365 Stories: Day 20: Lust by Susan Minot

This time it was the title story. Lust is about a sexually charged teenage girl. The story is a set of vignettes describing the girl’s adventures with boys. Susan is not apologetic about it and should not be as well. Neither is her character. The girl lives her life the way she wants to, in the constraint and standards set by the society and yet manage to do what she wants to.

The writing is brave and not feminist. Susan loves and cherishes bodies and that is beautifully depicted through the story. A story that is funny, warm, sad, and tender to the core.

365 Stories: Day 19: Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Katherine Anne Porter

I first heard of Katherine Anne Porter through a dear friend from Delhi and I knew since then that I would love her works. It took me a lot of time to get around to reading her, but once I did, there was no turning back. Moreover, I think this project has connected me all over again to my favourite short-story writers. I am in love with the form once more and cannot get more of it.

“Pale Horse, Pale Rider” is a story of Miranda, a newspaper woman who falls in love with Adam, a soldier, during the epidemic of 1918. The story is about their lives and how it changes because of the epidemic.

Porter’s writing is about death, living and love and it will take your breath away. Do read it.

365 Stories: Day 15 to Day 18

So here are the four stories read from the 15th of January 2017 to the 18th of January 2017:

15th of January 2017:

A Fight with a Cannon by Victor Hugo: A grim tale of warfare, disaster, and bias. It is simply stunning and at the same time not complicated at all. I normally do not enjoy stories at sea, but I liked how this one is told.

16th of January 2017:

Bullet in a Brain by Tobias Wolff: There is satire. There is mock. There is distance. There is a lot of confusion as well. A story which is very different. Anders, the protagonist is very different. Nothing that I have read earlier.

17th of January 2017:

Died and Gone to Vegas by Tim Gautreaux

18th of January 2017:

I Stand Here Ironing by Tillie Olsen

These stories are just brilliant. Do give them a shot.

365 Stories: Day 14: Maureen by Sara Majka

Maureen is a heartbreaking story of a mother, a dead child and how some losses can never be overcome from. Grief that then exists, never leaves. I was shivering while reading it and still reeling from it. Majka knows how to string minimum words with maximum imapct. Maureen’s imagery and loss has been described so well, that you would want to reread it. I know I will.

Read the story here

365 Stories: Day 13: Cockcrow by Guy de Maupassant

The story read on the 13th of January 2017 was “Cockcrow” by Maupassant. I remember reading him in school and enjoying his stories a lot. Sadly, I did not like this one. It was a love triangle and while the description was marvellous, the ending left me high and dry and not satisfied at all. I mean, I wish there was more to this tale.