Prize Stories 2001: The O. Henry Awards (Pen / O. Henry Prize Stories) [Paperback]

Larry Dark (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0385498780 | ISBN-13: 978-0385498784

Established early in the last century as a memorial to O. Henry, throughout its history this annual collection has consistently offered a remarkable sampling of contemporary short stories. Each year, stories are chosen from large and small literary magazines, and a panel of distinguished writers is enlisted to award top prizes. The result is a superb collection of seventeen inventive, full-bodied stories representing the very best in American and Canadian fiction. And in celebration of this distinguished literary form, Prize Stories 2001 a Special Award for Continuing Achievement is presented to Alice Munro.

FIRST PRIZE
MARY SWAN
The Deep

SECOND PRIZE
DAN CHAON
Big Me

THIRD PRIZE
ALICE MUNRO
Floating Bridge

FRED G. LEEBRON
That Winter

T.CORAGHESSAN BOYLE
The Love of My Life

JOYCE CAROL OATES
The Girl with the Blackened Eye

DAVID SCHICKLER
The Smoker

ANTONYA NELSON
Female Trouble

ELIZABETH GRAVER
The Mourning Door

PICKNEY BENEDICT
Zog-19: A Scientific Romance

RON CARLSON
At the Jim Bridger

LOUISE EDRICH
Revival Road

WILLIAM GAY
The Paperhanger

DALE PECK
Bliss

MURAD KALAM
Bow Down

GEORGE SAUNDERS
Pastoralia

ANDREA BARRETT
Servants of the Map

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In a collection boasting the wide range of writers and themes that has come to be expected of the O. Henry Awards, the biggest news might be the comeback of the New Yorker as magazine of the year. With only one story from the magazine making the cut last year, this time it boasts five of the winning selections and several more on the short list. This may reflect editor Larry Dark's wish that short stories reach a broader audience, and indeed many readers will be familiar with the New Yorker winners, ranging from selections by such well-known favorites as Alice Munro and Louise Erdrich to a story by newcomer David Schickler, whose surreal and wacky urban romance, "The Smoker," was released as part of a well-received collection this year. The first-prize story, "The Deep" by relative unknown Mary Swan, is a haunting historical piece about twins during WWI. Andrea Barrett makes an appearance with "Servants of the Map," about a cartographer working in the Himalayas in the 1860s. There are moody contemporary pieces by Fred G. Leebron, Elizabeth Graver and Ron Carlson; chilling, crime-oriented stories from William Gay, Dale Peck, T. Coraghessan Boyle and Joyce Carol Oates; and a wry, comic, three-girls-and-a-guy morality play from Antonya Nelson. Those favoring an alternative point of view can dip into George Saunders's "Pastoralia" or second-prize winner Dan Chaon's hilarious "Big Me," and Murad Kalam and Pinckney Benedict serve up two very different visions of the future. As always, there will be debate about who should or should not have been included, but judges Mary Gordon, Michael Chabon and Mona Simpson have proffered an engrossing collection proving that talent and imagination are alive and thriving in the American short story. National advertising.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

In his introduction to Prize Stories 2001, editor Dark notes an increase in the number of longer stories, or novellas, being published in literary journals. To reflect this trend, Dark chose to publish three longer pieces, bringing the total number of stories in this year's volume to 17 rather than the usual 20. One of these, Mary Swan's "The Deep," an absorbing account of twin sisters in the World War I era, was chosen as the best story of the year. Runners up were Dan Chaon's "Big Me" and Alice Munro's "Floating Bridge." Munro also receives a special citation for her continued notable work in the short story form. Dark writes that he was torn between Munro's above-mentioned story and her equally fine "Post and Beam;" happily, the latter appears in Best American Short Stories 2001. Kingsolver narrowed her selections by opting for only those that "tell me something I don't already know." So we get funny and intriguing views of other cultures, such as Ha Jin's "After Cowboy Chicken Came to Town," which is about the workers in an American fast-food restaurant in China; Katherine Shonk's "My Mother's Garden," set near post-disaster Chernobyl; and Trevanian's sly Basque fable, "The Apple Tree." Two well-deserving stories, Elizabeth Graver's "The Mourning Door" and Andrea Barrett's "Servants of the Map," appear in both volumes. Both volumes are valuable additions to academic and larger public libraries. Christine DeZelar-Tiedman, Univ. of Minnesota Libs., Minneapolis
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Anchor (August 28, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385498780
• ISBN-13: 978-0385498784
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #437,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is what prize winning stories are supposed to be, March 12, 2002

By 

[e-mail] "[e-mail]" (Beaumont, tx USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Prize Stories 2001: The O. Henry Awards (Pen / O. Henry Prize Stories) (Paperback)

Unlike many volumes claiming to have the best short stories of the year, this one may actually be able to claim it. Of the 17 stories here, only three weren't very good (unfortunately the first prize my Mary Swan is one of those three). The rest were good, and there were three that stood out as phenomenal: T. Coraghessan Boyle's story of a young couple throwing their child away; Joyce Carol Oates's story of abduction, rape, and abuse; and David Schickler's story "The Smoker" which is so bizarre and so good that I will pick up his first collection of stories, which this one is included in. Most of the stories in this anthology are of a darker nature, but they are also very well written.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars engaging read, November 11, 2001

By 

J. Bray "jbrules" (ny, ny United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prize Stories 2001: The O. Henry Awards (Pen / O. Henry Prize Stories) (Paperback)

Since I live in NYC and most of my read time is on the subway, i prefer to read anthologies. This is the first in a long time that i have enjoyed all the stories for various reasons. Especially David Schickler's "the Smoker." (I was so engaged in this story, i ordered his current book). The stories in this book are well written with likeable characters. And there are also some surprises in store.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Short Stories Redifined, October 24, 2001

By 

Richard Reynolds "SWNovice" (Desert Hot Springs, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prize Stories 2001: The O. Henry Awards (Pen / O. Henry Prize Stories) (Paperback)

As usual, "Prize Stories" is full of gems and surprises. The use of a panel of judges helps to ensure variety, unlike other yearly short story anthologies. I found this year's edition disconscerting, however, as three of the stories were anything but short. They were novellas. Not that there is anything wrong with longer works of fiction, but it is a different style of writing and not what I was looking for when I forked over the money for this book. Granted, these three stories are excellent and deserving of notice, but not between the covers of a "short story" anthology.

In all fairness, I must admit that in the books introduction, the series editor, Larry Dark, discussess the inclusion of these stories. He claims that he has (I am paraphrasing) grown weary of short stories, having seen so many. My suggestion is that he find something else to do, then.

OK. That wasn't nice. Sorry, Mr. Dark. The truth is, ultimately, that he has once again managed to compile a collection of some of the greatest writing printed in North America in the past year. Most noteworthy, I thought, was Alice Munro's "Floating Bridge," which took third place. Ms. Munro was also given a well deserved special citation award for her work over the years. She has been included in "Prize Stories" on several occasions and usually places second or third.

Aside from the quality of her work, Ms. Munro caught my attention simply because she is so regular. However, it would take me all day to discuss each story because every story in this anthology is simply fantastic. Deciding which ones were best must have been an extremely frustrating experience. I highly recommend this book if you are a lover of short stories. Because of the length of some of these stories, the number of stories included in this volume has been reduced from 20 to 17. These are 17 of the best examples of short story (and novella) writing I have seen yet. Enjoy!