Customer Reviews

The Best American Short Stories 1998

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a short story lover and and die hard fan of THE BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES collections, I was surprisingly disappointed by this year's edition. With the exception of a couple stories ("Cosmopolitan" and "People Like That Are the Only People Here"),I found the stories to be boring, bland, and generally lacking any spark of life. I refer anyone interested in reading authors that push limits, bring unique points of view, and take risks to Scribner's Best of the Fiction Workshops 1998 by Carol Shields (Editor), John Kulka (Editor), Natalie Danford(Editor).

This year's edition of the always delightful collection of the years top short fiction is a special treat. Edited by Garrison Keilor, the stories have the warmth and realness one thinks of with Keilor and his own tales. I loved his choices because the were believable and because of the poetry of the language. So often I was struck by lines that would stop me in my tracks, I would have to laugh, or just sit in awe.

I also found the cleanness of most of the stories to be refreshing. They were stories of people overcoming the darker side of human nature, people "on the verge of disgrace," as one story said it. There were stories of people who resisted doing the bad things that usually make a story roll so smoothly. My hat is off to Keilor and to all the highly talented writers in this years volume!

In this collection the focus is on great storytelling. You won't find lots of stylistic acrobatics and clever postmodern narrative techniques but you will find stories that are consistently moving and a joy to read. This is the most enjoyable collection of Best American Short Stories that I have read.

The audiotape is also fantastic with many of the stories being read by Garrison Keillor.

In this collection the focus is on great storytelling. You won't find lots of stylistic acrobatics and clever postmodern narrative techniques but you will find stories that are consistently moving and a joy to read. This is the most enjoyable collection of Best American Short Stories that I have read.

The audiotape is also fantastic with many of the stories being read by Garrison Keillor.

The honest reason why I pick up the Best American Short Stories series is because I typically don't like to make the commitment of reading a full length novel (read: lazy!). I figure if I really don't want to go through the hassle of reading good, classic fiction, then what should be the next best thing? Short stories are more immediate and if they're really written well, as is usually the case in these compilations, the reader is immediately submerged into another world, place and time. And when time's up, you can go on to the next story and plunge into another reality.

I've been collecting the Best American Short Stories series for quite a few years now and they've never disappointed me. The special standouts in the 1998 series include Lorrie Moore's humorous and frightening account of a mother's ordeal with her toddler's life-threatening illness, as well as John Updike's wonderful short story on his tribute to his father. When you need quick brain nourishment, pick up this book and read some great writing from some of today's best authors.

Interested in being published, I picked this up as a survey of what publications are buying these days. Looked at in that light, this was a "helpful" book; I am, however, inclined to agree with the previous reviewers in saying I was not overwhelmingly pleased by the stories. "Elvis has left the building" was definately a favorite, though. Still, if you like short stories, give this one a whirl.

If you can't commit to a actual novel these quick stories will keep your attention.

I suppose the idea of asking Keillor to be the judge this year was to increase circulation by posting a "brand name for the masses" on the book's cover. But too often this book reads like much of Keillor's own overdone work. Adjectives are forced on us, descriptions are included for the sake of descriptions. The editor seems to have no real tolerance for variety. Can one not include "The Knife Thrower" and still be considered a worthy judge of great literature? Of course many stories in this collection are good, a few great (e.g., Lorrie Moore's story), but many ramble on, seem too much like life as we know it on boring days. I doubt if Nature cares one way or another about literature. But art need not imitate life, as Keillor's choices seem to suggest. Keep the best 120 list, but be careful who whittles the list down to 20.