Publisher: W.H. (Wade) Johnson
Three dozen short stories by Canadian Novelist/Author W.H. (Wade) Johnson. Meet Rose and Albert, Walter the dog, the Rat Slayer, Katz and Quixote, Rocky and Ape and Doug, whose name is really Neb, who comes from the Dark Matter.
The Flying Goat (Jonathan Cape, 1939) features sixteen diverse stories from slapstick sketches to portraits of marital tension; one Uncle Silas tale; and three that hark back to Bates's boyhood roots. 'A Funny Thing' is an escalating bragging match between Uncle Silas and Uncle Cosmos. Cosmos is modelled on Bates's paternal grandfather, Charles Lawrence, who was "known about Rushden as a dapper and dashing figure who spent his holidays in the south of France, where he reputedly had a number of mistresses". A television adaptation starring Albert Finney was aired in 2003. In a cautionary tale, ever-relevant today, 'Shot Actress – Full Story' is an account of the death of a former actress, and of the damaging effect of rumours. In commenting on the public's obsession with scandal and journalism, the tale reflects Bates's early newspaper work at the Northamptonshire Chronicle as well as a wider social commentary. The Times Literary Supplement singled out 'The White Pony' and 'The Ox' as "faultless things, jewels as luminous and as finely cut as any Mr. Bates has turned out. In each of them the evocative strength of his countryside pictures is joined to a still and poignant emotion that seems to project a background of universal experience for a particular sorrow." The bonus story 'Pensioned Off' is a sensitive and touching tale of a Latin teacher approaching the end of his career, reflecting on his obsolete methods of trying to teach a dying language. The story is based in part on Bates's own Latin teacher who he described as "extremely fat", so in a sweetly comic moment we hear how he fasts every Thursday so as not to become obese. Published in the New Adelphi (1929), and not republished since.Show book
A collection of short stories from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of classic American southern literature. Combining stories set in the rural south, Eudora Welty’s own special province, and stories with a European locale, which give a wider range to her fiction, The Bride of Innisfallen demonstrates the remarkable talent of one of the finest short story writers of our time. The gentle wit of the title story, the grave and musical prose of “Circe,” a retelling of Greek myth, the acute character portrayal and extraordinary evocation of the steamy bayou county in “No Place for You, My Love” are all touched with the particular magic that has made Welty one of America’s most beloved storytellers. “The writing throughout is at Ms. Welty’s best level.” —Edward Weeks, The AtlanticShow book
Eric Heidle's "Ace in the Hole" nominated for a 2018 Edgar Award for Best Short Story! A Parade magazine pick, included in "Books We Love" section "What could be a more unlikely breeding ground for noir fiction than Montana, whose wide-open landscapes seem the polar opposite of the mean streets of Los Angeles? Yet certain noir standbys prove both malleable and fertile in these 14 new stories...If Montana has a dark side, is anywhere safe from noir?"--Kirkus Reviews "Terrific...Montana Noir is one of the high points in Akashic's long-running and justly celebrated Noir series...Editors Grady and Graff's selections...are all sharply attuned to their settings and to the ways those varying landscapes reflect the darkness within the people who walk the streets or drive the country roads."--Booklist "14 stories set in Big Sky Country. Much like a travel map that divides Montana into regions, this volume is partitioned into four sections that reflect the geography of the state: Copper Power, The Hi-Line, Custer Country, and Rivers Run...Montana, and others live in the state; all the authors have strong emotional ties to the area's particular lifestyle. The editors tout this book as the first-ever anthology of Montana-set noir short stories. Fans of the genre and regional fiction will be intrigued."--Library Journal XPress Reviews "There's no shortage of misbehavior in this book. But there's also no shortage of excellent writing by some of Montana's finest authors. The book included work by Thomas McGuane, Jamie Ford, Walter Kirn, Debra Magpie earling and eight others. Thwey're all Montanans, every one, and their subjects are as varied and unique as the state itself."--Montana Quarterly "Even though Montana's beauty makes the idea of dark alleys and neon lights seem incongruous, noir also represents struggle, and doing the wrong thing for the right reasons...There can never be a happy ending in noir but there can be the possibility of redemption. It's the little guy against big forces and as Montanans, we can all appreciate that fight."--Billings Gazette Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct location within the geographic area of the book. Grady and Graff, both Montana natives, masterfully curate this collection of hard-edged Western tales. Brand-new stories by: David Abrams, Caroline Patterson, Eric Heidle, Thomas McGuane, Janet Skeslien Charles, Sidner Larson, Yvonne Seng, James Grady, Jamie Ford, Carrie La Seur, Walter Kirn, Gwen Florio, Debra Magpie Earling, and Keir Graff. From the introduction by James Grady and Keir Graff: This anthology is a road trip through the dreams and disasters of the true Montana, stories written by authors with Montana in their blood, tales that circle you around the state through its cities and small towns. These are twenty-first century authors writing timeless sagas of choice, crime, and consequences...You'll meet students and strippers, cops and cons, druggies and dreamers, cold-eyed killers and caught-in-their-gunsights screwed-up souls. But mostly, through all our fiction here, you'll meet quiet heroes and see the noir side of life that makes our Montana as real as it is mythic. No doubt the state's beauty will still make the very idea of Montana Noir seem incongruous to some. Noir is black-and-white. Streets and alleys. Flashing neon lighting a rain-streaked window. But while noir was definitely an urban invention, it knows no boundaries. Noir is struggle. It's doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. It's being trapped. It's hubris. It's being defeated yet going on. Sometimes it's being defeated and not going on. That's life everywhere. This is our Montana.Show book
He should never have gone into Kerry’s bedroom; but curiosity got the better of him. A weakness that had cost him dearly. When a young and elegant female colleague comes to rent a room in his flat, Stephen Williamson can’t wait to rummage through her lingerie and try them on. Kerry Carfax is oblivious to the fact her landlord secretly dresses in his tenants’ panties and bra and is unaware he is a closet sissy with fantasies of being humiliated by young, sexy women. His obsession extends to a spying on a long back catalogue of female tenants but he has never taken the plunge to ask any of them out or even to consider confessing his proclivities of cross-dressing or female BDSM. Will Stephen take the leap and realise his deep fantasies could become a reality in the presence of this young strong-willed woman and her friends? Will he ask her to be his Sissy Mistress or will he return to his life of watching and fantasising? Possibly he may have no choice. Read ‘Sissy Landlord’ and find out, now. A story of young domme female superiority, blackmail and forced feminisation approximately 6000 words long.Show book
Carol Patterson lives in South Arm, a serene coastal hamlet south-east of Hobart, Tasmania. Her arresting style infuses her short stories with fresh, vibrant life. She explores the crucial points in people’s lives when change takes place. Her post-graduate degree in Geography and Environmental Studies gained from the University of Tasmania, allows her to see the world from an original perspective, which further enriches her stories.Show book
This outstanding collection features outstanding new stories of crime, derring do, fast-paced adventures and puzzles set in the past, ranging widely over the centuries and offering a cornucopia of mysteries, dark deeds, investigations and a fascinating array of investigators both professional and amateur. Collected by one of the genre's eminent editors, Maxim Jakubowski, whose many anthologies have attracted large attraction and awards, this volume features never before seen stories by some of the most renowned American and British crime and thriller authors of today, and includes Linda Stratmann, Amy Myers, Lavie Tidhar, Jane Finnis, O'Neil de Noux, Ashley Lister, Eric Brown, Kate Ellis, A.K. Benedict and many others.Show book
