My Ten Favorite Collections (at least for today) Patti Abbott
Simply the Best Mysteries, edited by Janet Hutchings.
This volume, put together in 1998, collected some of the best stories
to win Edgar Awards that first appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery
Magazine. It included stories such as Patricia Highsmith’s “The
Terrapin,” Stanley Ellington’s “The Blessington Method” and Philip
MacDonald’s “Dream No More.” A very impressive lineup, one that makes
the case for the enduring contribution EQMM made to the mystery short
story.
Hard-Boiled, edited by Bill Pronzini and Jack Adrian. This collection from 1995 includes
stories from the 1930s through the 1990s, giving the reader a
good overview of the genre as well as introducing him/her to writers that
mostly wrote novels like Chandler, Hammett and Himes. Also here are
James Reasoner, Ed Gorman, James Ellroy and Lawrence Block.
The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien (1990). This is one of the finest collections of stories
centering on the war in Vietnam, or any war, that I’m familiar with.
The title story, which lists the items found in a soldier’s backpack is a
complete knockout. I have been trying to get my book group to read this
for years. Maybe someone out there will.
Too Far To Go, John Updike
(1979) This is a collection of stories that Updike wrote about the
Maple family, closely mirroring his own, early in his career. It traces a
marriage in freefall and finally dissolved. “Giving Blood” in my very
favorite, but all of them are sad, cogent, true.
Shiloh and Other Stories, Bobbie Ann Mason
(1982). These are the kind of stories you sink into. She along with
Carver were known for creating the Kmart school, where brand names and
contemporary names are important to her sense of place and time. This
either dates or makes her stories more personal, depending on your view.
Most of them take place in southwestern Kentucky. She can create beauty
from the speech of ordinary people.
Airships, Barry Hannah. Back in 1978 "Airships" knocked
everyone out. These stories are about as noir as it gets. You never can
predict where a story is going. Just try “Coming Close to Donna” some
night. The people and stories in Treme came from writers like Hannah,
only a state away.
Lost in the City, Edward P. Jones.
This collection of stories, published in 1992, introduced Edward P.
Jones to the world, and then he went away and did something more
practical to support his family until he got a large award and wrote THE
KNOWN WORLD. These stories are about ordinary African-Americans living
in Washington D.C. Each one is a gem.
Damn Near Dead, edited by Duane Swierscynski
(2006) This is one of the strongest collections of stories on a single
theme I’ve ever read. I’m sure most of you have read this collection,
but several stories won awards, one at least went on to become a novel
which won an Edgar. And Bill Crider's story was nominated for one, too.
Stuart MacBride’s humorous tale will split your sides. I swear there is
not a dud in the bunch.
Self-Help, Lorrie Moore
(1985). I could have chosen her other collections just as easily. Every
story of Lorrie Moore’s crackles with humor, sharp observations. I
chose this collection because it contains, “How to Become a Writer,”
which begins with the advice: “First, try to do something, anything
else….It is best if you fail at an early age. Say fourteen….Show it to
your Mom…She’ll say, “How about emptying the dishwasher.” Many of her
stories are written in the second person and she pulls it off.
Brilliant.
The Summer Before the Summer of Love, Marly Swick (1995).
Bet you never heard of this one. Swick does not shy away from sorrow,
sex, strife. Simply another great female short story writer whom no one
outside the rarefied air of literary journals, now disappearing, has
heard of. I have shelves full of books by Antonya Nelson, Jean Thompson,
Joy Williams and on and on. All good.
8 comments:
Thanks for posting this list again. I had not ever seen it, and the books look very interesting. Of course, I don't need to add more short story books to my shelves. I did get a copy of HARD-BOILED within the last year or two. And also DAMN NEAR DEAD.
Thank you for re-sharing this, Patti. Like Traci, I hadn't seen it before, but you have some really talented authors here, whose short stories I've not read. Time to check them out, I think...
Nice list. Of course, I read the Jones book recently and was equally impressed. The O'Brien is one of my favorite books too. Also read the Mason and Moore and Updike, plus Hard-Boiled and Damn Near Dead, which reminds me, as always, of how much I miss Bill Crider.
Read the Marly Swick in 2021 after your previous mention. I've been reading a lot of women for the first time in the last few years: Swick, Antonya Nelson, Tessa Hadley, Hilma Wolitzer, Amy Bloom, Ann Hood, Ann Packer, Amy Hempel, Marisa Silver, Mary Ladd Gavell, Edith Pearlman, Claire Keegan, Helen Ellis, all since 2021.
Very nice. Like Jeff, I miss Bill Crider, too.
I'm still innocent of Swick's work (I believe) and should still do something about that.
Everyone who knew Bill, and Ed Gorman among our other lost fellow-travelers, miss them.
All these are new to me. Here's mine for today: The Best of Science Fiction (ed) Groff Conklin
https://ahotcupofpleasureagain.wordpress.com/2023/07/12/ssw-the-best-of-science-fiction-ed-by-groff-conklin/
Surprisingly, I haven't read any of these books, but I do have two or three in my likely never to read pile. I've never been able to get into Barry Hannah despite buying some of his books, but may try this one after reading your comments. Not much for short stories but have Ross Macdonald's The Archer Files edited by Tom Nolan and The Best of Manhunt edited by Jeff Vorzimmer on a table beside my bed. Read the first very first Archer story last night. Probably will read some of the stories on nights when I don't want to start a new novel.
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