Books by and for independent women

My Three Favourite…Short Story Anthologies

As a thirsty reader of short fiction, the anthology is something of an obsession of mine. There has been over the last few years a kind of taciturn debate among critics and writers as to whether the short story is dead or is making a comeback.

In an interview, Raymond Carver said he writes them because they fit with his busy schedule. People like to read them because they fill a tube ride without the erratic interruption. They go well with a cup of tea.

In my opinion, the best of anthologies are proof that the short form is still alive and well. And they never disappoint that moody side of us. Here’s my three favourites:

The Paris Review Book of Heartbreak, Madness, Sex, Love, Betrayal, Outsiders, Intoxication, War, Whimsy, Horrors, God, Death, Dinner, Baseball, Travels, The Art of Writing and Everything Else in the World Since 1953

As its title suggests, this is the anthology to end all. Published to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Paris Review, it is both a cure and a catalyst for that neurotic, changeable part of you.

Within an hour of reading you can be close to lunacy with Zelda Fitzgerald and in a senseless depression with Raymond Carver, before succumbing to a fit of lust with almost anyone else you so desire.

The contents speaks for itself. Its mammoth bulk harbours some of the most sublime writers of the twentieth century. Nabokov, Capote, Sontag, Faulkner and Munro to name a few.

Amongst the fiction and the poetry are some incredible extracts from the Paris Review Interviews, and a lot of insightful comments on the art of writing itself.

For me its become a kind of compulsion. I don’t think any other book could ever offer such a bipolar, ecstatic and relevant array of moods. Get it from Amazon for £12.76.

My Mistress’ Sparrow is Dead (edited by Jeffrey Eugenides)

In his introduction, Jeffrey Eugenides talks of the dilemma to befall Catullus in his poems about Lesbia; that as his mistress she is far more taken with her love for a pet sparrow than that which she feels for him, even after the sparrow is dead.

As Eugenides writes, ‘Things were bad with the sparrow around. They’re bad with the sparrow gone…In each of these twenty-six love stories, either there is a sparrow or the sparrow is dead.’

There are no maudlin romantics here. In each story there is a punch-in-the-gut reality that is often grotesque, undignified and comical. There is also relief, a kind of sharp acceptance of the details of love. It is hard to read without finding a certain masochistic thrill.

The writers – spanning over a hundred years – are varied and mighty. Carver, Lorrie Moore, Chekhov, Kundera, Joyce, Maupassant. Dennis Johnson, Miranda July, Grace Paley, Robert Musil. There are writers of short fiction and there is short fiction from novelists.

There are stories close to pornography, stories about obsession, death and deviance. The anthology is beautifully researched and produced, and one of my absolute favourites.

As a plus, the hardback version is spectacular. I’m not ashamed to say I bought the book for its cover alone (before realising how incredible the contents are).

It’s design shows the sketch of an anatomical heart, the writers included given each a vein or ventricle to their name. The paperback doesn’t really compare, but the stories inside are more than enough! Get it from Amazon for £6.49.

Best European Fiction 2010 (edited by Aleksandar Hemon)

Last year I drove across Europe and given the unwillingness of my vehicle to reach any kind of speed I still found myself in awe of how easy…and small it seemed. Then I got home and began to read this book and the strange paradox of diversity and familiarity I’d experienced came straight back at me.

I’m a big fan of European fiction, especially from the east, but I’m ashamed to say that before reading this anthology I couldn’t name more than a couple of contemporary authors from thereabouts. I also never wondered what a rent boy from Bratislava might look like, or what foreign women might smell like to an Estonian boy.

The anthology is instantly captivating and each story is completely unique. There is sadness and sex and hunger and heartbreak. There are a load of characters, familiar yet strange, drinking Fanta and smoking cigarettes whilst battling against the same history inside different national boundaries. The titles in the contents are hard enough to resist, and the quality of the writing doesn’t let them down. Buy it from Amazon for £8.91.

Other Recommended Reading:

Wonderful Town: The New Yorker Book Of New York Stories

A collection of stories about New York in all its glory and horror by writers from the New Yorker.

The Book of Other People (edited by Zadie Smith)

Each of the writers in this anthology are given one simple task – to invent a character. The results are transient and showcase the best of contemporary writers.

Best American Comics 2010

Published yearly, another amazing anthology of graphic fiction. Wide ranging in both art and tone.

Any anthologies we’ve missed that you adore? Tell us in the comments and they might make it into our next round-up!

Jen Thompson