Anthologies & Short Stories

Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE EDGE HILL SHORT STORY PRIZE'Sensual, spiky, tender and utterly original' Pandora Sykes'A fierce and fascinating debut' Lily KingI was told of an older woman who was asked by her granddaughter, 'Granny, when was the happiest time of your life?''I don't know,' she replied, 'I may not have had it yet.'The stories found in this collection explore the worlds of thirteen older women, reframing their intellectual and emotional lives in intimate vignettes that will shock and comfort in equal measure. In elegant prose Jane Campbell ignites the voices of women who are fighting to live on their own terms, energised by the stuff of human living: a need for companionship, attachments to love-objects, freedoms, integrity and sense of self. Cat Brushing confronts the tragic misconceptions of ageing showing older women to be nothing less than courageous, fearless and defiant in the face of overwhelming odds.Trade ReviewCat Brushing is a fierce and fascinating debut. I loved these women who have taken off their gloves to fight life with their bare hands. -- Lily King, author of Writers & LoversI loved these fresh, wry, strange stories; by turns moving and unnerving, they disturb expectations of the longings, loves and ambitions of older women. -- Megan Hunter, author of The End We Start From and The HarpyIt's not every day . . . that you encounter a debut as fresh, assured and fun as Jane Campbell's . . . Though her stories are frequently explicit enough to bring colour to your cheeks, Campbell maintains a cool, commanding tone that enhances the effect of her limpid prose . . . The stories are varied in approach without being showy about it, and consistently draw novel insight from a few major themes: aging, sexuality, memory, loneliness. Her work merits comparison with that of Edna O'Brien or Muriel Spark, while an uncanny streak running through several of the pieces . . . might bring Daphne du Maurier to mind. * New York Times *I laughed out loud in joy and admiration so many times in this original, surprising book. Cat Brushing is about aging, about sex, about the weirdness of technology, and about womanhood - these stories felt both deeply familiar to me and far too absent from many of our culture's stories. Jane Campbell is a refreshing, compelling new voice. -- Kate Reed PettyJane Campbell is a wonder! It's her clear-eyed vision, rendered in prose as crisp as bone china, that had me rapt. This book flings open a heretofore shuttered window, giving us an invigoratingly fresh and absolutely essential view of the psychology and emotions and appetites of aging women. Jane Campbell, where have you been? We've needed you for a very, very long time. -- Jamie Quatro, author of Fire SermonJane Campbell's Cat Brushing is the debut of the decade, an eighty year old woman laying out the physical and spiritual struggle of life at its very end. I was haunted by these stories of older women falling, having strokes, dying--subjects often flattened into sentimentality--but in Campbell's hands made both elegant and transgressive. We are striving creatures of intense desire, Campbell insists, until we are not. -- Darcey Steinke, author of Flash Count DiaryIn thirteen revivifying stories, thirteen candid, empathic portraits of aging women for whom desire yet smolders, Campbell proves aging is a complex sport. Some mental agility is required, some wit and wisdom. Befuddlement and remorse are a part of play, too, but the stories offer the solace of shared experience and company. -- Christine Schutt, Pure Hollywood and Other StoriesStepping into these stories by Jane Campbell feels like opening a door back into the world. The thrust of life, of longing and regret, of contempt and forgiveness, it's all here in such vivid, delicious phrasing. She reads like Eudora Welty's wicked British cousin, a lot of fun. -- John Freeman, Editor of The Penguin Book of the Modern American Short StorySensual, spiky, tender and utterly original short stories about the desire of women in their seventies and older. * Pandora Sykes *Cat Brushing offers a much-needed fresh perspective on the diverse realities of ageing. * Women's Own *An illuminating, funny and tender collection that affirms wisdom and experience as the basis for great storytelling * Sunday Business Post *Sensuous, strange and utterly original. * Sunday Independent Ireland (Book of the Year) *

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Book Synopsis'The supreme fabulist of modern man's cosmic predicament' John Updike 'The stories are dreamlike, allegorical, ghoulishly detached, exquisitely comic, numinous, and prophetic' New York Times The essential stories of one of the twentieth century's greatest and most influential writers No one has captured the modern experience, its wild dreams, strange joys, its neuroses and boredom, better than Franz Kafka. His vision, with its absurdity and twisted humour, has lost none of its force or relevance today. This essential collection, translated and selected by Alexander Starritt, casts fresh light on Kafka's genius. Alongside brutal depictions of violence and justice are jokes and deceptively slight, mysterious fables. These unforgettable pieces reflect the brilliance at the core of Franz Kafka, arguably most fully expressed within his short stories. Together they showcase a writer of unmatched imaginative depth, capable of expressing the most profound reality with a wry smile. Part of the Pushkin Press Classics series: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globe Translated by Alexander Starritt Franz Kafka (1883-1924) was born to Jewish parents in Prague and wrote in German. He published only a few story collections and individual stories in literary magazines during his lifetime. The rest of his work was published posthumously. He is now considered one of the most influential authors of the twentieth century.Trade ReviewPraise for The Unhappiness of Being a Single Man:'A welcome distillation of Kafka's short fiction, essential indeed.' - Kirkus Reviews'The Unhappiness of Being a Single Man nicely makes a case that readers should not forget Kafka's sly sense of humor and, of course, his humanity, when considering his impact on culture.' - Noah Cruickshank, Forefront, in Shelf AwarenessPraise for the work of Franz Kafka:'The stories are dreamlike, allegorical, symbolic, parabolic, grotesque, ritualistic, nasty, lucent, extremely personal, ghoulishly detached, exquisitely comic, numinous, and prophetic.' - The New York Times'The greatest German writer of our time. Such poets as Rilke or such novelists as Thomas Mann are dwarfs or plastic saints in comparison with him.' - Vladimir Nabokov'A genius.' - The Guardian '[Kafka] spoke for millions in their new unease; a century after his birth, he seems the last holy writer, and the supreme fabulist of modern man's cosmic predicament.' - John Updike

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Book SynopsisAlongside M.R. James, H.P. Lovecraft, Algernon Blackwood and Bram Stoker, Arthur Machen wrote powerful, chilling and thought-provoking stories. His supernatural tales draw their power from the long nights and dark lanes of the Welsh countryside that raised him, surrounded as he was by the remains of Roman forts and Iron Age archeology. His 1914 story, ''The Bowmen'' is the source of the legend of the Angel of Mons, where a supernatural bowman covered the retreat of soldiers in the first world war.The Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy, Classic Stories and Epic Tales collections bring together the entire range of myth, folklore and modern short fiction. Highlighting the roots of suspense, supernatural, science fiction and mystery stories, the books in Flame Tree Collections series are beautifully presented, perfect as a gift and offer a lifetime of reading pleasure.

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Book SynopsisJeffrey Archer, whose novels and short stories include the Clifton Chronicles, Kane and Abel and Cat O' Nine Tales, is one of the world's favourite storytellers and has topped the bestseller lists around the world in a career spanning four decades. His work has been sold in more than 100 countries and in fifty-one languages. He is the only author ever to have been a number one bestseller in fiction, short stories and non-fiction (The Prison Diaries).Jeffrey is also an art collector and amateur auctioneer, and has raised more than 50m for different charities over the years. A member of the House of Lords for over a quarter of a century, the author is married to Dame Mary Archer, and they have two sons, two granddaughters and three grandsons.

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Book SynopsisMalevolent and dark, the fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm are not for the faint-hearted. The stories were originally published in 1812 and form a vivid and fascinating body of work that is rich in folkloric significance. Replete with sinister characters and grotesque imagery, this collection is the perfect addition to our series of deluxe Gothic Fantasy giftbooks, and features some of the lesser-known tales alongside favourites like Snow White, Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin, and Hansel and Gretel.

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Book SynopsisIsak Dinesen was the pen-name of Karen Blixen, who was born in Rungsted, Denmark in 1885. After studying art at Copenhagen, Paris and Rome, she married her cousin, Baron Bror Blixen-Finecke, in 1914. Together they went to Kenya to manage a coffee plantation. After their divorce in 1921, she continued to run the plantation until a collapse in the coffee market forced her back to Denmark in 1931.

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Book SynopsisThroughout his life Isaac Babel was torn by opposing forces, by the desire both to remain faithful to his Jewish roots and yet to be free of them. This duality of vision infuses his work with a powerful energy from the earliest tales including ''Old Shloyme'' and ''Childhood'', which affirm his Russian-Jewish childhood, to the relatively non-Jewish world of his collection of stories entitled ''Red Cavalry''. Babel''s masterpiece, ''Red Cavalry'' is the most dramatic expression of his dualism and in his simultaneous acceptance and rejection of his heritage heralds the great American-Jewish writers from Henry Roth to Saul Bellow and Philip Roth.

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Book SynopsisEach of these delightful interconnected tales is devoted to a family living in a fertile valley on the outskirts of Monterey, California, and the effects that one particular family has on them all. Steinbeck tackles two important literary traditions here; American naturalism, with its focus on the conflict between natural instincts and the demand to conform to society''s norms, and the short story cycle. Set in the heart of ''Steinbeck land'', the lush Californian valleys.

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Book SynopsisHere is the perfect introduction to contemporary fiction from the world''s most spoken language. These eight short stories, with parallel translations, offer students at all levels the opportunity to enjoy a wide range of contemporary literature without having constantly to refer to a dictionary. Richly diverse in themes and styles, the stories are by both new and well-established writers and range from a story by Li Rui about the honest simplicity of a Shanxi farmer to a story by Ma Yuan exposing the seamy underside of contemporary urban society. Complete with notes, these selections make excellent reading in either language.

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Book SynopsisThe perfect gift this Christmas season: a generous selection of some of the greatest festive stories of all timeThis is a collection of the most magical, moving, chilling and surprising Christmas stories from around the world, taking us from frozen Nordic woods to glittering Paris, a New York speakeasy to an English country house, bustling Lagos to midnight mass in Rio, and even outer space. Here are classic tales from writers including Truman Capote, Shirley Jackson, Dylan Thomas, Saki and Chekhov, as well as little-known treasures such as Italo Calvino''s wry sideways look at Christmas consumerism, Wolfdietrich Schnurre''s story of festive ingenuity in Berlin, Selma Lagerlof''s enchanted forest in Sweden, and Irène Nemerovsky''s dark family portrait. Featuring santas, ghosts, trolls, unexpected guests, curmudgeons and miracles, here is Christmas as imagined by some of the greatest short story writers of all time.Trade ReviewFrom Hans Christian Andersen to Angela Carter, this greatest hits compilation also happens to be beautifully published. Inside you'll find ghosts, miracles, grouchy curmudgeons and plenty of snow * Daily Mail Books of the Year *Perfect for any looming Boxing Day boredom. The list of rather superior contributors includes the likes of Truman Capote, Shirley Jackson, Italo Calvino and Dylan Thomas * Herald Scotland Books of the Year *

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Book Synopsis''Beautiful and deep ... a sumptuous treat for any book lover'' The Independent''Food for short story lovers everywhere'' Irish Times*A major celebration of the French short story and Spectator Book of the Year*The short story has a rich tradition in French literature. This feast of an anthology celebrates its most famous practitioners, as well as newly translated writers ready for rediscovery. The second volume takes the reader through the tumultuous twentieth century in the company of writers including Simone de Beauvoir and Maryse Condé, Patrick Modiano and Virginie Despentes, covering world wars, revolutions, and the horrors of the motorway service station. Along the way we meet electronic brains, she-wolves, a sadistic Cinderella, ancestors, infidels, dissatisfied housewives and lonely ambassadors, all clamouring to be heard. Funny, devastating and fresh at every turn, this is the place to start for lovers of French literature, new and old.Edited and with an introduction by Patrick McGuinness, academic, writer and translator.Trade ReviewBeautiful and deep ... a sumptuous treat for any book lover. -- Martin Chilton * The Independent *Outstanding. -- Philip Hensher * The Spectator Books of the Year 2022 *A French version of The Thousand and One Nights ... Both volumes tell us something new about writing in French ... Such a creative arrangement forces us to rethink what we expect a short story to be or do ... Perhaps all short fiction reminds us that the end is nigh, in which case not the least of Patrick McGuinness's achievements is that of showing us how to read and live accordingly. -- Annabel Kim * Times Literary Supplement *Patrick McGuinness's magisterial anthology teems with universes from each of its 84 authors ... There is so much to discover in these stories - both history and food for short story lovers everywhere. * Irish Times *It's hard to imagine a better introduction to French literature than this glorious two-volume bran tub of short fiction ... outstanding masterpieces all ... There's a welcome playfulness throughout. -- John Self * The Guardian *Impeccably edited by Patrick McGuinness. The first volume stretches from the 16th century to the early 20th century ... Volume two takes us from there to the early 21st century, featuring more women and non-white authors than the first volume. Treat yourself: buy both. -- Tomiwa Owolade * Sunday Times *What a collection it is ... Both volumes fizz with the enthusiasm with which McGuinness has assembled stories that range across centuries and continents ... This will surely turn out to be the definitive anthology of French-language short fiction. -- Charlie Connelly * The New European *Tales with a certain ooh la la ... an eclectic, often steamy collection charting the history of the French short story [with] some gems by less famous figures ... high marks for quality and variety. -- Matthew Reisz * The Observer *

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Book Synopsis''The greatest entertainer ever produced by science fiction'' J. G. BallardThese surreal, elegantly witty tales from one of the most esteemed writers of science fiction encompass indignant aliens, stranded space explorers, shapeshifters, a company that manufactures designer planets and a deadly hunting game in far-future New York.''Robert Sheckley is one of the great funny writers'' Douglas Adams''A writer not quite like any other whose forte is his own brand of strange and wonderful humour'' The New York Times''Genuinely funny SF'' Neil GaimanTrade ReviewRobert Sheckley is one of the great funny writers -- Douglas AdamsRobert Sheckley was writing genuinely funny SF before Douglas Adams was born ... It is a crime that most of his great short story collections from the 50s, 60s and 70s are out of print -- Neil GaimanRobert Sheckley is the greatest entertainer ever produced by modern science fiction . . . what a feast of wit and intelligence he lays out -- J.G BallardOne of science fiction's seminal humourists * The New York Times *One of the finest debut volumes ever published in the field, and contains several tales which have remained famous, including 'The Monsters' and the superb 'Specialist' ... Sheckley's stories are unfailingly elegant and literate * Science Fiction Encyclopedia *

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewOne of the greatest writers of the 20th century . . . no other writer can set up a scene as sharply and with such economy as Simenon does . . . the conjuring of a world, a place, a time, a set of characters - above all, an atmosphere. -- John Banville * Financial Times *A superior stylist . . . photographic . . . Simenon's subject is how people who are pushed to the edge push themselves over it; the force of the sleuthing is that of psychoanalysis, not police interrogation. -- Adam Gopnik * New Yorker *Gem-hard soul-probes . . . not just the world's bestselling detective series, but an imperishable literary legend . . . he exposes secrets and crimes not by forensic wizardry, but by the melded powers of therapist, philosopher and confessor -- Boyd Tonkin * The Times *Strangely comforting . . . so many lovely bistros from the Paris of mid-20th C. The corpses are incidental, it's the food that counts -- Margaret AtwoodSimenon's supreme virtue as a novelist, to burrow beneath the surface of his characters' behaviour; to empathise . . . it is this unfailing humanity that makes the Maigret books truly worth reading -- Graeme Macrae Burnet * Guardian *A gem of a read. It's like discovering a buried treasure trove of words, characters and dialogue which both entertain and make you think -- Jane Corry * author of We All Have Our Secrets *

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Book SynopsisIntroducing Little Clothbound Classics: irresistible, mini editions of short stories, novellas and essays from the world''s greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. Celebrating the range and diversity of Penguin Classics, they take us from snowy Japan to springtime Vienna, from haunted New England to a sun-drenched Mediterranean island, and from a game of chess on the ocean to a love story on the moon. Beautifully designed and printed, these collectible editions are bound in colourful, tactile cloth and stamped with foil.Katherine Mansfield''s perceptive and resonant writing helped to define the modern short story, observing apparently trivial incidents to create quietly devastating revelations of inner lives. Graceful, delicate and burning with emotion, Mansfield''s stories were integral in shaping the Modernist movement and redefined a genre. This collection contains some of Mansfield''s most celebrated stories, including ''Bliss'', ''The Garden Party'' and ''The Daughters of the Late Colonel''.''The only writing I have ever been jealous of.'' - Virginia Woolf

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Book SynopsisMo Yan's collection of eight darkly humorous short stories - surrealistic political fables, ghost stories, tales of failed and perverse love, and stories about the destructive effects of superstition and ignorance. Mo Yan addresses serious concerns of contemporary China with a light touch.

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Book SynopsisJunot Diaz''s new collection, This Is How You Lose Her, is a collection of linked narratives about love - passionate love, illicit love, dying love, maternal love - told through the lives of New Jersey Dominicans, as they struggle to find a point where their two worlds meet. In prose that is endlessly energetic and inventive, tender and funny, it lays bare the infinite longing and inevitable weaknesses of the human heart. Most of all, these stories remind us that the habit of passion always triumphs over experience and that ''love, when it hits us for real, has a half-life of forever.''

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Book SynopsisRichard Laymon is the undisputed master of the macabre, and nowhere is his talent to terrify shown to better effect than in his short stories. DREADFUL TALES contains all of his short fiction not previously published in the UK and forms a delicious cornucopia of homicidal maniacs, vampires and lust-crazed teenagers - not to mention the drinkers in a low-life dive who attempt to salvage a diamond ring from the mouth of a severed head in a fish tank - with grisly results.Trade ReviewDREADFUL TALES:'DREADFUL TALES knocks all other offerings for six and presents a consistent collection of tales, almost every one of which manages to shock, delight and horrify through numerous ideas, characters and situations... a breath of fresh air in the stale UK Horror climate... Gets my vote as the best of 2000 by a long chalk' ShiversA terrifying collection of short stories that showcases the dark genius of a true master of the macabre * BOOKS MAGAZINE *DREADFUL TALES knocks all other offerings for six and presents a consistent collection of tales, almost every one of which manages to shock, delight and horrify through numerous ideas, characters and situations... Gets my vote as the best of 2000 by a long chalk * SHIVERS *'A terrifying collection of short stories that showcases the dark genius of a true master of the macabre' Books Magazine'This is an author that does not pull his punches... A gripping, and at times genuinely shocking, read' SFX MagazineThis is an author that does not pull his punches... A gripping, and at times genuinely shocking, read * SFX Magazine *'Dean Koontz and Stephen King normally dominate this territory. They had better watch out, Laymon is already staking a claim' Northern EchoTRAVELLING VAMPIRE SHOW:'If you are not already well acquainted with Richard Laymon, get to know him now. This is an enticing tale of three youngsters in a small American town' Manchester Evening News'This gloriously inventive piece is probably Laymon's best book yet: dipping into the poetic vein of Ray Bradbury was clearly a vitalising exercise for him, and this is sheerly enjoyable... The prose here is rich and inventive, the atmosphere and scene-setting handled with real aplomb. Whatever you make of Laymon's earlier books, this is one you should try' News International Lineone'Set in a sleepy American town in the summer of 1963, this rites of passage novel recreates the long, stifling days - and nights filled with possibilities - that distinguish the teenage years' Belfast TelegraphPRAISE FOR PREVIOUS BOOKS:'A grisly cocktail of horror, murder and mayhem laced with Laymon's distinct blend of black humour. Great stuff.' Yorkshire Evening Press'Richard Laymon doesn't disappoint with his latest offering.' Peterborough Evening Telegraph''So fastpaced you find yourself reading it at the speed of a bullet from a gun...a rollercoaster ride of fear' Peterborough Evening Telegraph'No one writes like Laymon and you're going to have a good time with anything he writes' Dean Koontz'This author knows how to sock it to the reader' The Times, If you've missed Laymon you've missed a treat' Stephen King, 'A brilliant writer' Sunday Express·'AMONG THE MISSING is strikingly different. From the chilling opening...we are plunged into a disturbing world of twisted psychopathology' The Times'There's not a crime novelist around who writes cleaner prose than Laymon - and few who can jack up the tension the way he does...Laymon likes to grasp readers by the neck with expert word-smithery, then haul them into a diabolical situation...once again, Laymon offers unexpected, well-rounded characters blown about in a narrative that moves like the wind.' Publishers Weekly'one of the best writers working in the genre today' Cemetery Dance

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Book SynopsisOf Wives, Talismans and the Dead is a collection of short stories by influential author, I.N.C. Aniebo. Written originally in the 1960s, these tales explore superstition, Westernisation, and the rising tensions of an unequal society in post-independent Nigeria.''Now, dry your tears my child,'' his father said gently. ''I am going to drive him, away. He will not disturb you again. Dead men should not wander in the land of the living.''In the title story, ''Of Wives, Talismans and the Dead'', eleven-year-old Ibe worries about embarrassing himself in front of his father, finding time to play hide and seek with his friends, and, most importantly, his impending marriage with a young girl named Egeolu.Ibe''s tender innocence is set against the gravity of death and marriage as I.N.C. Aniebo captures the enduring traditions of 1960s Nigeria from the perspective of a young boy.Throughout the collection, Aniebo masterfully weaves together t

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Book Synopsis''Excellent'' IRISH TIMES ''Witty and biting and brilliant'' i PAPER ''Full of dark mischief'' EMMA HEALEY''Hilarious'' EMMA JANE UNSWORTH WINNER OF THE BBC NATIONAL SHORT STORY AWARD A mother has an unexpected outburst at a corporate therapy session for working parents. A couple finally get time to rekindle their relationship and make an ill-advised home movie. A pregnant film director plots revenge on the actress who betrayed her. A woman deliberately causes conflict at her ex''s wedding. These powerful and funny stories illuminate the lives of untamed women. They explore how society wants us to behave - and what happens when we refuse . . .FEATURING A BONUS STORY IN PAPERBACK''Whip-smart'' CHRISTIE WATSON''Humane and very funny'' JESSIE BURTON ''Clever and illuminating'' LUCY CALDWELL ''Wonderful'' DAILY MAIL ''Read it and riot'' MARIANNE LEVY

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Book SynopsisA captivating collection of pitch-black tales from one of the most important Japanese writers of the second half of the twentieth century - 'shocking, ominous, and subversive' The Paris ReviewTrade ReviewThere are resonances here with Tanizaki, but Kono's subversions feel somehow scarier, in part because of her deadpan prose and in part because she strikes at sacred paradigms of motherhood and femininity * The Wall Street Journal *It does a disservice to this collection of stories, which were originally published throughout the 1960s, to focus too much on its flashes of sadomasochism; but it's difficult not to start there. But the pleasure in Kono's work is not only, or even primarily, derived from its daring. These stories are also captivating in traditional ways * NY Times *The fiery, beguiling stories in TODDLER HUNTING AND OTHER STORIES are vertiginous tightrope walks between two planes of reality. Kono's writing is shocking, ominous, and subversive * The Paris Review *Left me shaken and in awe; they are incendiary, beautiful, and frightening confrontations of the lives we keep hidden from others * Gabe Habash, author of Stephen Florida *Japanese master of the unsettling: Kono should be an electrifying discovery for English-speaking lovers of short fiction * Kirkus *Reminiscent of Flannery O'Connor's works, Kono's stories explore the dark, terrifying side of human nature that manifests itself in antisocial behaviour * World Literature Today *

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Book SynopsisMorse had solved so many mysteries in his life. Was he now, he wondered, beginning to glimpse the solution to the greatest mystery of them all . . . ? How can the discovery of a short story by a beautiful Oxford graduate lead Chief Inspector Morse to her murderer? What awaits Morse and Lewis in Room 231 of the Randolph Hotel? Why does a theft at Christmas lead the detective to look upon the festive season with uncharacteristic goodwill? And what happens when Morse himself falls victim to a brilliantly executed crime? Morse's Greatest Mystery and Other Stories is a dazzling collection of short stories from Inspector Morse's creator, Colin Dexter. It includes six ingenious cases for the world's most popular fictional detective – plus five other tantalizingly original tales to delight all lovers of classic crime fiction.

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE EDGE HILL PRIZE 2022 SHORTLISTED FOR SHORT STORY OF THE YEAR AT THE IRISH BOOK AWARDS 2022 SHORTLISTED FOR ALCS TOM-GALLON TRUST AWARD 'Unsettling, unpredictable, and brilliant' Roddy Doyle 'In sumptuous and evocative prose, Sheila Armstrong writes stories that are unnerving and unsettling. Stories which make you go, wait, wait, what was that? ' Claire Fuller, author of Unsettled Ground On a boat offshore, a fisherman guts a mackerel as he anxiously awaits a midnight rendezvous. Villagers, one by one, disappear into a sinkhole beneath a yew tree. A nameless girl is taped, bound and put on display in a countryside market. A dazzling and disquieting collection of stories, how to gut a fish places the bizarre beside the everyday and then elegantly and expertly blurs the lines. An exciting new Irish writer whose sharp and lyrical prose unsettles and astounds in equal measure, Sheila Armstrong’s exquisitely provocative stories carve their way into your mind and take hold. 'Dark, devilishly well written and full of atmosphere, How to Gut a Fish is one of the most original and affecting short story collections I’ve read in years' Jan Carson, author of The Fire StartersTrade ReviewThe stories in this collection are unsettling, unpredictable, and brilliant -- Roddy DoyleIn sumptuous and evocative prose, Sheila Armstrong writes stories that are unnerving and unsettling. Stories which make you go, wait, wait, what was that? * Claire Fuller, author of Unsettled Ground *Armstrong’s short stories make tremendously good company, each one transported me to a place I’d never been before. Dark, devilishly well written and full of atmosphere, How to Gut a Fish is one of the most original and affecting short story collections I’ve read in years. * Jan Carson, author of Malcolm Orange Disappears *Do you know when you read a sentence that is so good, it does weird things to your insides? You kind of shudder with satisfaction and hope for more. Well, I am addicted to good sentences, and Sheila Armstrong is my dealer. The stories in How to Gut a Fish are gorgeously weird, inspiring curiosity both on and off the page. If you’re anything like me, they will send you into a fit of ferocious googling: What is star jelly? How old is the moon? The story titles are works of art in themselves. This is the good stuff. Hook it to my veins. * Louise Nealon, author of Snowflake *This exquisitely wrought collection made me feel as if I were inhabiting another realm: sensuous, tactile, beautiful and disturbing. Sheila Armstrong's hypnotic prose has a haunting, lingering, dreamlike effect. * Lisa Harding, author of Bright Burning Things *It’s not often I open a book to find prose this exciting, original and frankly envy-inducing. Line by line, these stories set a series of small fires in my head, and they’re still burning * Zoe Gilbert, author of Folk *I loved it. I found the stories completely hypnotic and strange. (Armstrong) has a meditative and mesmerising voice, and her description of everyday life is perceptive and profound. * Megan Bradbury, author of Everyone is Watching *

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Book SynopsisA TIME 'New Books You Should Read' A People magazine 'Book of the Week' A New York Times Editors' Choice With a foreword by Elizabeth Strout ‘Electric: with wit, with rage, with grief, with the kind of prose that makes you both laugh and thrill to the darker, spikier emotions just barely visible under the bright surface. What a wonderful collection of stories’ Lauren Groff Another day! And then another and another and another. It seemed as if it would all go on forever in that exquisitely boring and beautiful way. But of course it wouldn’t; everyone knows that. In this collection, Hilma Wolitzer invites us inside the private world of domestic bliss, seen mostly through the lens of Paulie and Howard’s gloriously ordinary marriage. From hasty weddings to meddlesome neighbours, ex-wives who just won’t leave, to sleepless nights spent worrying about unanswered chainmail, Wolitzer captures the tensions, contradictions and unexpected detours of daily life with wit, candour and an acutely observant eye. Including stories first published in magazines in the 1960s and 1970s – alongside new writing from Wolitzer, now in her nineties – Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket reintroduces a beloved writer to be embraced by a new generation of readers. ‘A fascinating time capsule of womanhood, marriage and motherhood over the last century … A fabulous book’ Emma Straub ‘Immensely gratifying, poignant, funny … Breathtaking’ Elizabeth Strout, from the forewordTrade ReviewShort stories that pack a pithy poignant punch by a 91-year-old mistress of the craft … From the first page, dialogue and descriptions crackle through the quotidian and Hilma’s piquant prose illuminates scenes both prosaic and profound * Harper's Bazaar *Wolitzer’s vision of the world, for all its sorrow, is often hilarious and always compassionate. * New York Times Book Review *[Wolitzer’s writing] shines a light on the extraordinary and magical in seemingly ordinary, every day lives … Wolitzer is sure to find many new fans with this collection * Red *Wolitzer is a genius of the short story … Wolitzer is above all an observer, and she has a wonderful eye: compassionate, slightly jaundiced, erotic, urbane and often very funny * Sunday Times *Wolitzer is a champ at the closely observed, droll novel of manners. * NPR *The stories, full of references to Formica counters and Jell-O moulds, are riven with the stresses of parenting and marriage, and are incredibly funny … Her stories are disarmingly playful, but they also explore such subjects as maternal ambivalence and female desire in a way that feels radical even today * Daily Telegraph *Oh, how I loved these stories! I've been a fan of Hilma Wolitzer since my teens and this collection offers everything I adore about her novels: each story dazzles with an unflinching portrayal of a woman at a pivotal moment in her life -- Joanna Rakoff, author of MY SALINGER YEARWit, wisdom and warmth form the foundation of this sparkling collection. Wolitzer is a natural-born storyteller whose rigour, attention and generosity create miracles on each and every page -- Tayari JonesHilma Wolitzer’s skill is to capture what on the surface seems like ordinary lives, but uncovering the extraordinary that lies underneath * Living Magazine *Like its author, the stories in Today A Woman Went Mad shine as brightly, cut as deeply and entertain as deliciously as if they’d been written today * Los Angeles Times *Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket is electric: with wit, with rage, with grief, with the kind of prose that makes you both laugh and thrill to the darker, spikier emotions just barely visible under the bright surface. What a wonderful collection of stories -- Lauren GroffWolitzer is especially strong on wise – and wisecracking – women, even in the harrowing tale of a meltdown in a supermarket ... You’ll laugh till you weep * Saga *Written over more than half a century, these thirteen stories circle themes such as love, insomnia and motherhood … [The collection is] beady-eyed and often humorous, its pages packed with details that reveal as much as entire novels * Mail on Sunday *[Wolitzer] shows us the ever-shifting alliances of family life and ways in which love can both change and endure. * New York Times *There are equal amounts of drollery and despair in these wonderful stories … Wolitzer’s take is fresh and funny and finely tuned to the carefree moments that lighten the emotional load … It’s so beautifully done, sly and spry, the perfect mixture of funny and sad * Daily Mail *Wolitzer is less well known than Tyler and Strout, though her writing is every bit as sharp, funny and insightful as her contemporaries ... Whether it’s the titular woman in the supermarket, or a wife who brings her husband to open house viewings to manage his depression, Wolitzer is observant and truthful on the tensions that exist in daily life * Irish Times *Wolitzer doesn’t just brilliantly capture what we imagine is recognisable ordinary life, she reveals the unique magic that is so absolutely transcendent, it makes us see and live in the world differently ... A fabulous collection brimming with the compassion that Wolitzer is known for -- Caroline Leavitt[A] sage collection of stories ... Throughout, Wolitzer captures the feel of each moment with characters who charm with their honesty. The result is a set of engaging time capsules. * Publishers Weekly *A fascinating time capsule of womanhood, marriage and motherhood over the last century … a fabulous book -- Emma StraubImmensely gratifying, poignant, funny … Breathtaking -- Elizabeth Strout (from the foreword)Hilma Wolitzer sees the miraculous, and the tragic, in modest lives and domestic particulars – wonders that might pass as ordinary events to the untrained eye. She magnifies the world. She insists, in one gorgeous sentence after another, that there’s no such thing as a usual hour, let alone a usual day -- Michael CunninghamWith her trademark dry wit and abiding compassion, Wolitzer explores the telling details of everyday life in ways that are unsettling, insightful and wholly original. These stories will linger in your mind and get under your skin. They shimmer with life -- Christina Baker KlineTo read Hilma Wolitzer is to laugh in a special way and to allow yourself little intermissions of sheer satisfaction in which you lay the open book facedown on your heart and snuggle with the human race. * Gail Godwin *A timeless examination of the bonds that connect us and the staying power of love * TIME *Wry, terse, full of telling detail. Think The Stepford Wives meets Samantha Bee * The Tablet *Witty and wonderful, these insightful stories are about the imperfections of everyday life … [Her characters] find the sunny, funny moments that transform the ordinary into the extraordinary * Psychologies *The stories are vivid and fresh despite most of them being published decades ago—there are quirks in language, like use of the word ‘pocketbook’ to denote a handbag, that ground this collection firmly in the yesteryears—but Wolitzer’s portrayals of the vagaries of motherhood, love, depression, boredom, grief, ageing and death are as sharp today as when they were first published. * Melbourne Writers Festival *

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Book SynopsisCats, be they much loved pets or inscrutable creatures, lend themselves to stories and literary invention. Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning pocket size classics. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition is edited by anthologist, editor and literary agent Becky Brown.Classic Cat Stories is a beautiful anthology that includes fairy tales and fables from the likes of Rudyard Kipling and Charles Perrault as well as comic tales from Saki and E. F. Benson. Cats, of course, have always had a dark and mysterious side which is explored to chilling effect by the likes of Edgar Allan Poe in The Black Cat and H. P. Lovecraft in The Cats of Ulthar. But above all, we love them and you’ll find here stories about all kinds of cats that tug at the heartstrings and which celebrate their curious ways.

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Book Synopsis'I loved Orange World... a collection of short stories in which demons live in drains, bog women come back from the dead and trees can grow inside the human body' Daisy Johnson, New Statesman BOOK OF THE YEAR'A rare combination of literary brilliance and unbridled entertainment' Mark HaddonThese exuberant, unforgettable stories showcase Karen Russell's comedic and imaginative talent for creating outlandish predicaments that uncannily mirror our inner lives. In 'The Bad Graft', a couple on a road trip stop in Joshua Tree National Park, where the spirit of a giant tree accidentally infects the young woman, their fates becoming permanently entangled. In 'The Prospectors' two opportunistic young women fleeing the Depression strike out for new territory, but find themselves fighting for their lives. In the brilliant and hilarious title story a new mother desperate to ensure her baby's safety strikes a deal with the devil to protect her baby. Stories of survival, love and of surreal and magnificent transformation show Russell writing at exhilarating new heights.Praise for Orange World:'The worlds of the stories are entirely convincing, small pockets in which it is possible to become lost' Guardian'One of our most original short story writers... Russell has impeccable command of her form' New York Times Book ReviewTrade ReviewSuperbly crafted...the weird and the outlandish exist side-by-side with everyday concerns... Russell is among the most skilled of this generation’s fabulist writers. In her surreal worlds, life is passing strange, but it is not devoid of wry comfort -- Nilanjana Roy * Financial Times *I loved Orange World by Karen Russell, which is a collection of short stories in which demons live in drains, bog women come back from the dead and trees can grow inside the human body -- Daisy Johnson * New Statesman, Books of the Year *One of our most original short story writers... Russell has impeccable command of her form... Russell’s particular gift lies in taking themes that are close to universal and presenting them in stories whose strangeness comes to seem entirely natural, even necessary * New York Times Book Review *A rare combination of literary brilliance and unbridled entertainmentA mesmerising, often hilarious, new collection that embraces survival, love and magnificent transformation -- Craig Brown * Mail on Sunday, *Books of the Year* *

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Book Synopsis'The stories are cool, meticulously crafted, pithy and mordantly amusing . . . [an] extremely powerful book. Highly recommended' Irish Times'Psychologically raw . . . [von Schirach's] unfussy prose is icily effective' Financial Times'One of the most distinctive voices in European literature' Daily TelegraphA young lawyer puts aside her sense of justice to succeed at her new firm. A man who values silence is driven to murder by his noisy neighbours. A cheated wife seeks revenge.How do you decide what punishment fits the crime?Our narrator is a man you'd never want to meet unless you really needed him. A nameless criminal defence lawyer, he coolly narrates the fate of twelve characters who cross his path. In spare, gripping prose, he tells their stories, uncovering the loneliness and alienation, desire and desperation which drive their choices and shape the consequences they face. Drawn from Ferdinand von Schirach's eminent career as a criminal defence lawyer, Punishment masterfully treads the line between fiction and truth, each meticulously crafted story crackling with white-knuckle suspense and vivid characters who stay with you long after the final page. Translated from the German by Katharina HallTrade ReviewThe stories are cool, meticulously crafted, pithy and mordantly amusing . . . this is an unsettling, affecting, extremely powerful book. Highly recommended -- Declan Hughes * Irish Times *Translated with economical elegance by Hall . . . and informed by insider knowledge . . . it's a chilling insight into a flawed justice system, the people who work in it and the guilty and guileless who find themselves judged * Daily Mail *Psychologically raw . . . delivered in a crisp translation by Katharina Hall, his unfussy prose is icily effective . . . it suggests that all justice systems are flawed, that they are all just processes. And, with immense empathy, von Schirach's stories show what happens to people when they are processed. -- Christian House * Financial Times *An impressive page-turner with substance and bite * Bookmunch *Thrilling and edgy, often carrying a twist in the tale * To the Ends of the Word blog *

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Book SynopsisThe remarkable debut novel from critically acclaimed writer Huma Qureshi: an engrossing story of art and sisterhood, family, marriage and betrayal'Poignant and impressionistic . . . highly readable and relatable' Guardian'A gem of a novel' i'A beautifully written debut' RedHana has a perfect job, a perfect home, a perfect marriage. It is her younger sister Mira who is a mess. But Hana wants children and her husband is hesitating, and perhaps her control is slipping.Mira dreams of a creative life but she's stuck working at a local café. She hates her flatmate and Hana's dismissal of her writing but she can't find the right inspiration.One night, a fight between Hana and her husband sparks something in Mira: the words ring in her head and she starts typing. But what can you borrow from your sister? And what can be forgiven?'Warm and moving . . . Playing Games thoughtfully and elegantly considers what it means to be a sister, a mother and a writer' Chloë Ashby, author of Wet Paint'A riveting and evocative tale of two sisters navigating love, loss and desires' Zeba Talkhani, author of My Past is a Foreign Country'Reading Qureshi's crystal prose is a rare pleasure. I found Playing Games unputdownable' Molly Aitken, author of The Island ChildTrade ReviewPoignant and impressionistic . . . highly readable and relatable . . . It is filled with hard decisions and harsh truths, but also the softer and more tender moments of life and familial love. Above all, sisterhood is front and centre. -- Sana Goyal * Guardian *This beautifully written novel dives into the complex dynamic between two very different sisters . . . This is brilliant on siblings, secrets and the art of storytelling. I loved it. -- Sara Lawrence, Books of the Year * Daily Mail *With jeopardy that keeps you turning the pages, as well as both the acuity and tenderness for examining familyand forgiveness, this is a gem of a novel * The i *Conflict, misunderstandings and a rueful acceptance of their sisterly differences fuel an emotionally engaging plot, but it's Qureshi's lambent prose that makes her novel such a radiantly honest read -- Eithne Farry * Mail on Sunday *In beautifully light and charming prose, [Qureshi] gives the reader some deeply engaging romantic drama in the form of Hana's marriage and Mira's romantic encounters, which provide a deeply emotional and enjoyable backdrop for the philosophical musings. -- Edel Coffey * Irish Times *Observant, bluesy . . . an emotive meditation on the ethics of art and the resilience of family bonds -- Hephzibah Anderson * Observer *Huma Qureshi writes with wisdom and heart about two sisters in a fraught relationship * Pandora Sykes *Qureshi skilfully explores the dynamics of family bonds in this beautifully written novel -- Jacqueline Ling * The i *Qureshi brilliantly captures the complexities of sisterhood in this intimate novel -- Joanna Finney * Good Housekeeping *A beautifully written debut * Red Magazine *A warm and moving portrait of two women's desires, equally overwhelming, to create art and to become a parent. Playing Games thoughtfully and elegantly considers what it means to be a sister, a mother and a writer, as well as the fine line between truth and fiction and what happens when one brushes up against the other. -- Chloë Ashby, author of Wet PaintA riveting and evocative tale of two sisters navigating love, loss and desires -- Zeba Talkhani, author of My Past is a Foreign CountryA heartwarming tale of two sisters, and a bittersweet reckoning with what it means to make art; what we ask of and what we take from those we're closest to. Huma Qureshi is a writer with a beautiful lightness of touch -- Lucy Caldwell, author of These DaysPlaying Games is a tender, beautifully nuanced portrayal of sisterhood, of family, love and loss. Huma Qureshi has a rare ability to perfectly capture the details that make up a life, full of raw and real emotion. I adored it. -- Sara Nisha Adams, author of The Reading ListA book full of raw emotion, tension and, ultimately, sibling love -- Kirstyn Smith * My Weekly *Compassionate, thoughtful and thought-provoking -- Haleh Agar, author of Out of TouchPlaying Games is a poignant story about the complexities and beauty of the bond between sisters. Huma Qureshi lucidly examines the curdled emotions of family and illuminates the inner process of the writer. Reading Qureshi's crystal prose is a rare pleasure. I found Playing Games unputdownable. * Molly Aitken, author of The Island Child *A poignant tale of two sisters that illuminates the complexities of family ties * Harper's Bazaar *Reading Huma Qureshi's Playing Games is a comfort. Familiar and tender, the characters are both relatable and infuriating, as only sisters are. It discusses art, love, family, and the large non-negotiable life decisions we all eventually face. For everyone who is a sister, has a sister, or wish they had a sister. -- Jenny Mustard, author of Okay DaysI loved Playing Games. Huma Qureshi writes about relationships, whether it is sisterhood or marriage, with such tenderness that it will break your heart. She steers us through Hana and Mira's chaos with compassion and kindness. There were many instances when I wanted to give the sisters a huge hug, but at the same time, I wanted to shake them because they frustrated me so much. And you only do that with characters you deeply care about. -- Sairish Hussain, author of The Family TreeA moving, sensitive portrait of siblings caught between art, ambition and loyalty * The Bookseller *One of the best writers exploring family connections today -- Jen Campbell * TOAST Magazine *Well-crafted . . . Playing Games is all about sisterhood, in all its gnarly glory -- Alexandra Peake-Tomkinson * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisA new edition of a classic short-story collection. The stories of Where the Rivers Flow North are “superior work, rich in texture and character,” says the Wall Street Journal, and “the novella is brilliantly done.” That novella, the title story of the collection, was also made into a feature film starring Rip Torn and Michael J. Fox. These six stories, available again in this new edition, continue Howard Frank Mosher’s career-long exploration of Kingdom County, Vermont. “Within the borders of his fictional kingdom,” the Providence Journal has noted, “Mosher has created mountains and rivers, timber forests and crossroads villages, history and language. And he has peopled the landscape with some of the truest, most memorable characters in contemporary literature.” This new edition features a new introduction by novelist Peter Orner. Trade Review“Mosher writes stories, almost folk tales at times, built out of lost and forgotten history, rooted in a strong sense of place, inhabited with colorful characters. His terrain may be specific, but his themes are universal.” * USA Today *"Mosher has a fine knack for evoking natural beauty—an otter sliding off an icy log, a loon whooping over a dark lake--and he has a convincing sense of adventure." * Los Angeles Times *"Mosher is a remarkably good observer of nature as well as a born storyteller." * Boston Herald *"With each book, Mosher fleshes out more of his literary turf, a frontier brimming with men and women who follow their own rules." * Boston Globe *Table of ContentsIntroduction by novelist Peter Orner.Alabama JonesBurlFirst SnowThe PeacockHigh WaterKingdom County ComeWhere the Rivers Flow North (a Novella)

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Book SynopsisWITH AN INTRODUCTION FROM THE AUTHOR'Impressive' The Times'Funny and pitch perfect' Sunday Express'I blink, bubble and boggle in amazed admiration' Stephen Fry'These stories are a hit' Financial Times A small-town newspaper columnist with old-fashioned views of the modern world. A World War II veteran grappling with his emotional and physical scars. A second-rate actor plunged into sudden stardom and a whirlwind press junket. Four friends travelling to the moon in a rocket ship built in the backyard. These are just some of the stories that Tom Hanks captures with great affection, humour and insight - the human condition in all its foibles.Trade ReviewMr. Hanks turns out to be as authentically genuine a Writer with a capital W as ever touched a typewriter key. The stories in Uncommon Type range from the hilarious to the deeply touching. They move in period, location and manner, but all demonstrate a joy in writing, a pleasure in communicating an intensely American sense of atmosphere, friendship, life and family that is every bit as smart, engaging and humane as the man himself. All with that extra quality of keenly observant and sympathetic intelligence that has always set Tom Hanks apart. I blink, bubble and boggle in amazed admiration. -- Stephen FryReading Tom Hanks’s Uncommon Type is like finding out that Alice Munro is also the greatest actress of our time. -- Ann PatchettAll American life is here ... Delightful ... Hanks’s prose is impressive, with a strong voice and stylistic flair ... so fluent, convincing and confident that you forget it belongs to Tom Hanks, movie star. He's just a writer. And he’s going to write a great novel one day. -- Melissa Katsoulis * The Times *On the page, as on screen, Hanks is, simply, a lovely person to be around ... Hanks captures the child’s-eye view of the world with pitch-perfect accuracy … and as a writing project it nails perhaps the hardest thing of all: a story in which nothing and everything happens. -- Emma Brockes * Guardian *The central quality to Tom’s writing is a kind of poignant playfulness. It’s exactly what you hope from him, except you wish he was sitting in your home, reading it aloud to you, one story at a time. -- Mindy Kaling[Tom Hanks's] first collection of stories reverses the trick, unveiling the inventive mind behind his regular-guy façade ... His characters, like the machines on which he creates them, are idiosyncratic, disconnected from the mainstream ... There’s darkness too: infidelity, war, Hollywood press junkets. Hanks’s voice is as direct and dry as the one we know from his films ... Hanks has played so many roles. Of course they will have rubbed off, on him and on us. His book reflects that variety. You never know what you’re gonna get next. * Sunday Telegraph *It turns out that Tom Hanks is also a wise and hilarious writer with an endlessly surprising mind. Damn it. -- Steve MartinUncommon Type is funny, wise, gloriously inventive and humane. Tom Hanks sees inside people - a wary divorcee, a billionaire trading desire for disaster, a boy witnessing his father’s infidelity, a motley crew shooting for the moon – with such acute empathy and good humour we’d follow him anywhere. The cumulative effect is of a world I didn’t want to leave. -- Anna FunderThe great strengths of this collection are decency and sentimentality. * Sunday Times *Wait – Tom Hanks can write, too? Funny, moving, deftly surprising stories? That's just swell. Maybe there's no crying in baseball, pal, but it's perfectly acceptable in the book business. That's how we drown envy. -- Carl HiaasenIt makes perfect sense that his first foray into fiction writing, with the short-story collection Uncommon Type, embodies the same all-American spirit … He can write engagingly … He has a particular aptitude for writing dialogue, perhaps unsurprisingly, and a wry turn of phrase that blooms at times into rollicking repartee … The past comes into play much more powerfully when Hanks asks implicit questions about how America has changed, particularly in the welcome it offers to immigrants … These are picaresque characters, enacting stories of friendship and adventure … There is life here, and humour, along with evocative moments of reflection on the state of the American dream. It is clear that Hanks is aiming for entertainment and whimsy over any attempt at high literary style. And on those terms, these stories are a hit. * Financial Times *Hanks can write. These pieces, some of which feature recurring characters and many of which explore the classic American short story territory of small-town life, have the authentic, worn-in feel of a favourite pair of jeans. * Metro *It’s impossible not to love Tom Hanks’ new book … each story is utterly charming and a delight to devour. * Heat *[P]layful, perceptive and rewarding. * Sunday Express *A book you’ll want to hug. * Grazia *He isn’t a competent writer, he’s an excellent writer. * Shortlist *Tom Hanks is as natural on paper as he is on the big screen …Tom Hanks is a natural born storyteller ... You can hear his voice and feel the warm glow of his genial personality in Uncommon Type … There is an ease in his writing and a pleasure in the reading. He is clearly someone who delights in the rhythm and pacing found in a finely crafted paragraph ... He belongs to a tradition of American storytellers that includes Mark Twain or O'Henry although there is a range of work in Uncommon Type that defies such a catch-all definition ... has echoes of HG Wells and Philip K Dick … Uncommon Type has tales of fractured families and broken hearts, faltering relationships and people who are happy being just the way they are … There is a dark side to some of the stories but the overriding impression is that Hanks is an incorrigible romantic and a cock-eyed optimist. * Herald *Entirely engaging. * Daily Mail *He’s a bona fide superstar in the acting world and now Tom Hanks is setting the literary world ablaze … Stephen Fry loved it, and so do we. * Irish Tatler *These stories are a hit. * Financial Times *There always comes a slight wariness when we discover that someone who is generally renowned for one thing turns out to be very good at something else … But what makes Uncommon Type even harder to dismiss is the silky-smooth momentum and unforced hum that Hanks' writing glides along with here. * Irish Examiner *Hanks can write the hell out of typing, and his dialogue is excellent, too…While these stories have the all-American sweetness, humour, and heart we associate with his screen roles, Hanks writes like a writer, not a movie star. * Kirkus *Funny and moving, with a wide spectrum of subjects, this is an engaging collection. * Woman and Home *Uncommon Type is actually, much like its author, a warm, gently funny and mostly engaging collection of seventeen stories * Red Online *It’s brilliant … A beautiful collection of short stories. * ES Magazine *They’re all beautifully written and full of heart. * Sunday Mirror *An entertaining collection. * Mail on Sunday *Pretty impressive. * The Sun *Sensitive, often witty and sometimes melancholic reflections. * Economia *Unveil[s] the inventive mind behind his regular-guy façade. * Daily Telegraph *Perfect for book lovers and cinephiles alike. * Elle *A pretty damn good writer. * OK! Magazine *Full of Hanks' winning charm. * Mr Hyde *Hanks’ measured storytelling makes the collection an addictive read. * Hindustan Times *Startlingly good… A spellbinding easygoing read, it is hard to find any fault, other than that Hanks is annoyingly talented and yet still somehow remains impossible to dislike. * Irish News *Startlingly good … each of these 17 stories leap out from the page in their authenticity and whimsicality … A spellbindingly easygoing read, it is hard to find fault. * Press Association *A wonderful collection. * Candis *Warm, gently funny and mostly engaging. * Red *Behind the collection is a warmth and humanity. * Sunday Sport *Unexpectedly brilliant. * Love It! *A spellbindingly easygoing read, it is hard to find fault. * The Universe *Rich range of subject matter and emotions. * Harrods Magazine *

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Book Synopsis**SHORTLISTED FOR THE EDGE HILL SHORT STORY PRIZE** 'Taps into a deep and compelling strangeness with vigour and humour and heart... A disturbing and moving collection' Chris Power, author of Mothers In Paradise Block, mould grows as thick as fur along the walls, alarms ring out at unexpected hours and none of the neighbours are quite what they seem. A little girl boils endless eggs in her family's burnt-out flat, an isolated old woman entices a new friend with gifts of cutlery and cufflinks, and a young bride grows frustrated with her unappreciative husband, the caretaker of creaking, dilapidated Paradise Block. With a haunting sense of place and a keen eye for the absurd, these thirteen surreal stories lure us into a topsy-turvy world where fleatraps are more important than babies and sales calls for luxury coffins provide a welcome distraction. Lonely residents live in close proximity while longing for connection.Trade ReviewIn these brilliant stories Alice Ash taps into a deep and compelling strangeness with vigour and humour and heart. This is a disturbing and moving collection, an unusual combination I'd like to encounter more often. "I cannot look away", one of her narrators remarks; that's how I felt, too. -- Chris Power, author * Mothers *Alice Ash's writing gets right at the rot underneath the polish of things, picking out the gothic in the full light of day. ... These are dangerous stories of the best kind: treading the line between terror and delight. I couldn't peel my eyes off them. -- Livia Franchini, author * Shelf Life *Searingly brilliant ... She is a witch with words. -- Emma Jane UnsworthThis debut collection brims with honesty, humanity and a strong sense of the absurd ... inventive and energetic * TLS *A chorus of voices, an inventory of lives lived, relics formed from both joy and hardship... Mesmerising * White Review *A powerful testimony to the reality of life on the margins. Raw, bizarre, disturbing, funny and uncanny. -- Cathy Sweeney, author * Modern Times *The best weird fiction holds up a fairground mirror to what we blithely call normal, reflecting a reality that warps and flickers. In Paradise Block, Alice Ash creates a world that is disturbingly Not. Restless and unsettling, these stories take a step sideways and away from the expected. Uneasy and deliciously wrong. -- Rosie Garland, author * The Palace of Curiosities *Engaging, funny and surprising in equal measure, these stories are the work of a wonderfully unconventional imagination -- Laura Kaye, author * English Animals *A collection to savour - strange, funny, touching; Paradise Block is bound to be one of the debuts of the year ... it's very good -- Eliza Clark, author of Boy PartsThis is not a green and pleasant land, but something much more prevalent, over-looked and deeply English. These stories depict difficult, often cash-poor characters, but they are respectfully written with such texture and poetry that they give voice to the thousands of lives that they echo. Eclectic, dark, moving and sometimes very funny. -- Kate Sawyer, author of The StrandingLively, unerring, intimate and gorgeously grotesque! Sentences as satisfying as feeling the cool squish of silt between your toes. As you merrily connect the dots between crisscrossing lives, these stories will get under your skin & make themselves at home there. -- Gemma Reeves, author of Victoria ParkA matrix-like collection that reinvents the short story genre... the uneasy meshing of lives and stories is a reminder there is a strange poetry to co-existence. * Arts Desk *An unconventional collection that treads the line between the disturbing and the delightful... These stories get under your skin. * The F Word *Though dark, these stories are moving and funny, their stance on class and responsibility offering instances of bright clarity that turn the magnifying glass back onto the reader with a raised eyebrow ... read Paradise Block for a carnivalesque reflection of the world we live in. * Mslexia *Alice Ash shows such a knack for melding the mad with the mundane that it is hard to believe that this is her debut collection ... When some of the more prominent players in the individual stories turn up in another narrative, Ash does a superb job of making those connections real and helping us to see her characters from a whole host of angles... urgent and involving * Bookmunch *Dark, compelling imagination ... This is a writer to look out for * Edge Hill Prize Judges' Citation *

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Book SynopsisTraditional African narrative forms combined with European modernism. The stories comprising The Healer, Marek Vadas’s first collection, which was originally published in 2006, are steeped in the culture, rituals, and traditions of Africa, blurring the boundaries between dream and reality and peopled with characters whose gender, shape, skin color or even memories may change at a stroke. Nevertheless, Vadas refuses to exoticize this world, and many of the stories, told in pared-down language, blend mythical elements with realistic depictions of harsh living conditions, economic deprivation, and colonial oppression. The narratives unfold from the perspective of their protagonists—children (often orphaned), and men struggling to make ends meet and trying in vain to resist the allure of strong women endowed with magic powers. As a Slovak writer focusing on the African continent, Vadas is a rare voice that helps to build bridges between very different cultures, and now his writing is introduced to the global anglophone readership. Table of Contents1.I’m a Boy from a Book2.I’ll Just Sit and Watch3.Death at a Party4.Brown One Day, Black the Next5.Hotel Beau Regard6.There’s Nothing for Me to Forget7.A New Job8.A Day Drenched in Water9.Flying Women10.Under a Sunlit Sky11.Mr Hat12.Pushing the Limits13.Visit to Lambaréné14.River15.How Death Came into the World16.The Schemer17.The Shadow18.The Blaze19.The New World20.A Desperately Wonderful Life21.The Snake Man and the Lion Woman22.The Field23.Flesh and Bones24.Yellow Eyes25.The King Is Waiting26.Yola27.Who’s That Brawling Anyway?28.How to Dance the Makossa29.Pimentos30.The Farewell Dance31.The Healer

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Book Synopsis'One never tires of reading and re-reading his best works. Akutagawa was a born short-story writer' Haruki Murakami 'The quintessential writer of his era' David Peace These are short stories from an unparalleled icon of modern Japanese literature. Sublimely crafted and shotthrough with a fantastical sensibility, they offer dazzling glimpses into moments of madness, murder and obsession. A talented and spiteful painter is givenover to depravity in pursuit of artistic brilliance. In the depths of hell, arobber spies a single spider's threadbeing lowered towards him. When abody is found in an isolated bamboogrove, a kaleidoscopic account ofviolence and desire begins to unfold. Vividly translated by BryanKaretnyk, this mesmerising collection brings together a seriesof essential works from themaster of the Japaneseshort story. Part of the Pushkin Press Classics series: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globe. Translated by Bryan Karetyn Ryunosuke Akutagawa was one of Japan's leading literary figures in the Taisho period. Regarded as the father of the Japanese short story, he produced over 150 in his short lifetime. Haunted by the fear that he would inherit his mother's madness, Akutagawa suffered from worsening mental health problems towards the end of his life and committed suicide aged 35 by taking an overdose of barbiturates.Trade Review"One never tires of reading and re-reading his work. Akutagawa was a born short-story writer." - Haruki Murakami"The quintessential writer of his era." - David Pearce"Extravagance and horror and in his work but never in his style, which is always crystal-clear." - Jorge Luis Borges"He was both traditional and experimental and always compelling and fearless... There is no writer quite like him." - Howard Norman

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Book SynopsisDuring its three-thousand-year history Rome has been an imperial metropolis, the capital of a nation and the spiritual core of a great world religion. For writers from antiquity to the present, however, the place holds an alternative significance as a realm of fantasy, aspiration and desire. Captivating and lethal at one and the same moment, its fatal gift of beauty both transfigures and betrays those in thrall to it. Rome Stories explores the city's fateful impact through the writing of classical historians, a Renaissance sculptor, 18th-century tourists, American, British and French novelists and the authors of modern Rome, each testing and unravelling the city's ageless paradoxes. Gibbon admires the Last of the Tribunes, Goethe decodes the mysteries of the Carnival and Stendhal's subversive aristocrats mingle revolution with a little cross-dressing amid their gilt mirrors and frescoed ceilings From Plutarch to Pasolini, from Hawthorne to Wharton, the city of Caesars and popes, of dreamers, chancers and hustlers confronts the questing imagination with its eternally unflinching gaze.

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Book SynopsisHerman Melville (1819-91) brought as much genius to the smaller-scale literary forms as he did to the full-blown novel: his poems and the short stories and novellas collected in this volume reveal a deftness and a delicacy of touch that is in some ways even more impressive than the massive, tectonic passions of Moby-Dick. In a story like “Bartleby, the Scrivener” — one of the very few perfect representatives of the form in the English language — he displayed an unflinching precision and insight and empathy in his depiction of the drastically alienated inner life of the title character. In “Benito Cereno,” he addressed the great racial dilemmas of the nineteenth century with a profound, almost surreal imaginative clarity. And in Billy, Budd, Sailor, the masterpiece of his last years, he fused the knowledge and craft gained from a lifetime’s magnificent work into a pure, stark, flawlessly composed tale of innocence betrayed and destroyed. Melville is justly honored for the epic sweep of his mind, but his lyricism, his skill in rendering the minute, the particular, the local, was equally sublime.SEE LESS

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Book SynopsisShortly before he died, America's laureate of the dispossessed made his own selection from his short stories, revised the texts and published them in this authorative edition.The stories in Where I'm Calling From are selected from the full range of the author's work including Furious Seasons, Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?, What We Talk about When We Talk about Love, and Cathedral and include all seven stories from his last collection, Elephant.

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Book SynopsisShort stories of subtle menace and Lydia Davis-esque humor.On the eve of an important battle, a colonel is visited in his tent by an indigenous woman with a message to pass on. A man sets about renovating the house of his childhood, and starts to feel that he might be rebuilding his own life in the process. At a private clinic to treat the morbidly obese, a caregiver has issues of her own…These are stories of immigration, marginality, history, intimacy and obsession. They each present their own distinctive view of the world through the lives of their respective characters – who are as dissimilar as they are complex – and the profound transformations they undergo. As reflections on the uncontrollable nature of life, as depictions of how even the most innocent detail can become a threat, these stories do not offer neat endings but rather remain open to the reader’s sense of inquisitiveness.Southerly is a perfect introduction to what has been called ‘the Consiglian logic of story-telling’ (Cabezón Cámara), in which events don’t always occur sequentially, and where the reader quickly learns to tiptoe between the tiniest of details, as if walking through a minefield.Trade Review"Employing a language that is sharp, concise and visceral, it proves his talent as a natural storyteller and as a social chronicler and poet of some refinement." —Morning Star"There is a timeless quality to Consiglio’s prose...a storyteller of rare ingenuity." —Splice"Glimmering." —Publishers Weekly"[Consiglio] carves out a singular space by focusing on characters who do not quite have a place of their own." —Full Stop"His stories are told with dispassionate realism while being varnished with a surrealist gloss, creating his own in-between style...Occasional poetic turns reminiscent of Pablo Neruda erupt within the narrative." —Culture Trip**********Praise for Jorge Consiglio"A moving testament to the beauty and banality of human relationships." —Publishers Weekly"A masterpiece that refuses to stay still." —Culture Trip"Fate could be likened to a pointillist painting by Seurat, with each dab of colour and each descriptive passage contributing to what is finally a beautifully structured and brilliantly shimmering whole." —New York Magazine (The Strategist UK)"In the realm of fiction, an author has total authority over their characters, and they can inject interactions with meaning and pattern-play in a way therapists warn us not to in our day to day lives. It takes a particular level of craftsmanship to do this at the level of the sentence, with the effortlessness that Consiglio seamlessly achieves, and to sweep a reader so tenderly into the progress." —White Review"A muted and unhurried novel that insists on the validity of the imperfect present." —Kirkus"The beauty of this novel...is that it provides no answers, but many questions. It can be reflected upon, re-read, and reconsidered." —BookBlast"The language of Fate has teeth and claws." —Books and Bao"Fate is a rich tapestry of language, a sharp depiction of the vagaries of fate and a thoughtful meditation on the human condition." —The Monthly Booking"Consiglio’s writing aches with poetry through its attention and complexity." —The Skinny"Packed full of sensuality and written in fresh, candid prose." —The Quietus"Employing a language that is sharp, concise and visceral, it proves his talent as a natural storyteller and as a social chronicler and poet of some refinement." —Morning Star"There is a timeless quality to Consiglio’s prose...a storyteller of rare ingenuity." —Splice"His stories are told with dispassionate realism while being varnished with a surrealist gloss, creating his own in-between style...Occasional poetic turns reminiscent of Pablo Neruda erupt within the narrative." —Culture Trip"[Consiglio] carves out a singular space by focusing on characters who do not quite have a place of their own." —Full Stop

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Book SynopsisHorror stories about women, written by women, focusing on the strength of women faced with adversity. It explores many ways in which societal structures and personal action â including mistreatment of the environment and other people, particularly women â can reach a tipping point, creating unexpected changes, empowering women around the world.

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Book SynopsisI wasn't in any particular hurry to kill him. What was important was to make sure that the deed was done without suspicion settling on meFollow P D James, Queen of Crime', as she takes us into the mind of a man who has waited decades to enact his patient, ingenious revenge on a school bully. A small, dark, treat, The Part-Time Job' is published in this special edition - for the first time in book form - in celebration of what would have been P.D. James' 100th birthday.

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Book SynopsisA collection of stories, including two of Wilde's most famous: 'The Canterville Ghost', in which a young American girl helps to free the tormented spirit that haunts an old English castle and 'The Happy Prince', who was not as happy as he seemed. Often whimsical and sometimes sad, they all shine with poetry and magic.

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Book SynopsisThe art of telling a ghost story is a refined one, and Montague Rhodes James was a master of the genre. Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful hardbacks make perfect gifts for book lovers, or wonderful additions to your own collection. This edition features an afterword by author and playwright David Stuart Davies.M.R. James draws the reader into narratives which, seeming innocuous, become darker and darker in gentle turns – until confronting the reader with some of the most unforgettably frightening images in British literature. Complete Ghost Stories contains every timeless masterpiece from each of his four collections: Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904), More Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1911), A Thin Ghost and Others (1919), and A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories (1925).

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