Category: Favorites

May 2023 favorites

May 2023

The May stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘A Strange And Sometimes Sadness’ by Kazuo Ishiguro
  2. ‘Some Of Us Had Been Threatening Our Friend Colby’ by Donald Barthelme
  3. ‘My Father’s Friends’ by William Maxwell
  4. ‘The Young Painters’ by Nicole Krauss
  5. ‘The First Day’ by Edward P. Jones
  6. ‘The Things They Carried’ by Tim O’Brien
  7. ‘Panther Eyes’ by Luisa Valenzuela
  8. ‘The Baby Party’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  9. ‘The War Of The Alligators’ by Horacio Quiroga
  10. ‘New York Girl’ by John Updike
  11. ‘Baster’ by Jeffrey Eugenides
  12. ‘Circus At Dawn’ by Thomas Wolfe
  13. ‘Future Cat’ by Xuan Juliana Wang
  14. ‘A Nursery Tale’ by Vladimir Nabokov
  15. ‘The Sorrows Of Gin’ by John Cheever
  16. ‘Tomorrow’ by Lu Xun
  17. ‘Apple Cake’ by Allegra Goodman
  18. ‘When We Were Happy We Had Other Names’ by Yiyun Li
  19. ‘Everything Is Far From Here’ by Cristina Henríquez
  20. ‘The Flood’ by Emile Zola
  21. ‘Now More Than Ever’ by Zadie Smith
  22. ‘Talpa’ by Juan Rulfo
  23. ‘Gideon’ by ZZ Packer
  24. ‘Alms’ by Stuart Dybek
  25. ‘They Tell Me… Now I Know’ by Shay Youngblood
  26. ‘In The West Country’ by Leslie Norris
  27. ‘The Starlet Apartments’ by Jonathan Lethem
  28. ‘The Voter’ by Chinua Achebe
  29. ‘The $30,000 Bequest’ by Mark Twain
  30. ‘The Huntress’ by Sofia Samatar
  31. ‘Two Ruminations On A Homeless Brother’ by David Means

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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April 2023 favorites

April 2023

The April stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Intertextuality’ by Mary Gordon
  2. ‘Leopard’ by Wells Tower
  3. ‘The Coast Of Leitrim’ by Kevin Barry
  4. ‘The Ship Ahoy’ by Ursula K. Le Guin
  5. ‘Cat In The Rain’ by Ernest Hemingway
  6. ‘Mother Savage’ by Guy de Maupassant
  7. ‘Sex Scenes From A Chain Book Store’ by Aryn Kyle
  8. ‘Flights’ by Alice Adams
  9. ‘A Sister’s Confession’ by Guy de Maupassant
  10. ‘The Lying Bee’ by John Henrik Clarke
  11. ‘A Country Wedding’ by Laurie Colwin
  12. ‘Are You In Love?’ by Alice Adams
  13. ‘The Balloon’ by Donald Barthelme
  14. ‘Beautiful Girl’ by Alice Adams
  15. ‘Lifeguard’ by John Updike
  16. ‘Edna In Rain’ by Marie-Helene Bertino
  17. ‘The Last Married Man’ by Alice Adams
  18. ‘The Last Lovely City’ by Alice Adams
  19. ‘The Day Before The Revolution’ by Ursula K. Le Guin
  20. ‘A Domestic Dilemma’ by Carson McCullers
  21. ‘The Great Hug’ by Donald Barthelme
  22. ‘Son Of Friedman’ by Emma Cline
  23. ‘The Presentation On Egypt’ by Camille Bordas
  24. ‘Heart Of Hearts’ by Emily Temple
  25. ‘Comma’ by Hilary Mantel
  26. ‘At The Zoo’ by Caitlin Horrocks
  27. ‘Rain, Rain, Go Away’ by Isaac Asimov
  28. ‘Tapioca Surprise’ by William Goyen
  29. ‘The Company Is Not Responsible’ by Mary McCarthy
  30. ‘Ex Parte’ by Ring Lardner

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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March 2023 favorites

March 2023

The March stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘The Past Perfect, The Past Continuous, The Simple Past’ by Claire Vaye Watkins
  2. ‘When Mr. Pirzada Came To Dine’ by Jhumpa Lahiri
  3. ‘Sliding’ by Leslie Norris
  4. ‘Different People’ by Clare Sestanovich
  5. ‘A Choice Of Butchers’ by William Trevor
  6. ‘Rondine Al Nido’ by Claire Vaye Watkins
  7. ‘The Stain’ by Tessa Hadley
  8. ‘Sarah’ by Mary Lavin
  9. ‘Matrilineal’ by Tessa Hadley
  10. ‘Bad Boy’ by Kristen Roupenian
  11. ‘The Widow’s Son’ by Mary Lavin
  12. ‘The Piano Teacher’s Pupil’ by William Trevor
  13. ‘Wife Wooing’ by John Updike
  14. ‘In The Middle Of The Fields’ by Mary Lavin
  15. ‘The Adulterous Woman’ by Albert Camus
  16. ‘Coda’ by Tessa Hadley
  17. ‘Encounters With Unexpected Animals’ by Bret Anthony Johnston
  18. ‘Brother Boniface’ by Mary Lavin
  19. ‘The Bunty Club’ by Tessa Hadley
  20. ‘Happiness’ by Mary Lavin
  21. ‘The Ormulu Clock’ by Muriel Spark
  22. ‘An Upheaval’ by Anton Chekhov
  23. ‘The Itch’ by Don DeLillo
  24. ‘Ceil’ by Harold Brodkey
  25. ‘Look At Your Game, Girl’ by Kristen Roupenian
  26. ‘One Sun Only’ by Camille Bordas
  27. ‘After The Funeral’ by Tessa Hadley
  28. ‘The Ugliest Babies In The World’ by Vanessa Chan
  29. ‘The Night We All Had Grippe’ by Shirley Jackson
  30. ‘The Father’ by Raymond Carver
  31. ‘Head Over Knees’ by Eric Schlich

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

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February 2023 favorites

February 2023

The February stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Dead Men’s Path’ by Chinua Achebe
  2. ‘At The Clinic’ by Sally Rooney
  3. ‘Secret Weapons’ by Julio Cortázar
  4. ‘Bliss’ by Katherine Mansfield
  5. ‘Every Tongue Shall Confess’ by ZZ Packer
  6. ‘In The Name Of Bobby’ by Julio Cortázar
  7. ‘The Cold Boy’ by Benjamin Percy
  8. ‘Ain’t That Good News’ by Brit Bennett
  9. ‘The Pace Of Youth’ by Stephen Crane
  10. ‘I Am Twenty-One’ by Mary Robison
  11. ‘The Daughters’ by Maeve Brennan
  12. ‘Ray-Ray’s Picture Box’ by James McBride
  13. ‘Smart’ by Mary Robison
  14. ‘My Apology’ by Sam Lipsyte
  15. ‘Billboard’ by Richard Bausch
  16. ‘Ozème’s Holiday’ by Kate Chopin
  17. ‘The Waltz’ by Dorothy Parker
  18. ‘The Green Door’ by O. Henry
  19. ‘In The Woods’ by Mary Robison
  20. ‘Sugar Baby’ by Chinua Achebe
  21. ‘Some Like Them Cold’ by Ring Lardner
  22. ‘My Last Story’ by Janet Frame
  23. ‘Haunted’ by Walter Mosley
  24. ‘Yancey’ by Ann Beattie
  25. ‘The Neighbor’ by Russell Banks
  26. ‘A Deserted Street’ by Tawfiq Al-Hakim
  27. ‘Top Of The Food Chain’ by T. Coraghessan Boyle
  28. ‘Miracles’ by Lucy Corin

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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January 2023 favorites

January 2023

The January stories ordered solely on my personal tastes. Continue reading →

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2022 favorites

2022 Favorites

Happy new year to you!

Time for the annual rundown of the SSMT stories. In 2022, we traveled to a different state (plus D.C. and Puerto Rico) each week. It was fun if a little more difficult than I expected. The toughest state to find stories for was Delaware. California and New York, predictably, could have filled the entire calendar.

Anyway, for 2023, SSMT is done with the concepts. No more organizing principles. The plan simply is to post a new magic trick every single day – 365 days, 365 stories. Easy.

First, the annual list ranking the stories highlighted this year on the site, sorted in order of my own enjoyment.

Enjoy. Continue reading →

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December 2022 favorites

December 2022

The December stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Read This And Tell Me What It Says’ by A. Manette Ansay
  2. ‘The Happiest I’ve Been’ by John Updike
  3. ‘A Jury Of Her Peers’ by Susan Glaspell
  4. ‘God Writes A Bad Hand’ by J.F. Powers
  5. ‘Naked Ladies’ by Antonya Nelson
  6. ‘The Champ’ by Pedro Juan Soto
  7. ‘Sybil’ by A. Manette Ansay
  8. ‘Grandma’s Wake’ by Emilio Díaz Valcárcel
  9. ‘Changes In Louise’ by Tom Drury
  10. ‘The Sculptor’s Funeral’ by Willa Cather
  11. ‘Agnes Of Iowa’ by Lorrie Moore
  12. ‘Kansas’ by Antonya Nelson
  13. ‘Camping Out’ by James Wilcox
  14. ‘Beautiful Grade’ by Lorrie Moore
  15. ‘Purification On Cristo Street’ by René Marqués
  16. ‘Spit In The Governor’s Tea’ by Shay Youngblood
  17. ‘Peyo Mercé: English Teacher’ by Abelardo Díaz Alfaro
  18. ‘Dundun’ by Denis Johnson
  19. ‘The Way Of The World’ by Willa Cather
  20. ‘One Christmas’ by Truman Capote
  21. ‘The Artichoke’ by Marilyn Krysl

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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November 2022 favorites

November 2022

The November stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Reunion’ by Julie Schumacher
  2. ‘Caveat Emptor’ by Joan Hess
  3. ‘Ashes’ by Cristina Henríquez
  4. ‘The Wellman Twins’ by Mary Robison
  5. ‘Chasing Birds’ by Cristina Henríquez
  6. ‘Too Much To Bare’ by Joan Hess
  7. ‘Nebraska’ by Ron Hansen
  8. ‘Drive’ by Cristina Henríquez
  9. ‘That Thing Around Your Neck’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
  10. ‘Polaroid’ by Sally Wells
  11. ‘Peter’ by Willa Cather
  12. ‘Correspondence’ by Carson McCullers
  13. ‘Beatrice Trueblood’s Story’ by Jean Stafford
  14. ‘Murder At Fork Junction’ by Alston Anderson
  15. ‘I Get By’ by Mary Robison
  16. ‘Bad Latch’ by Curtis Sittenfeld
  17. ‘The Haunter Of The Dark’ by H.P. Lovecraft
  18. ‘This Is My Living Room’ by Tom McAfee

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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October 2022 favorites

October 2022

The October stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘End Of The World’ by Dean Doner
  2. ‘The Mud Below’ by Annie Proulx
  3. ‘Home’ by Jayne Anne Phillips
  4. ‘Indian Burial’ by Dean Doner
  5. ‘The Paper Menagerie’ by Ken Liu
  6. ‘The Half-Skinned Steer’ by Annie Proulx
  7. ‘Rock Springs’ by Richard Ford
  8. ‘Hollow’ by Breece D’J Pancake
  9. ‘Close Enough’ by Nora Shalaway Carpenter
  10. ‘Before Crowned Heads’ by Dean Doner
  11. ‘Job History’ by Annie Proulx
  12. ‘The State’ by Tommy Orange
  13. ‘The Boys’ by Ethan Coen
  14. ‘A Death In The Desert’ by Willa Cather
  15. ‘Soldier’s Home’ by Ernest Hemingway
  16. ‘Different Shorelines’ by S.E. Hinton
  17. ‘Happy’ by Jayne Anne Phillips

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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September 2022 favorites

September 2022

The September stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Willing’ by Lorrie Moore
  2. ‘The Man Who Knew Belle Starr’ by Richard Bausch
  3. ‘A Father-To-Be’ by Saul Bellow
  4. ‘A Vermont Tale’ by Mark Helprin
  5. ‘The Five Wounds’ by Kirstin Valdez Quade
  6. ‘Nemecia’ by Kirstin Valdez Quade
  7. ‘Where The Mountains Are’ by Bill Barich
  8. ‘Seeing Clear’ by Cara Blue Adams
  9. ‘Sugar Babies’ by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
  10. ‘The Beautiful Mountains’ by John Cheever
  11. ‘Afternoon In Linen’ by Shirley Jackson
  12. ‘Sauerkraut Soup’ by Stuart Dybek
  13. ‘Our Lady Of Peace’ by ZZ Packer
  14. ‘Sunday Lunch’ by Nancy Hale
  15. ‘Benediction’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  16. ‘With Reference To An Incident At A Bridge’ by William Maxwell
  17. ‘Along The Frontage Road’ by Michael Chabon

As always, join the conversation in the comments section below, on SSMT Facebook or on Twitter @ShortStoryMT.

Subscribe to the Short Story Magic Tricks Monthly Newsletter to get the latest short story news, contests and fun.

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