Anthologies & Short Stories

Book SynopsisKings, lords, liars, usherettes, goal-hangers, gun-men and prostitutes, Whether or not these stories bear any relation to life as it is lived in Endland (sic) is not my problem and good riddance to all those what prefer to read about truly good, lucky and nice people - you won't like this crap at all. A comical and brutal weave of parables gone wrong, Endland holds a broken mirror to England. In its garish but strangely familiar world of empty tower blocks, 24-hour cyber cafes and bomb sites, a motley collection of misfits, wanderers and charmed drunks do their best to survive. Nothing is stable in Endland and what's more, the gods have started drinking at lunchtime, which can only lead to trouble. Conjured in a mix of slang, pub anecdote, folktale and science fiction, Endland is the nightmare unfolding just outside the window - a glitchy parade of aging bikers and ghost children, cut-price assassins and witless wannabe celebs. The world fashioned by Thatcher, Google, NATO, ICANN, Brexit, Big Brother, Bin Laden and Trump needs new narratives to make sense of it. In Endland, with feverish wit and a broken compass, Etchells unpicks the myths and strange realities we're caught up in.Trade Review'This book is dangerous. This book tells it like it was & is.' Jarvis Cocker ----`Etchells has made a tough, eloquent, emotional new language of ideas about class, human fragility, lust, embarrassment and a good night out. He is a legend.' Deborah Levy---- '[Endland] is horrible, brilliant, deliberately provoking. At times I wished it was over; now I wish it had never stopped.' Ian Sansom---- 'An incisive commentary on the current social and political omnishambles. This essential book is just what we need right now, and more than we deserve.' David Collard, Literary Review----'Etchells makes sparks fly by allowing the mythic to rub against grubby everyday existence . . . scorching, bitter satire of how society is continually screwed by inequality. A cracklingly original voice.' Holly Williams, The Observer ----'Abandon all soap, ye who enter here; you won’t stay clean in “Endland.” A squalidly funny collection of short stories set in the ruined fairground of Brexit Britain, these “postcards from hell” present parochial filth as mock epic. . . . Etchells’s depravity may smell like Johnny Rotten but his linguistic flair comes from Joyce and Burgess.' Charles Arrowsmith, Washington Post----'Etchells’s stories deliver a difficult, darkly funny, sharp critique of modern England, and live up to indie rock veteran Jarvis Cocker’s description in his introduction: “They are frightening, but they’re also necessary.' Publisher’s Weekly----'A politically charged and graphic portrait of Western societies hanging on by a thread … incisive.' Kirkus Reviews----'Tim Etchells' stories perfectly capture the feeling of being-in-the-world just now, blending the demotic with the transcendental, the genuinely fantastic with the over-orchestrated real. Endland is an over-familiar place, an all-too-real projection of our fantasies, memories, dreams and fears. Etchells' commitment to art's action in and upon the world feels more urgent than ever. ' Jennifer Hodgson -----'Tim Etchells' sense of humour - black, bleak and yet, against both odds and reason, somehow warm, empathic and compassionate - is all over these stories of a country that's been living inside our own for some time now.' M John Harrison ---- 'Relentlessly unpredictable, Etchells' genius leaves nothing untouched - you will be panting and laughing and gagging for more.' Lara Pawson ---- 'Wonderful and horrible. Biker gangs and diminished gods, ruins and social collapse. Do not despair: the language is as rich as it is faltering, the tone as stoical as it is hilarious.' Adrian Searle ---- 'If Derek Jarman, Spike Milligan, J G Ballard, and Mark E Smith had all survived to frolic together in the ruins of theme-park Britain . . . if the world contained such wonders as a Hell's Angel named UNESCO and a deity sorely in need of a good #MeTooing . . . then every one of these parties would be lining up to flog Endland (sic) as the long-awaited solution to the last word in pub-quiz brain-teasers: "WHY IS MODERN LIFE SO RUBBISH?"' Jeremy M Davies ---- 'Endland is an uppercase book, a confidential shout, an ear punch, a textual road trip between orality and literacy.' Maria Fusco ---- 'As linguistically explosive as it is formally inventive as it is politically astute as it is humane. I have never lived in a moment when our country has needed its satirists more. None has delivered with more imagination and force than Tim Etchells does with Endland.' Simon Stephens ---- 'I love Tim Etchells for his apocalyptic vision, his piercing satire, his surreal poetry, but first and foremost for his wit. In Endland, he shines a fierce light on the age of anxiety and delusion we have stumbled into.' Rupert Thomson ----Praise from booksellers for Endland ----- This is a new bible for our times, of narcissistic despot gods and broken humans, their condition leading them on an endless search for love via LOLs, moments of medieval barbarity and pant-shitting fear. It is a glorious, triumphant collection of tales for us all.' Henry Layte, The Book Hive, Norwich ----Praise for the 1999 collection Endland Stories: `Surreal, compulsive... probably the most original and unsettling read you're likely to have this year.' The Big Issue----`The scenery is taken straight from a low-budget Blade Runner... brilliantly welds together archaic language with computer-speak to create a funny, caustic collection.' The Times ---- `It insists on being read, at once, and probably out loud.' Iain Sinclair ----`Reads as if written by one of Anthony Burgess's more gifted Clockwork Orange droogs.' The Guardian----`The best yet from the pulpsters!' Jeff Noon----`Though his theme is the state of the nation, Etchells has little time for the new realism of the last few years, placing himself instead in the tradition of Ballard and Moorcock. Hacking up our comforters-TV cartoons, mythologies, children's toys and board games-he deftly strips away the sentimental wadding we use as insulation from reality. A dance through the ruins of modern Britain... Etchells takes a Sadean delight in casual cruelty, creating a flippant and contorted technomedieval world whose gods are named Tesco and Blowjob, the spectre of real lives and real suffering is uncannily present.' Attitude

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Book SynopsisA book of voices, landscapes and seasons, Ann Quin's newly republished novel mirrors the multiplicity of meanings of the very word 'passage'--of music, of time, and of life itself. A woman, accompanied by her lover, searches for her lost brother, who may have been a revolutionary, and who may have been tortured, imprisoned or killed. Roving through a Mediterranean landscape, they live out their entangled existences, reluctant to give up, afraid of the outcome. Reflecting the schizophrenia of its characters, the novel splits into alternating passages, switching between the sister and her lover's perspective. The lover's passages are also fractured, taking the form of a diary with notes alongside the entries. An intricate system of repetition and relation builds across the passages. 'All seasons passed through before the pattern formed, collected in parts.' Erotic and tense, in Quin's compelling third novel the author allowed her writing freer rein than before, and created a work ahead of its time: her most poetic, evocative and mysterious novel yet.Trade ReviewPraise for Ann Quin "After her death in 1973 at only 37, Ann Quin's star first dipped beneath the horizon, disappearing from view entirely, before rising slowly but persistently, to the point that it's now attaining the septentrional heights it always merited. I suspect that she'll eventually be viewed, alongside BS Johnson and Alexander Trocchi, as one of the few mid-century British novelists who actually, in the long term, matter."--Tom McCarthy "One of our greatest ever novelists." --Lee Rourke, The Guardian "Too little has been written about Brightonian novelist Ann Quin since her death." --Juliet Jacques, The New Statesman "Quin works over a small area with the finest of tools... every page, every word gives evidence of her care and workmanship." --New York Times "Despite ongoing rumours of a B.S. Johnson revival, I feel our attention could be more usefully directed towards Ann Quin." --Stewart Home, in 69 Things to do with a Dead Princess "Quin's prose never falters; it's stunning." --Caitlin Youngquist, The Paris Review "The most naturally and delicately gifted novelist of her generation." --The Scotsman "Quin understood she was on to something new and she took herself seriously, in the right way; she had a serious sense of her literary purpose." --Deborah Levy

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Book Synopsis“There is no short-story writer who has quite the same gift of infectious vitality, whose scenes and characters seem to come so spontaneously alive” Times Literary SupplementRhys Davies achieved an international reputation as a writer of skill and originality. He wrote for the best magazines of 1930s through to the New Yorker in the 1950s, maintaining a prolific output of both stories and novels.In this Library of Wales edition, with a foreword by Tomos Owen, the essence of his work is revealed with a new selection of dark, witty and finely crafted stories.

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Book SynopsisIn the anticipated follow-up collection to 2015's awardwinning On the Edges of Vision, Helen McClory returns delving deeper into descriptively mythical yet recognisable stories woven from dark and light, human fear and fortune. Swimming and suffering. Spikes loom ever-threatening. A weight against the throat. Sea where the dead lie pressed into a layer of silt. A silent documentary through a terrible place. Mary Somerville, future Queen of Science. A coven of two. Mayhem & Death is the matured, darker companion to On the Edges of Vision and shows McClory's ever expanding ability to envelop and entrance her readers with lyrical language of lore, stunning settings and curious characters. Mayhem & Death also introduces the brand new novella Powdered Milk, a tale for the lost.Trade Review`McClory is clearly one of the best new writers to have emerged in Scotland in the last few years...' - The Herald

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Book SynopsisA collection to whet the appetite of anyone wishing to learn more about a region rich in history, folklore and (her)stories. Telling it like a woman does not mean literature for women only: it provides an insight into half of humanity, a window onto the lives of citizens who work, love and develop their inner lives. This collection brings together the voices of a wide selection of prize-winning and established authors

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Book SynopsisThe characters in this literary exploration of one of the world’s biggest cities are all on a mission. Whether it is responding to events around them, or following some impulse of their own, they are defined by their determination – a refusal to lose themselves in a city that might otherwise leave them anonymous, disconnected, alone. From the neglected mother whose side-hustle in collecting sellable waste becomes an obsession, to the schoolboy determined to end a long-standing feud between his family and another, the characters in The Book of Shanghai show a defiance that reminds us why Shanghai – despite its hurtling economic growth –remains an epicentre for individual creativity.

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Book SynopsisA woman grows increasingly annoyed by her husband's emails, offering advice and reminders even months after his death... A taxidermist dreams of preserving one of his clients after she takes him out for a coffee... A grieving nurse is troubled by her daughter's fascination with The Iron Lady... In Safely Gathered In, Sarah Schofield probes at the heart of what forms us and what we, in turn, form. The stories collected here expose the spaces that words often fail to reach and examine how objects - both manmade and natural - can reflect the darkest manifestations of grief and disconnection. From the child acting out a family betrayal in the comfort of her dolls house, to the sister making wind-up toys from the dead birds she finds on her doorstep, this debut collection ventures into the surreal and delivers a sense of unease that leaves us questioning why we gather the things we do. Sarah Schofield's narrators venture into spaces that language can't reach; we meet characters who create taxidermy pets to stave off loneliness or wind-up birds to deal with loss, and children processing family secrets through their dolls house or imitating Margaret Thatcher after the death of their father. Schofield also pushes the boundaries of literary fiction into science-fiction, with an architect preserving her bactogarden in a time of extreme climate crisis, and one man mistakenly creating an app to fix people's problems while they dream. In this powerful and touching debut collection, Schofield introduces a new and exciting voice to the canon of women's literary fiction.Trade Review"This is a deliciously wry Black Mirror-esque collection that provokes and disturbs. A bold and brilliant debut." - Lucie McKnight Hardy, author of Water Shall Refuse Them; "Schofield's collection comprises finely inventive stories, astute in their side angle swipes on reality. A memorable and distinctive debut." - Kiare Ladner, author of Nightshift; "Sarah Schofield is a writer with tremendous rage and inventiveness, who takes the short story to new places" - Naomi Booth, author of Exit Management; "Sharp, insightful and haunting, these stories are not safe reading. An astounding debut." - Angela Readman, author of Something Like Breathing; "An enchanting, vital collection. Strange, incisive and compelling." - Irenosen Okojie, author of Nudibranch; "This collection will feed you; savour it." - Tania Hershman, author of Some of Us Glow More Than Others and My Mother Was An Upright Piano; "Schofield's stories are so well-observed and quietly intense that reading them means becoming more awake to the everyday world around us." - Claire Dean, author of The Museum of Shadows and Reflections

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Book SynopsisThe stories and History of 'Britain's most elegant and intriguing city'. Sometimes in Bath is a captivating story-tour through the city's history conducted by Charles Nevin, the award-winning journalist, national newspaper columnist, author and humorist.

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Book SynopsisFrom Ferdinand Dennis, the critically acclaimed author of the novel Duppy Conqueror, comes The Black and White Museum, a collection of both highly personal and universal short stories. These at their heart reveal the emotional drama of faded love, the loss of individual and shared memory and the wistful longing for home. His stories powerfully portray the black presence in post-Windrush London, with its hurtling gentrification and everyday racism. Ferdinand's characters gain wisdom and maturity with age but become powerless, as they are less able to change the course of their lives. For some there is the temptation of a return "home" but home, like London, has also moved on and is not the paradise of their memories. 'I first encountered the short story form during my West London Comprehensive schooldays in Doris Lessing's Nine African Short Stories. Since then I have devoured short stories from de Maupassant, Joyce, Somerset Maugham, Flannery O'Connor, Marquez, John Cheever and William Trevor, as well as collections from the Caribbean, North and South America and Britain'. Ferdinand DennisTrade Review'A writer inspired by the idea and realities of African and the African diaspora, which he has explored in novels, short stories and travelogues, creating a unique body of work that deserves greater recognition' [Margaret Busby] ; An elegant writer, both in fiction and non-fiction who deftly weaves the takes of the diaspora into his work' [Gary Young]; 'Dennis does not disappoint with memories "rushing forward like volunteers for a good cause". Riveting, sensitive snapshots of inner city London Life'[Yvonne Brewster, author and founder of Talawa Theatre Company] '15 short stories written over five decades, confirms Ferdinand Dennis as a flâneur and urban philosopher exploring territory he first began to map in his now classic novels' [GUARDIAN]

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Book SynopsisOf Myths and Mothers by Kenzie Millar, Gaynor Jones, Sascha Akhtar, Clayton Lister and Helen Nathaniel-Fulton; Folklore and futurism: these stories question everything from the guest worker economy to childbirth as the world collapses. Follow hairpin turns into the remote hillsides of North Yorkshire, where two boys take a holiday with their besom-wielding, rabbit-skinning granny. Disappear into dark caves on Philippine islands and scale sheer limestone cliffs with men who search for the world's most expensive animal product: prized nests woven from a mysterious bird's saliva, rumoured to make one live forever. Feel sand under your feet in the middle of the night as you search for love beyond limits. You will long to hold a child, even when that instinct has been erased from your body and mind. Of Myths and Mothers will make you see some of our most accepted customs in a new light and fill you with wonder, as the best stories do.Trade Review"Jones has created an unsettling, near-the-bone world in May We Know Them, with taut, vivid prose that grips the reader. A triumph of short fiction; this is the type of piece that the genre was made for." - Catherine Menon, author of Fragile Monsters; "Helen Nathaniel-Fulton's electric combination of the visceral and compassionate invites the reader into her memories of post-war Germany where, as a student worker. she competes with immigrants for a range of appallingly brutal and mind-numbing jobs. She witnesses overt racism towards and among the immigrants, and must endure sexism towards herself. The deceptively calm tone draws the reader in, as though these stories are being related over a cup of coffee - but watch out for those narrative swerves! It's a riveting read and belongs on your bedside table." - Sandra Hunter; "Given that two of my biggest blindspots are historical fiction and epistolary fiction and I still loved her story, I must put that down to Kenzie Millar's silky prose and the thrilling wonders she teases out of the depths." - Nicholas Royle, Writer, Editor and Judge of the Manchester Fiction Prize

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Book SynopsisSarah's not abnormal or ugly, just a little bit fat, and she's got cerebral palsy. "No way was it rape or even molestation... she's fourteen, not a child. I'm not a paedophile." Gemma's mother had shagged Tom Jones. Nobody knew who her father was, least of all her mother. Spiderman doesn't want to inflict his petty-thief persona on self contained Caitlin, but he finds himself getting off at her stop. When chickens that belong to 'Chelle's grand-dad start to peck each other, sounding like death warming up, she wrings one of their necks and ends up doing worse. Johnny Mental was sitting on his porch wearing sunglasses, drinking lager, his teeth orange and ugly. Someone was painting their front door a few yards away, with a portable radio playing soul music; Diana Ross or some shit. A big burgundy Vauxhall Cavalier came around the corner, real slow like an old man on a hill. Eleven wry and defiant stories on the power and beautiful transience of youth.

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Book SynopsisA man carries his girlfriend in the left-hand breast pocket of his shirt. During World War II, a young soldier searches the houses and barns of the families with whom he grew up. An astronaut wonders whether she can adapt to life back on earth. In her second collection of short fiction, 100neHundred, Laura Besley explores a kaleidoscope of emotions through 100 stories of exactly 100 words. So much of life is packed into these stories, precious moments and sad ones, humour and grief, gorgeous nuggets of hope and stinging barbs of hurt. Ellie Hawkes Laura has created beautiful snapshots, each one alive with precision and emotion. Each story excels in its originality, each one a complete tale, each carefully crafted without a word to spare.Bookbound With this collection I soon lost track of how many ‘wows’ I was uttering.. Morgen Bailey

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Book SynopsisDracula, Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic vampire story, needs no introduction - a perennial on syllabuses and screens alike, generations have been enchanted and enthralled by the Count from Transylvania. But few of Dracula's fans have heard of Dracula's Guest, a short story following - it is thought - Jonathan Harker, as he makes his way to Transylvania, and falls prey to Walpurgis Nacht terrors when he stops off in Munich. Unpublished until after Stoker's death, when it was collected in a volume of short stories by his widow Florence, who revealed that Stoker had intended for it to be the opening section of his great work, Dracula's Guest is the missing chapter that will captivate all fans of Stoker's 'dangers from snow and wolves and night'.Trade Review'The very best story of diablerie which I have read for many years.' - Arthur Conan DoyleTable of ContentsPreface Dracula's Guest Note on the Text Extra Material Appendix: The Opening Diary Entry from Bram Stoker's Dracula

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Book SynopsisIn Wilder Winds, Bel Olid presents a stunning collection of short stories that draw on notions of individual freedom, abuses of power, ingrained social violence, life on the outskirts of society, and inevitable differences. Alongside these are small acts of kindness capable of changing the world and making it a better place. Like flowers stubbornly growing and blooming in the cracks of a pavement, Olid’s work seeks out beauty without renouncing truth, and never avoids conflict or intimacy. Wilder Winds creates scenes and fragile, yet hardy characters that will stay with the reader for years to come.

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Book Synopsis"Met her again today. I finally got my hands on her, but still can't believe what she put me through all that time. Attaching her face here. K-Bot.jpg"A story of a young student's tribulations and those of the people around her which says a lot about the process of coming of age in contemporary Korean society more broadly.

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Book SynopsisMalcolm Devlin''s debut short-fiction collection, first published in 2017, announced the arrival of a major new talent in the worlds of weird fiction and literary horror. In You Will Grow Into Them, change is the only constant. These nine stories tackle the unease of transformation, growth, and change in a world where the mundane is only a veneer hiding the darkness below. Childhood anxieties manifest as degraded doppelgangers; fungal blooms are harvested from the backs of dancers; and lycanthropes become the new social pariahs. In You Will Grow Into Them, the demons we carry inside us are very real indeed.

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Book SynopsisThis engaging and highly original collection brings bright strands of meaning to the puzzles of contemporary life. In these stories L.A. Robbins addresses themes of transience, identity, gender and belonging. Set in the UK, US, Europe and the Far East, these tales reflect insights gleaned from the author’s experiences in those places.Table of ContentsContents 1. Being good 7 2. Alighting 18 3. Mirror, mirage 29 4. Brave charades 38 5. Fortune 69 6. Alligators 86 7. As above, so below 96 8. Tango with the queen of hearts 107 9. Qigong 124 10. Poisonous spore from a diabolical god 149 11. Expansion bridge 172 12. Cut-outs 200 13. Exhibitions and viewers 216 14. Ensnarement 224 15. Warts and all 239 16. Lefty loosey 264 Acknowledgements 285

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Book SynopsisA collection of short stories by a male author with Locked-In Syndrome

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Book SynopsisAt dusk in a scented garden, a refugee names moths. The dying Miss Bethan asks Sofia to do a terrible thing. Something a mother should never ask. THE NAMING OF MOTHS features stories of magical realism, myths and legends re-imagined, where all the characters are undergoing transformation or facing a pivotal moment of change in their lives. People and animals interchange their shapes. Story landscapes flit from fairy-tale woods to urban homes. Here love, hope and kindness weave between the realities of man's endless talent for cruelty.Trade Review"The depth and scope of these beautifully crafted stories is a delight. This is a writer who has a deep understanding of the complexities of the human condition." - Amanda Huggins, author of An Unfamiliar Landscape and talk to me about when we were perfect; "These stories will surprise, enthral, entertain and never disappoint. A collection that is subtle, full of incisive observation and darkly comic at times. All of life is here, in its pathos, humour and richness." - Reshma Ruia

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Book SynopsisA novelist questions why she’s been shortlisted for the Prize of Prize’s Prize; an artist duo has a messy break up; a schoolgirl is saved from a predator by a flash flood and a gang of dead animals; a surgeon has an incurable identity crisis; a budding actor can’t see what’s so funny; a pregnant food writer gets a craving for luxury consumerism.These thirteen stories by writer and literary translator Jen Calleja pick apart the hidden motivations behind our desires, and the ways we seek out distraction from difficult truths. They investigate histories, power dynamics, rituals, institutions – the roles we adopt, as well as the ones we inherit. Known for her acclaimed poetry and translations, and as a performer in numerous bands, these facets manifest in an attention to the latent ambivalence of language, and the nature of storytelling itself. This writing is direct and considered – it asks to be read, read out loud, retold, refashioned into fables with a distinctive mouthfeel.I’m Afraid That’s All We’ve Got Time For is a sharp, bold, inventive and prescient fictional debut from a versatile and brilliant writer.Table of Contents Town Called Distraction Literary Quartet The Turn The Debt Collector Divination Befriended The Natural The Amnesty The Binding Reach Due Process Half-Learnt Lessons Gross Cravings Apart From When

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Book Synopsis"The most elegant of all art critic cowboys” —Spike Art MagazineColor beams at us from the everyday, but within each of the ten million shades are hidden our best and worst stories. Colors is a collection of lush short stories about the many different shades that make up our lives. Berardini guides us through a spectrum of vignettes, weaving inspiration from Calvino’s Invisible Cities and Bowie’s Sound and Vision, arriving at color’s fundamental intersection with who we are and how we live.Trade Review"The most elegant of all art critic cowboys” —Spike Art Magazine"Unusually unhelpful." —Los Angeles Times

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Book SynopsisShirley Jackson Award-winning author J. Ashley-Smith’ s first collection, The Measure of Sorrow, draws together ten new and previously acclaimed stories of dark speculative fiction. In these pages a black reef holds the secret to an interminable coastal limbo; a father struggles to relate to his estranged children in a post-bushfire wilderness; an artist records her last days in conversation with her unborn child; a brother and sister are abandoned to the manifestations of their uncle’ s insanity; a suburban neighbourhood succumbs to an indescribable malaise; teenage ravers fall in with an eldritch crowd; a sensitive New Age guy commits a terminal act of passive-aggression; a plane crash opens the door to the Garden of Eden; the new boy in the village falls victim to a fatal ruse; and a husband's unexpressed grief is embodied in the shadows of a crumbling country barn. Intelligent and emotionally complex, the stories in The Measure of Sorrow elude easy classification, lifting the veil on the wonder and horror of a world just out of true.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2020 Dzanc Short Story Collection Prize In Water and Blood, the nameless narrator, a survivor of abuse, tries on other women’s stories like she is trying on their clothes. There is the nun who learns to swim decades after witnessing her biological sister’s drowning in the Ohio River. The rape victim whose deathbed statement is interwoven with the imagined voice of the rapist. The young girl who is sent to stay with her alcoholic grandfather while her parents care for a sick child. Out of scraps of reclaimed history and imagined memories, the narrator creates a garment of women’s stories for herself—overlapping the seams between fact and fiction, doing what women do: cleaning and restitching the wounds of trauma, making a life with the things that are left over after everyone else has taken what they need.

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Book SynopsisModern Japanese Short Stories is a remarkable collection of Japanese stories from the pioneers of contemporary Japanese literature. This volume's twenty-five stories by as many authors display a wide range of style and subject matter—offering a revealing picture of modern Japanese culture and society. The stories in this anthology include: "Tattoo" by Junichiro Tanizaki—a large spider tattooed on the back of a young woman results in unexpected changes "Autumn Mountain" by Ryunosuke Akutagawa—vivid memories of a beautiful painting leads a man to wonder if the it ever actually existed "The Priest and His Love" by Yukio Mishima—a Buddhist priest finds his path to enlightenment challenged after falling in love "The Moon on the Water" by Nobel Prize winner Yasunari Kawabata—a young woman who cared for her ailing first husband through most of their marriage regrets remarrying after his death Featuring a new foreword by Japanese literary scholar Seiji Lippit and striking woodcut illustrations by Masakazu Kuwata, the stories are translated by the editor, Ivan Morris, and Edward Seidensticker, George Saito, and Geoffery Sargent. This collection of short stories shows why Japanese literature is so highly valued today—it teaches not only about Japan, but about the human condition and the possibilities of art.Trade Review"Offering readers a doorway into the past and gorgeously illustrated by black-and-white Japanese woodblock prints, [this] is a worthy collection to savor." --The Japan Times"Modern Japanese Short Stories is a moveable feast of the richness, complexity, and depth of a land that is all too often reduced to clumsy stereotypes and broad brush strokes. For readers who hunger for more, it is a rare jewel that continues to bedazzle despite the unrelenting passage of time and tide." -- The Hawai'i Herald"Here is another excellent and thorough collection of 25 short stories…Some stories are quite simple in plot, provoking the reader to stop and reflect…but other stories are great windows into the social scenery." -- BBC.com

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisFew short story writers have done a better job than Stacy Aumonier of getting to the heart of what it means to be human. Aumonier's collection takes readers on a journey through a wide range of people, feelings, and situations that make them think. It does this by combining keen observation with masterful storytelling. Each story in this book is carefully put together and gives a glimpse into the lives of regular people who find themselves in strange situations. From the heartbreaking tragedy of unrequited love to the unsettling results of unchecked ambition, Aumonier spins complex webs of human drama that stay with the reader for a long time. With brevity and subtlety, he explores the complexity of human life, leaving readers with lingering questions and a better understanding of the human condition. These stories show how powerful the short story form is over time and how good Aumonier is at catching the essence of life in all its ups and downs.

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Book SynopsisStories from Le Morte D'Arthur and the Mabinogion, authored by Beatrice E. Clay, presents a captivating collection of Arthurian legends and Welsh myths. Drawing from two iconic medieval sources, the book weaves together tales of chivalry, magic, and also heroic quests. Le Morte D'Arthur, written by Sir Thomas Malory, forms the foundation of the Arthurian legends. Clay skillfully selects and retells key episodes from this vast work, recounting the adventures of King Arthur, his knights, and the legendary sword, Excalibur. The narrative delves into the complexities of Arthur's reign, his noble deeds, and the tragic downfall of the Round Table. The Mabinogion, a compilation of Welsh myths and other one legends, which adds another layer of enchantment to the book. Clay brings to life the mystical world of ancient Wales, featuring and captivating stories of gods, heroes, and also otherworldly beings. Readers are immersed in magical encounters, ancient prophecies, and other one dramatic battles, capturing the essence of Welsh folklore. Through her eloquent prose, Beatrice E. Clay breathes new life into these timeless tales, preserving their essence while making them accessible to modern readers.

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Book SynopsisA collection of juicy tales about individuals hungering for a better life.In the terrain of untidy relationships lies an ensemble of individuals coupled or alone, each driven by desire, cravings, or folly. How To Hunger is a smorgasbord of short stories about how humans hunger— for love, lust, and loyalty—where their voracity for the ordinary and sublime consumes them to the very end.A Singapore emigrant chews over her sense of belonging. A vegetarian Western tourist finds a meatier version of Asia in a massage parlour. A young couple deepens their romance through home-cooked cuisine. A friendship between Taiwanese and Singaporeans ages over a decade like fine wine. An office worker’s submerged desires bubble over in a hotpot restaurant. A married woman is tempted by the sweet gifts of a suitor. An undertaker gets a taste of a spicy side of life. And a widower gets triggered by the scent of a curry puff.

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Book Synopsis''Halls'' stories show that even in zero-hour, austerity-battered Britain, the tenderness and warmth of human connection exists. The Quarry is, in the end, a testament to this messy truth - how love, hate, hope and fear have always lived on the same street'' GLEN BROWN, author of Ironopolis You can see it in them; all that anger inside, it''s toxic. Throw some drink into it and everything bubbles over. People say that they never see it coming, the swing of the fist that kicks it all off, but I can tell.In these interconnected short stories, we meet the men living on the Quarry Lane estate in west London. These are men at work, at the pub, at home, with their families, lovers and friends. Men grappling with addiction, sexuality and the corrosive effects of toxic masculinity.From a bouncer at the local nightclub, to a postman returning to the streets of his youth, and a young man thinking of all the things he''d say andTrade ReviewHalls weaves a chorus of voices that don't shy away from the ugliness of contemporary deprivation - the casual racism, the violence and addiction - but this refusal to romanticise or rose-tint is where the book's power lies. In following these flawed, multifaceted characters as their lives obliquely intersect, we're forced to reckon with a section of our society that is frequently denounced as hopeless, but is actually anything but. Halls' stories show that even in zero-hour, austerity-battered Britain, the tenderness and warmth of human connection exists. The Quarry is, in the end, a testament to this messy truth - how love, hate, hope and fear have always lived on the same street -- Glen Brown, author of IronopolisHalls's arresting debut tackles topics from addiction to toxic masculinity * The i *Halls has a sharp observational eye, exploring both the best and worst of humanity, and how it exists side by side * Culture Fly *Equal parts tough and tender, The Quarry is essential reading. Ben Halls has important insights into the challenges faced by men in post-industrial, gig-economy BritainThe Quarry is a powerful read and you won't regret picking it up and flicking through the amazing stories. At this point of my review I'd usually list my favourite short stories from the book, but it's too hard to choose as every one of them struck a chord with me. They're all immensely powerful in their own way and each story merits a medal in its own right * Daily Record *Tender, droll . . . Halls gives his flair for knuckle-chewing agony free rein * Observer *

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Book Synopsis"Michael Harney's translation of Cervantes's Novelas ejemplares is the most authoritative and accurate rendering of Cervantes's classic tales to date and promises to be the translation against which future translations will be measured. Harney skillfully portrays the nuanced and complex world of the Exemplary Novellas in a translation that is faithful to the letter and spirit of the original. An erudite and informative Introduction presents a general overview of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spain, the life of Cervantes, and a detailed analysis of the Exemplary Novellas. Before each story, Harney provides a brief synopsis, an analysis of the novella’s themes, motifs, and generic affinities, and a bibliography for further reading. In addition, numerous footnotes complement the background information Harney provides in the Introduction and prior to each novella." —Michael J. McGrath, Georgia Southern UniversityTrade Review"Harney maintains the richness of language and the narrative flavor of the assortment of tales, admirable in their range and power of allusion. Cervantes captures much of the spirit of his age, and Harney's eminently readable translation conveys the essence of the original material. The general Introduction and brief commentaries on each text are clear and useful, as are the generous notes that students and instructors should appreciate." —Edward H. Friedman, Vanderbilt University

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Book SynopsisA wonderful new book with short stories from open submissions and a curated selection of ancient myths and folk tales from Polynesia, Scotland, the Ancient Greeks and tales from the high sea. The mysteries of the rivers, the secrets of the lochs, the whispers across the vast stretches of the ocean, there are so many stories from the beginnings of civilisation, through myth and folklore, to the dark fantasies, and supernatural tales of the modern storyteller. The treasures under the sea, the siren call of the mermaid, the liberating spirits of the fountains and waterfalls, all feature here alongside iconic stories of creation, ancestor worship and the seductive shadows across the waters of life. New, contemporary and notable writers featured are: Gustavo Bondoni, Melinda Brasher, Ramsey Campbell, Lyndsey Croal, Jess Gofton, J.E. Hannaford, M.K. Hardy, Derek Heath, R.J. Howell, Mackenzie Hurlbert, Rachael K. Jones, Amanda Cecelia Lang, Frazer Lee, Samara Lo, J.M. Merryt, Wendy Nikel, Jessica Peter, Marisca Pichette, D.S. Ravenhurst, Y.M. Resnik, Abhijeet Sathe, Amal Singh, and Lucy Zhang. These appear alongside classic work by Homer, Victor Hugo, Jack London, Herman Melville, Robert Louis Stevenson and more, including folklore and myths from around the world. The gorgeous editions of 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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