December 2020 favorites

December 2020

The December stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Mirrorball’ by Mary Gaitskill
  2. ‘Accident Brief’ by Karen Russell
  3. ‘The Unknown Masterpiece’ by Honoré de Balzac
  4. ‘Drinking Coffee Elsewhere’ by ZZ Packer
  5. ‘The Half-Husky’ by Margaret Laurence
  6. ‘Home For Christmas’ by Carson McCullers
  7. ‘Seven’ by Edwidge Danticat
  8. ‘A Room Forever’ by Breece D’J Pancake
  9. ‘The Weirdos’ by Ottessa Moshfegh
  10. ‘Irina’ by Mavis Gallant
  11. ‘The Lily-White Boys’ by William Maxwell
  12. ‘The Pocketbook Game’ by Alice Childress
  13. ‘The Dancer’ by Patricia Highsmith
  14. ‘The Yo-Yo’ by P.D. James
  15. ‘Temptation’ by Clarice Lispector
  16. ‘Ordinary Nudes’ by Stuart Dybek
  17. ‘Neighbors’ by Anthony Tognazzini
  18. ‘The Canebrake’ by Mohammed Mrabet
  19. ‘Odd Behavior’ by Lydia Davis
  20. ‘The Warmth Of Things’ by Nélida Piñón
  21. ‘Times’ by Ann Beattie

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

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December 2019 favorites

December 2019

The December stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Bad Characters’ by Jean Stafford
  2. ‘The Possibility Of Evil’ by Shirley Jackson
  3. ‘The Loudest Voice’ by Grace Paley
  4. ‘Encarnación Mendoza’s Christmas Eve’ by Juan Bosch
  5. ‘The Discovery Of Christmas’ by Carson McCullers
  6. ‘The Christmas Turkey’ by Mário de Andrade
  7. ‘The Artist’ by Patricia Highsmith
  8. ‘Mortals’ by Tobias Wolff
  9. ‘Uncles’ by Peter Taylor
  10. ‘Santa Claus Is A White Man’ by John Henrik Clarke
  11. ‘The Cliff’ by Charles Baxter
  12. ‘Two Turtledoves’ by John O’Hara
  13. ‘His Final Mother’ by Reynolds Price
  14. ‘Sleep’ by Haruki Murakami
  15. ‘Rose’ by Mavis Gallant
  16. ‘On The Street Where You Live’ by Yiyun Li
  17. ‘All That’ by David Foster Wallace

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

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December 2017 favorites

December 2017

The December stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘Vanka’ by Anton Chekhov
  2. ‘Master Eustace’ by Henry James
  3. ‘Christmas Poem’ by John O’Hara
  4. ‘Brothers’ by Sherwood Anderson
  5. ‘Cat Person’ by Kristen Roupenian
  6. ‘Christmas Gift’ by Robert Penn Warren
  7. ‘Snow Angel’ by Stephanie Vaughn
  8. ‘The Last Night Of The World’ by Ray Bradbury
  9. ‘Uncle Raymond’ by Nelson Eubanks
  10. ‘Christmas Freud’ by David Rakoff
  11. ‘The Sunday After Christmas’ by Mavis Gallant
  12. ‘Where You’ll Find Me’ by Ann Beattie
  13. ‘Through The Tunnel’ by Doris Lessing
  14. ‘The Angel Of The Bridge’ by John Cheever
  15. ‘Nobody’s Story’ by Charles Dickens
  16. ‘A Different Kind Of Imperfection’ by Thomas Beller
  17. ‘Christmas By Injunction’ by O. Henry
  18. ‘The Errors Of Santa Claus’ by Stephen Leacock
  19. ‘The Feast Of Nemesis’ by Saki

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.

January 2016 favorites

January2016

January 2016

The January stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘In The Garden Of North American Martyrs’ by Tobias Wolff
  2. ‘The Night In Question’ by Tobias Wolff
  3. ‘Bernice Bobs Her Hair’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  4. ‘Goodbye And Good Luck’ by Grace Paley
  5. ‘Break It Down’ by Lydia Davis
  6. ‘The Falls’ by George Saunders
  7. ‘The Sensible Thing’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  8. ‘Awaiting Orders’ by Tobias Wolff
  9. ‘Dice, Brassknuckles & Guitar’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  10. ‘Next Door’ by Tobias Wolff
  11. ‘The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  12. ‘Financing Finnegan’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  13. ‘New Year’s Night’ by Henry Lawson
  14. ‘When We Were Nearly Young’ by Mavis Gallant
  15. ‘Say Yes’ by Tobias Wolff
  16. ‘Homage To Switzerland’ by Ernest Hemingway
  17. ‘But The One On The Right’ by Dorothy Parker

June 2015 favorites

June2015

June 2015

The June stories ordered solely on my personal tastes.

  1. ‘The Dead’ by James Joyce
  2. ‘Big Boy Leaves Home’ by Richard Wright
  3. ‘Dry September’ by William Faulkner
  4. ‘Araby’ by James Joyce
  5. ‘Eveline’ by James Joyce
  6. ‘The Boarding House’ by James Joyce
  7. ‘Counterparts’ by James Joyce
  8. ‘An Encounter’ by James Joyce
  9. ‘A Little Cloud’ by James Joyce
  10. ‘Two Pilgrims’ by Peter Taylor
  11. ‘A Painful Case’ by James Joyce
  12. ‘The Sisters’ by James Joyce
  13. ‘Ivy Day In The Committee Room’ by James Joyce
  14. ‘Going Ashore’ by Mavis Gallant
  15. ‘Two Gallants’ by James Joyce
  16. ‘Madame Zilensky And The King Of Finland’ by Carson McCullers
  17. ‘Grace’ by James Joyce
  18. ‘Clay’ by James Joyce
  19. ‘A Mother’ by James Joyce
  20. ‘And The Rock Cried Out’ by Ray Bradbury
  21. ‘After The Race’ by James Joyce
  22. ‘The Man From Mars’ by Margaret Atwood