Short Stories Books - Page 11

The Collected Short Stories of Louis L'Amour, Volume 6: The Crime Stories (v. 6)

Louis L'Amour

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

One of America’s most beloved storytellers, Louis L’Amour’s vibrant tales of adventure bring the American West to life. Now, in this sixth volume of collected short stories, L’Amour takes us beyond the frontier with thirty-three gripping stories of crime, sports, and the murky world where the two often meet. From suspenseful whodunits to rueful tales of fortunes gained and lost, this remarkable collection will enthrall and entertain L’Amour fans old and new.
Traversing a vivid landscape, from sunblasted hills and canyons to the nighttime streets of America’s greatest cities, some of Louis L’Amour’s most compelling fiction was set in his own time—whether in the naked electric glare of boxing rings where men go head-to-head with their dreams and demons in an underworld rife with corruption, or along freight docks where laborers toil to earn just enough to get by, or in the penthouses of the rich and arrogant who calculate the odds of how to get even more. Here are tales of innocents caught in the schemes of criminals, detectives hunting down truths that hide more lies, gamblers and beauties, wiseguys and cops. Here is a world populated by the kinds of people who risk their lives to right a wrong, make a buck, or save a friend.

A war veteran makes a journey to visit the man who saved his life in Korea. Instead he uncovers a killing and finds his own heroic cause…. Confronted with an easy chance to steal, an honest man gives in to temptation—and finds himself ensnared in a web of blackmail and violence…. An elderly Hawaiian seafarer is found dead with a hand-carved figure beside his body. Unraveling his murder will mean solving the mystery of a shipwreck—and of the forces that drive some to take fatal chances and others to kill.

Brimming with thought-provoking characters and situations—from a man who awakens from unconsciousness to find a fortune in a burning house to a man who meets a killer who is supposed to be dead in a seedy diner—these thrilling, atmospheric stories course with authenticity and bear the mark of a timeless master.

Lightning

Dean Koontz

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 266 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The beginning 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book started my love affair with Koontz's wrting. Its a wonderful, witty, well written story. Mystery, humour and a rarity for Koontz - a little romance. The characters are perfect and the story beautiful. Read it.... become a Koontz junkie too.

Best Koontz Story Ever 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I love Koontz in general, but this story really was awesome. I have recommended this book to my wife, daughter and others -- who have subsequently recommended it to others. Read it -- you won't be sorry.

One of Koontz best 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

After reading most of Dean Koontz's books, I found Lighting to be refreshing from a woman's standpoint. The days that Laura spent in an orphanage, trying to dodge a child predator were alarming. Caught up in Laura's emotional trauma, I was just as horrified when her husband was killed. With mostly every one that she loves taken from her, Karen's life and death battle to protect her son was intense and her guardian popping unexpectedly in and out of her life, altering history, was a great twist. I highly recommend this book. Tamera

Editorial Review:

A bolt of lightning brings a blond-haired stranger into Laura Shane's life. But is he the guardian angel he seems? The devil in disguise? Or the master of a haunting destiny beyond time and space?

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: The Inspiration for the Upcoming Major Motion Picture

F. Scott Fitzgerald

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

My curiosity was satisfied with this rather peculiar tale... 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

I am not a huge fan of short stories, because it never fails that by the time I find myself invested in them I have reached the last page. Same can be said for `The Curious Case of Benjamin Button', a rather delightful little story that is engaging, interesting and very rewarding. Yes, this is a short story, so I'm going to say this straight off; you may not want to invest your money in this version. I actually purchased another version from Amazon that has a few short stories for less money, so try you hand at that collection instead of this singular novel.

But, I wanted to take the time to review the story, because that's what these reviews are all about right, the work itself and not the packaging.

`The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' is a peculiar tale of a man born at the end of his life and has the rare opportunity of growing young, living his life in reverse as it were. F. Scott Fitzgerald states at the beginning of this story that it was inspired by a statement made by Mark Twain, that the best things in life happen at the beginning and the worst at the end. With `The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' Fitzgerald plays the cynic, exploring how living life in reverse can be seemingly beneficial yet ultimately devastating.

Benjamin is born a brittle old man with a cane (not literally, but he needs one) and a full mind, and as the year's progress his relationships with those around him shift for various reasons. First he is at odds with his devastated parents who are ashamed of him, but as he grows to meet his father in age they become like brothers. He meets and falls in love with the young Hildegarde, who is attracted to the `older' Benjamin, only to marry her, grow younger than her, and drift apart from her. He takes over his fathers business and prospers because of his newfound energy, yet his youth begins to destroy him as his own son becomes his elder and is thus ashamed of the very sight of his father.

There is a moment within `The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' where the elderly Benjamin (in mind, not in physicality) is attending kindergarten and is lamenting over the fact that the other children can talk about what they want to be when they grow up, a prospect that Benjamin will never see.

This to me captures the very point of this story.

Yes, this is a short story of a few pages and it moves rather quickly through Benjamin's life, but it is also written with such rich detail that one never feels jaded. I do wish that this had been written as a full length novel, for it surely has the potential to be one of the most refreshing and moving pieces of literature ever written. It is wildly original (although Fitzgerald himself has mentioned that he has read this prose elsewhere) and it is absurdly poignant. Yes, `The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' has such a deep-rooted importance, for when you strip away the preposterousness of the prose there is a moral that is so humanly real we can feel it in the very pit of us.

We have all heard the phrase `the grass is greener on the other side' and this novel is the perfect answer back to that statement, for it proves that we shouldn't always be wishing for something we don't quite understand, because once we have it we may realize it is far from desired.

Editorial Review:

Today, F. Scott Fitzgerald is known for his novels, but in his lifetime, his fame stemmed from his prolific achievement as one of America's most gifted story writers. "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," a witty and fantastical satire about aging, is one of his most memorable stories.

In 1860 Benjamin Button is born an old man and mysteriously begins aging backward. At the beginning of his life he is withered and worn, but as he continues to grow younger he embraces life -- he goes to war, runs a business, falls in love, has children, goes to college and prep school, and, as his mind begins to devolve, he attends kindergarten and eventually returns to the care of his nurse.

This strange and haunting story embodies the sharp social insight that has made Fitzgerald one of the great voices in the history of American literature.

Prom Nights from Hell

Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Lauren Myracle, Michele Jaffe

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 26 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Prom Nights From Hell 4 out of 5 stars.
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This is a great set of stories that capture your attention completely since the first second, weather for the language used, the characters, scenes or title of the tale. In my opinion, the authors should put less magic in it, specially the last story, and most of them should be in first person, so you can feel the emotions of the characters better.

Editorial Review:

In this exciting collection, bestselling authors Meg Cabot (How to Be Popular), Kim Harrison (A Fistful of Charms), Michele Jaffe (Bad Kitty), Stephenie Meyer (Twilight), and Lauren Myracle (ttyl) take bad prom nights to a whole new level—a paranormally bad level. Wardrobe malfunctions and two left feet don't hold a candle to discovering your date is the Grim Reaper—and he isn't here to tell you how hot you look.

From angels fighting demons to a creepy take on getting what you wish for, these five stories will entertain better than any DJ in a bad tux. No corsage or limo rental necessary. Just good, scary fun.

First Spanish Reader: A Beginner's Dual-Language Book (Beginners' Guides) (Spanish Edition)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Me gusto mucho este libro! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I found this book most helpful in reviewing my knowledge and understanding of Spanish. I could attempt to read the passages in Spanish and then seen if I had understood them correctly by then reading the English version. It is a wonderful resource for intermediate and advanced students of the Spanish language to help reinforce what they have learned, and also exposes non-native speakers to the rich Latino literary culture.

Helps extend your knowledge 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great book with traditional stories that give you an insight into South American culture through language. What's best about this book is that it also has target questions about each of the stories that help you to extend your understanding of the text. There are a variety of stories of different lengths which means it's not too daunting. A great buy- I was more than impressed

Editorial Review:

Delightful stories, other material based on works of Don Juan Manuel, Luis Taboada, Ricardo Palma, other noted writers. Complete faithful English translations on facing pages. Exercises.

Snow Falling on Cedars [Paperback] by Gutterson, David

David Gutterson

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Total reviews: 701 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

An interesting book 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

What I enjoyed most about this novel was Mr. Guterson's facility with descriptive language. I just loved the snow storm--though I also thought he had his characters moving around in it entirely too much--and I liked his casually elegant way of getting into his characters' heads and hearts to explain their histories.

So why only 3 stars? Because I was ultimately unconvinced by the book. By that, I mean that he wasn't as successful as he should have been in intertwining the book's themes of war, family, and racism (especially the latter). By the time the book ended, I didn't much care about the outcome. That's why I wasn't bothered by its truncated, too easy ending. The event that facilitates the ending was extremely contrived, and even drawn out too much.

Mr. Guterson has some serious talent, though. This book just didn't awe me as much as I thought (based on other reviews) that it would.

unforgettable 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

For years I almost picked this book up, and finally did this year. I had just completed a dud of a thriller, Joe Hill's Heart-Shaped Box and was looking for something intelligent with a good reputation. I bought Snow and I couldnt put it down. A story so well thought out and developed, I wished I had bought it years before. I'm not big on courtroom novels (which is why I always passed on it), but this novel is so much more than that. In Ishmael, Guterson has wrought one of the most human, heart-aching genuine characters in recent memory. Bravo!

Barrel Fever: Stories and Essays

David Sedaris

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Total reviews: 117 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Very good, but not as good as Me Talk Pretty One Day 5 out of 5 stars.
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I prefer Me Talk Pretty One Day, my husband prefers this one. Both excellent books!

I love this book 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

So I feel compelled to write a review. This book is absurd. It is perverse. It sometimes is uncomfortable to read. I didn't love it the first time I read it and it has grown on me like a fungus. I certainly understand why lots and lots of people don't like it but I would like to impress on those who are reading the reviews that the book is not BAD, just a little unpolished. It seems that the speaker is a chain-smoking, neurotic, self-absorbed, outcast whose mind can never slow down. And these are those 3 am rants that pop up in his brain. Any they are funny, in a really dark way.

Funny, but not his best 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Like the other Sedaris books I've read, this one was at times laugh-out-loud funny. Especially the fictional account of the author's gay love affairs with the people most likely to take offense at being included in such a story: Mike Tyson, Charlton Heston, Bruce Springsteen, etc. The essays and stories in the middle weren't as funny, though, and overall this isn't his best book.

Editorial Review:

With a skewed sense of wit uniquely his own, satirist and popular NPR storyteller David Sedaris presents a collection of short stories and essays, wherein home surgery and an elf-abusing Santa prevail.

The Best American Short Stories 2007 (Edition 001)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 23 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

In his introduction to this volume, Stephen King writes, "Talent does more than come out; it bursts out, again and again, doing exuberant cartwheels while the band plays 'Stars and Stripes Forever' . . . Talent can't help itself; it roars along in fair weather or foul, not sparing the fireworks. It gets emotional. It struts its stuff. In fact, that's its job."

Wonderfully eclectic, The Best American Short Stories 2007 collects stories by writers of undeniable talent, both newcomers and favorites. These stories examine the turning points in life when we, as children or parents, lovers or friends or colleagues, must break certain rules in order to remain true to ourselves. In T. C. Boyle's heartbreaking "Balto," a thirteen-year-old girl provides devastating courtroom testimony in her father's trial. Aryn Kyle's charming story "Allegiance" shows a young girl caught between her despairing British mother and motherly American father. In "The Bris," Eileen Pollack brilliantly writes of a son struggling to fulfill his filial obligations, even when they require a breach of morality and religion. Kate Walbert's stunning "Do Something" portrays one mother's impassioned and revolutionary refusal to accept her son's death. And in Richard Russo's graceful "Horseman," an English professor comes to understand that plagiarism reveals more about a student than original work can.

New series editor Heidi Pitlor writes, "[Stephen King's] dedication, unflagging hard work, and enthusiasm for excellent writing shone through on nearly a daily basis this past year . . . We agreed, disagreed, and in the end very much concurred on the merit of the twenty stories chosen." The result is a vibrant assortment of stories and voices brimming with attitude, deep wisdom, and rare compassion.

Candide (Audio Cassette)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 134 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

More than just satire. A statement about the Human Condition 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

To call this book a satire and suggest that it is funny, or well done, or relevant to recent times, may be true but that fails to point out what is obvious. Voltaire was a French Enlightment writer. He used wit to make his points. He made fun of the teachings of the Church but he was pushing for religious freedom. He had strong opinions and the book was a tool to presenting his thoughts. The book is considered to be one of the most significant works of Western Canon due to its portrayal of the human condition.

The story is intended to satirize the idea of optimism. The approach was developed in the events of a trip. The events of the trip allow him to interchange the tragedy and the comedy within the various situations that occurred. This is a unique approach but it allowed him to develop a look at good and evil as well as the role of God and Government in men's lives. The satirical approach allowed him cover to focus his criticism.
A simple story. Young man leaves his home but really he has to leave having been caught kissing the wrong person. Sill optimistic he joins the army. He is flogged. Later almost burned alive. He sets out to see the world but continues to believe, as he was taught early in his life, that he is indeed living in the "best of all possible worlds". It seems as though nothing goes well. One tragedy after another. Funny but sad. Then after what seems to be an endless ordeal he returns and settles for life in a garden. Even so, still optimistic perhaps, he says that "we must cultivate our garden".

His book and his story challenge the idea that "all is for the best" in a world where it is often assumed that things "work out for the best".

The Story and Its Writer

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Course Book I Actually Want to Keep Reading 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 7 people found this review helpful.

This compilation of short stories was used for my Intro. to the Short Story college course. Our professor only picked out certain stories but I found myself reading unassigned stories myself. Some of these stories are wonderful. My favorite was "The Widow's Son" by Mary Lavin. Some other noteworthy stories: "Hills Like White Elephants" Hemingway, "Girl" by J. Kincaid. Too many more to list, a course book I am actually keeping so I can finish reading it. Usually I can't wait to close them after the course and not see them anymore! :)

Editorial Review:

During her many years of teaching introduction to fiction courses, Ann Charters developed an acute sense of which stories work most effectively in the classroom. She also discovered that writers, not editors, have the most interesting and useful things to say about the making and the meaning of fiction. Accordingly, her choice of fiction in the first edition of her The Story and Its Writer was as notable for its student appeal as it was for its quality and range. And to complement these stories, she introduced a lasting innovation: an array of the writers' own commentaries on the craft and traditions of the short story. In subsequent editions her sense of what works was confirmed as the book evolved into the most comprehensive, diverse-- and bestselling -- introduction to fiction anthology. Instructors rely on Ann Charters' ability to assemble an authoritative and teachable anthology, and anticipate each edition's selection of new writers and stories.