates

Wild Plums: an even shorter story than "The Other Woman"--it is only 2 and 1/2 pages long. But this story has several themes running through it and different ways to interpret Coates' story. Maybe it is just a story about a girl learning about wild grapes; or it could be a metaphor for a girl becoming of age; or it could be expounding upon the division of classes of the era and how her parents forbid her from mingling with others of an inferior class: "Would you really have gone with those ---" She hesitated, and finished, "with those persons?" One day a family who has gone plumming passes the girl's house. She watches them by the roadside and they fling a few handfuls toward her. She picks some up and wipes them on her dress. She runs in to tell her mother what she has found: Her mother says, "Did they see you picking them up?" She tells her to throw them away. The mother leaves for a while and then returns and instructs her how to wash and eat them without getting a stomach ache. The girl proudly hides an important fact from her mother: "I had eaten one at the road."

The Killers by Ernest Hemmingway

"Nick went out. As he shut the door he saw Ole Anderson with all his clothes on, lying on the bed looking at the wall."
This story is completely dialogue driven, and as such should be treated carefully in terms of how we read into it. The Killers is a powerful story of how decisions we make can affect not only ourselves, but others as well. Nick goes to check on Ole after some guys go into their restaurant to kill Ole. Nick returns to the restaurant and talks to George, the guy behind the counter.
"I'm going to get out of this town," Nick said.
"Yes," said George. "That's a good thing to do."
"I can't stand to think about him waiting in the room and knowing he's going to get it. It's too damned awful."
"Well," said George, "you better not think about it."

The Golden Honeymoon by Ring Lardner

The voice of this story is what caught my attention. The entire story is told from the perspective of an old man. From the first line we catch a glimpse of the voice: "Mother says that when I start talking I never know when to stop." I am sure that Gene and JoAnn would appreciate reading this story as it gives us a different perspective of life during their generation. The man tells of the trip he and his sweetheart make to celebrate their golden honeymoon. His trip is thoroughly detailed including his times of departure from each train stop. In the course of their trip he and his wife run into another couple...

The Other Woman by Sherwood Anderson

This story says it all from the first sentence: "I am in love with my wife," he said --- a superflous remark, as I had not questioned his attachment to the woman he had married.
This is a story written by Sherwood Anderson. The theme of this revolves around the idea of fidelity both in letter and in spirit. The man is engaged to be married and has just received a promotion in a government position. All day long he is with his fiancee, and has friends all around wishing him well and congratulating him on his success. But when he goes home at night he is lonely. He meets another woman....This short story is one of the shorter stories I have read. In all it is only 3 and 1/2 pages double sided long. A great read...