Synopsis "Tenderness and cruelty, loyalty and betrayal, ambition and regret—Alexia Arthurs navigates these tensions to extraordinary effect in her debut collection about Jamaican immigrants and their families back home. Sweeping from close-knit island communities to the streets of New York City and midwestern university towns, these eleven stories form a portrait of a nation, a… Continue reading Book Review: How to Love a Jamaican
Category: Short Story
Some Thoughts, and “Inconstant Moon” Revisited
Years ago, five to be exact, I did a post about "Inconstant Moon" by Larry Niven. A full recap of the story can be found here, but I'll summarize it briefly. In this science fiction short story, the sun goes nova, wrecks havoc on earth, and a couple spends their last night seizing every opportunity… Continue reading Some Thoughts, and “Inconstant Moon” Revisited
The Yellow Wallpaper
Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper was first published in the New England Magazine in 1891. It is a classic short story that, when I first read it, totally and completely freaked me out. I have thought about it often over the years and decided to revisit it this week. I found a copy of the story… Continue reading The Yellow Wallpaper
RIP Harlan Ellison
Harlan Ellison, a prolific science fiction writer, died last week. One of his short stories had such a huge impact on me both as a reader and a writer, that I wanted to discuss it here today. This is a story I still to this day think about, whether I recall it for its weirdness… Continue reading RIP Harlan Ellison
Short Story Sunday: Unaccustomed Earth
For this week's Short Story Sunday, I'll be taking a look at "Unaccustomed Earth" by Jhumpa Lahiri, from her short story collection of the same name. In "Unaccustomed Earth" we meet Ruma, a young mother living in Seattle with her three-year-old son Akash and husband, Adam, who travels frequently for work. We learn that Ruma's… Continue reading Short Story Sunday: Unaccustomed Earth
Short Story Sunday: The Cape Cod Masquerade
The Cape Cod Masquerade by Mary Higgins Clark This was one of my favorites from Clark's Death Wears a Beauty Mask and Other Stories that I read a few weeks ago. Alvirah and Willy Meehan are visiting Cape Cod in search of some peace and quiet. Their neighbor, a young woman staying alone, seems a little odd… Continue reading Short Story Sunday: The Cape Cod Masquerade
Short Story: The Stowaway
A long time ago (maybe two years, ha) I was obsessed with short stories. I shared dozens of them right here on Words for Everything. Most were science fiction, you might recall, as I was on a bit of a kick at the time. I thought it might be fun to start sharing short stories… Continue reading Short Story: The Stowaway
Short Story: Triceratops
In “Triceratops” by Kono Tensei a father and son discover that their suburban neighborhood is full of triceratops and they are the only ones who can see them. A dimensional fault, perhaps? They watch a triceratops walk down the street past sleeping houses and disappear silently through a wall and decide that there must in… Continue reading Short Story: Triceratops
Science Fiction Friday: “Inconstant Moon” by Larry Niven – Bring On that Nova Weather
“Inconstant Moon” by Larry Niven begs the questions: If this was your last night on Earth what would you do? More importantly, who would you choose to be with? “What I wanted was someone who would join my…farewell party without asking the wrong questions.” –Stan, “Inconstant Moon” This story begins in San Diego, California late… Continue reading Science Fiction Friday: “Inconstant Moon” by Larry Niven – Bring On that Nova Weather
Science Fiction Friday: J.G. Ballard, “Chronopolis”
J.G. Ballard’s “The Chronopolis” tells of Conrad Newman who, while waiting on death row, contemplates his past and his discovery of the city of Chronopolis. Conrad lives in a world where the concept of time is obsolete. (i.e., no checking your iPhone every minute and a half for no reason). His society functions lazily with… Continue reading Science Fiction Friday: J.G. Ballard, “Chronopolis”
