Sudden Fiction: American Short-Short Stories (Paperback)

~ Robert Shapard (Author), (Author) "ONE DAY I WAS listening to the AM radio..." (more)
Key Phrases: tent worms, sudden fiction, five milligrams, Miss Peaches, New York, Miss Kalfeon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The short fiction (each piece is one to five pages long) in this collection represents the richness and variety of American writers. A few are no longer contemporary (Hemingway, Malamud, Cheever), many are well established (Paley, Oates, Updike, Donald Barthelme, Ray Bradbury, Peter Taylor, Raymond Carver) and many are newer presences on the fiction scene. With a tiny "frontisstory" by Robert Coover, a lighthearted introduction by Shapard and afterwords about the short-short-story form by 40 outstanding American writers, the definition of what lies between as "sudden fiction" is well attended to. The 70 pieces themselveshighly compressed, often tantalizingdisplay a multiplicity of modes and derive from a variety of traditions. The collection presents a group of writers whose miniature stories do, indeed, as the editors suggest, "confer form on small corners of chaos."
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This anthology contains 70 stories, all under five pages. There are a few standards by Hemingway and Cheever, but most are contemporary pieces by such writers as Paley, Oates, and Carver and some unknowns. At its bestas exemplified by the offerings of John Upike, Arturo Vivante, Bel Kaufman, and Charles Johnsonthis "sudden fiction" form is devastating, at its worst, mere anecdote, but overall this is an unusual and well-conceived collection. In an afterword, 40 writers/editors discuss the genre's limitationsdoes it exist? what to call it?succinctly enough that the book may serve as a text for creative writing students as well as an interesting departure for the general reader. Recommended.Peter Bricklebank, English Dept., City Coll., CUNY
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Gibbs Smith (December 31, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879052651
• ISBN-13: 978-0879052652
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #42,292 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Contains Some Amazing Stories, July 6, 2000

By A Customer

I disagree with the previous reviewer's rather disparaging comments: This isn't simply a "bathroom read." For writers, it's a great lesson in economy and brevity. The short-short stories contained within will help any writer realize the benefits of using language with precision.

It's also a wonderful read (you don't have to be a writer to enjoy it!) Some of my favorite stories of all time, including Amy Robison's devastating "Yours", and good ones from Grace Paley and Raymond Carver, are here. As with all short-story collections, there's some unevenness in terms of quality--not every story is great. But for the most part, the selections are very well chosen and the contemporaneous pieces (the book was originally published in the mid-1980s) hold up very well in this new millenium.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bottled Lightning, November 22, 2003

By	Ralph-Michael (Seoul, South Korea) - See all my reviews

~It's a great book to have. You can read it on the subway and chew on a few stories in one transit, or just scan the beginnings and look for what catches your eye, or you can curl up on a rainy day and devour the whole book. It's a great way to meet many writers you've heard of but haven't yet read. The only problem is the editor had this in mind so some writers, I presume, were selected because of who they were not what they wrote. Some pieces are vignettes more than "Sudden Fiction." Conversely, some stories are just marvelous: have no wasted words, tightly woven plots, and compelling characters. These stories are a marvel to see and a must for anyone interested in fiction. It's incredible how much depth is possible in such a short space. If you've ever tried to write this book will impress you with how much the right word is essential. Mark Twain once said "the difference between the right word and almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug." Here is lightning-or is it the bug?-bottled up.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best kind of variety, August 1, 2007

By	Kristen Tsetsi "Author of 'Homefront.' Webpa... (Upper-state New York) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

From Hemingway to Jackson, these authors provide evidence that it doesn't take a lot of words to create immense literary impact. These stories are funny, sad, insightful, odd, and cold - in all the best ways.