The Penguin Book of the Modern American Short Story

March 1, 2021
A well-selected anthology of short fiction, ranging from long to flash, representing the last half-century. Former Granta editor Freeman writes in his introduction that where the 1960s were once seen as a fulcrum of the short story form, the succeeding decade has "begun to seem like one of the most fertile periods of American life." Certainly that was a time when writing by members of marginalized communities, post-apocalyptic science fiction, and politically engaged reexaminations of history came to the fore. All these strands are represented in Freeman's collection, which begins with Toni Cade Bambara, a writer not heard from often enough, whose "The Lesson," from 1972, finds a group of Black children inside F.A.O. Schwarz under the aegis of a well-meaning college graduate who has returned to the neighborhood. The narrator, beholding a $35 clown doll (that would be about $220 today), imagines asking for the money from her mother: " 'You wanna who that cost what?' she'd say, cocking her head to the side to get a better view of the hole in my head." The exotic field trip yields one lesson for the children: "White folks crazy." Certainly you'd think so on reading Grace Paley's "A Conversation With My Father," with its story within a story of a boy who has become addicted to drugs in "the fist of adolescence" and whose mother, not wishing him to feel isolated, joins him in junkiedom. Andrew Holleran evokes the ravages of the AIDS epidemic in "The Penthouse," a long story from 1999 that is full of ghosts but scores the comic aper�u that because sex is off the table, "it seemed as if that was all there was to do in New York: eat in public." George Saunders packs a story into 392 words; finally recognized as a literary writer, Stephen King turns in a characteristically spooky tale; and the closing stories, from Ted Chiang and Lauren Groff, speak to impending extinction, death, and fear. A fresh gathering that highlights the work of mostly well-known story writers through their lesser-known works.

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Starred review from April 1, 2021

Freeman's excellent introduction to this new anthology of modern short stories will be useful to readers who are unfamiliar with the format; for students of the short story, it's a refreshing overview. Freeman, a writer and literary critic, formerly of Lit Hub, is an executive editor at Knopf and an artist-in-residence at New York University. He sets out to cull stories that demonstrate tumult, expansion, sexual freedom, suburbanization, growth, and wealth; he's also tracking the high points of the development of the short story. These 37 distinct, previously published entries are a varied sample from the last 50 years of U.S. literature, including works of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. The table of contents is a who's who of writers: Lucia Berlin, Ted Chiang, Sandra Cisneros, Edwidge Danticat, Louise Erdrich, Ursula K. LeGuin, Jhumpa Lahiri, Ken Liu, Grace Paley, and more. Several entries are extremely brief, like Alice Walker's "The Flowers" and Jamaica Kincaid's "Girls." Percival Everett's "The Fix" explores the problem with miracles. This collection has a short story for any mood. VERDICT This anthology sets itself apart by providing an inclusive starting point for readers interested in discovering the power of the short story; it is golden for those who already recognize that power.--Joyce Sparrow, Helenwood, TN

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