“I am a singularity”: “Event Horizon” by Sunny Moraine
The house in the story – a living thing that demands to be fed – is a metaphor for difference and the other.
“What did he have to report?”: “Paranoia” by Shirley Jackson
Jackson’s story of the commute from hell is one of her most nerve-shattering, Kafkaesque tales.
The automaton cometh: “The Sandman” by E.T.A. Hoffmann; Ritchie Robertson, trans.
The Prussian author’s 1816 tale is an early 19th century progenitor of the modern horror story.
31 Days of Stories 2020, Day 31: “Home” by Langston Hughes
First published in 1934, Langston Hughes's story throws a spotlight on racial violence that continues in America today.
31 Days of Stories 2020, Day 30: “Now More than Ever” by Zadie Smith
Zadie Smith's controversial story is a dystopian satire about call-out culture.
31 Days of Stories 2020, Day 29: “Book Review” by Nancy Hale
Nancy Hale's story about the dangers of poisonous political ideologies is surprisingly relevant to our current moment.
31 Days of Stories 2020: Day 28: “South Congress” by Bryan Washington
Bryan Washington's story is about a veteran drug dealer who becomes a kind of surrogate father to an undocumented Guatemalan teen.
31 Days of Stories 2020, Day 27: “Baby Jesus and the Intruder” by Elise Levine
Elise Levine, sui generis.
31 Days of Stories 2020, Day 26: “Ships in High Transit” by Binyavanga Wainaina
Binyavanga Wainaina's story is about the performative cultural roles people are expected to play.
31 Days of Stories 2020, Day 25: “Petty Theft” by Adrian Michael Kelly
Adrian Michael Kelly uses a train ride as a means to examine a character who is much less upright than he at first appears.