Stories We Love: “The Summer People,” by Shirley Jackson
by Jacob M. Appel
“Soon matters take an even darker turn.” Jacob M. Appel on Shirley Jackson’s most unsettling short story.
“Soon matters take an even darker turn.” Jacob M. Appel on Shirley Jackson’s most unsettling short story.
“Reading—and rereading—Lisa Lenzo’s work, I realized what I’m sensing disappearing from the American literary landscape.” Hasanthika Sirisena reviews Lisa Lenzo’s latest collection, Unblinking, out now from Wayne State University Press.
“Sam Lipsyte drops us right into a room of lack and fear occupied by Tovah Gold”: Mo Daviau on Sam Lipsyte’s “The Climber Room.”
“And yet, it works. Not only does it work, it’s essential to the story. The form is the story.” Kent Kosack takes a look at Bernard Malamud’s puzzling POV-shifter, “My Son the Murderer.”
“By imaginatively playing with a visual work of art, the writer can expand its meaning—not in terms of enlarging the original work, but in terms of offering more possibilities.” Donna Baier Stein explores the limits and liberties of perception in this essay on writing fiction from images.
“[My favorite] stories, by the way, were submitted to over 100 literary journals before they found homes. I really loved them, which I guess is why I kept plugging away at the revisions until they were accepted”: Julie Zuckerman talks with Jolene McIlwain about persistence, family lore, and the thrill of publishing her first collection of linked stories.
“Each story presents the embodiment of a different performer, and each presents a concept you could spin into a metaphor for something about contemporary American life.” Shawn Andrew Mitchell reviews Mark Meyer’s debut story collection, Aerialists, out now from Bloomsbury.
“I wanted to explore how the uniquely female experiences of pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding might impact women who otherwise often try to resist traditional gender roles”: Polly Rosenwaike talks with Danielle LaVaque-Manty about her debut collection, Look How Happy I’m Making You.
Join us for our eleventh-annual celebration of the short story, as we dedicate the month of May to short fiction.
“I’m grateful now for having had so many strange work days and stories to hold on to afterward.” Jason Allen talks with Barrett Bowlin about his debut novel, The East End, out next week from Park Row Books.
