An accomplished collection of stories informed by a sense of community, its possibilities and failures
There are good reasons to celebrate a successful new collection of short stories, perhaps more so in countries like ours, where the short fiction form remains vigorous. Until a few decades ago, in languages like Urdu, Hindi and Bangla, it was the short story that set the tone and had the largest readership. Also, nationally and internationally, it was the short story that, along with poetry, stood at the heart of most literary movements.
The commercial and, increasingly, critical dominance of the novel form in recent decades and I say so despite being a novelist is almost a kind of aberration, and it has deep ideological reasons.
Ten Outstanding Short Stories to Read in 2021
Author Kelly Link (Photo by Awakening/Getty Images)
The #longreads hashtag on Twitter is filled with great story recommendations from people around the world. Pravesh Bhardwaj is a longtime contributor throughout the year he posts his favorite short stories, and then in January we’re lucky enough to get a list of his favorites to enjoy in the year ahead.
For many years now, I’ve been posting short stories on Twitter using the #longreads hashtag. It’s a habit now. Before sitting down to write I am developing an erotically charged drama about the relationship between two promiscuous people in South Mumbai I look around for a story, read it, and share it. I end up reading almost every day, irrespective of whether or not I am able to write.