Favorite Short Fiction
- Description
- In honor of February's status as the shortest month of the year, our List of the Month is devoted to Favorite Short Fiction, which can include: individual short stories, anthologies (multiple authors), short story collections (single author), or novellas (100 pages or less). If members are listing one specific story, contained in a larger collection but not published separately, and not available as a separate work page on LibraryThing, the collection can be added, and the specific story can be indicated in the Explanations field. Please only downvote titles if the book does not fit the theme.
- Members
- 98 participating members
-pilgrim- ,igorken ,rarm ,rosalita ,Capybara_99 ,Heather39 ,brewergirl ,Laura1124 ,loulourevisited ,Eagle13 ,steller0707 ,madhatter22 ,tina1969 ,cornerhouse ,darsaster ,vwinsloe ,susanbooks ,lmbix ,al.vick ,jr33rpm ,Corinne2020 ,perennialreader ,EMS_24 ,thorold ,dianeham ,merrystar ,JuliaMaria ,cbl_tn ,EerierIdyllMeme ,RBeffa ,Euryale ,sqr3cls3 ,elenchus ,Cora-R ,ManWithAnAgenda ,timetunnel ,charl08 ,johnlrice ,sturlington ,anglemark ,Sofyyyy21 ,MarianBengal ,hipdeep ,Tess_W ,ahef1963 ,CarltonC ,paradoxosalpha ,msjudy ,Aquila ,karenb ,Maddz ,raidergirl3 ,AbigailAdams26 ,souloftherose ,terran ,C.K.SMITH ,deldevries ,Morphidae ,tardis ,mrswebster ,c_why ,mstrust ,lorax ,markhopp ,KatyBee ,jkonecki ,-Pia- ,Tosta ,dara85 ,DigUnlocked ,Kristelh ,Lorekeeper ,Radtosan ,yoyogod ,AXC23 ,TheReadingReindeer ,Cecrow ,sdkennedy ,AnnaBookcritter ,nnah ,skid0612 ,westendgirl ,Watry ,reader517 ,brandymt ,SDanielson ,Airycat ,jayceebee ,TheDivineOomba ,Christilee394 ,hfglen ,NaggedMan ,Brandy1411 ,mclane ,monicamargolis ,geoffreymeadows
1
by Ted Chiang
4,387 members
211 reviews
4.2
Score 34.84
Added 2022-02-09, 12:57 PM
- 10 Members
- lorax, karenb, anglemark, charl08, KatyBee, johnlrice, timetunnel, ManWithAnAgenda, SDanielson, sqr3cls3
2
- 8 Members
- TheDivineOomba, Watry, Tess_W, ahef1963, ManWithAnAgenda, steller0707, Christilee394, Sofyyyy21
3
11,483 members
250 reviews
4.1
Score 29
Added 2022-02-11, 07:11 PM
- 9 Members
- charl08, terran, CarltonC, ahef1963, steller0707, sqr3cls3, Tosta, monicamargolis, -Pia-,Tess_W
- Explanations
- Tess_W : It is 208 pages in length.sqr3cls3: Is it possible to remove a thumbs down given for a misunderstanding? This is a collection of short stories, not one of her novels, so page numbers shouldn't apply.
4
- 8 Members
- rosalita, Tess_W, ahef1963, AbigailAdams26, dianeham, jkonecki, steller0707, Sofyyyy21
- Explanations
- AbigailAdams26: Just a lovely holiday tale, about love and the true nature of giving and receiving gifts.
5
14,270 members
235 reviews
4.1
Score 22.1
Added 2022-02-10, 03:43 PM
6
3,764 members
91 reviews
4.1
Score 21.66
Added 2022-02-08, 04:51 PM
- 6 Members
- rosalita, mstrust, sturlington, steller0707, MarianBengal, Sofyyyy21
- Explanations
- sturlington: I decided to list those stories that have remained with me all my life, in this case, the title story.
7
3,544 members
169 reviews
4
Score 20.23
Added 2022-02-09, 02:42 PM
- 6 Members
- madhatter22, KatyBee, johnlrice, dianeham, Radtosan, steller0707
8
5,063 members
140 reviews
4.1
Score 19.48
Added 2022-02-09, 03:43 PM
9
- 6 Members
- terran, elenchus, souloftherose, KatyBee, Brandy1411, MarianBengal
- Explanations
- elenchus: Each of the first 4 novellas in the Murderbot Diaries describes a self-contained story arc, and they're great fun, but it's the overarching discovery of SecUnit that compels me to read the next installment.
11
- 5 Members
- hipdeep, sturlington, madhatter22, tina1969, sdkennedy
- Explanations
- sturlington: I think this collection represents the epitome of King's short stories, a great mix of weird, trippy, scary, moody, and wtf.
12
15
5,614 members
118 reviews
3.8
Score 12.77
Added 2022-02-08, 07:42 PM
- 4 Members
- hipdeep, CarltonC, elenchus, ManWithAnAgenda
- Explanations
- elenchus: One of the original examples of linked stories in my reading life, and still a favourite.
16
1,191 members
42 reviews
½ 4.3
Score 12.6
Added 2022-02-11, 10:08 AM
- 4 Members
- Euryale, rarm, johnlrice, ManWithAnAgenda
17
333 members
4 reviews
3.9
Score 11.54
Added 2022-02-11, 11:06 AM
- 4 Members
- Euryale, rarm, Heather39, MarianBengal
18
2,627 members
92 reviews
3.9
Score 11.36
Added 2022-02-08, 03:35 PM
- 3 Members
- mstrust, AbigailAdams26, -Pia-
- Explanations
- AbigailAdams26: A story that makes me both weep and laugh.
20
2,066 members
104 reviews
3.9
Score 9.5
Added 2022-02-09, 08:37 AM
21
3,998 members
118 reviews
3.9
Score 9.02
Added 2022-02-09, 12:10 PM
23
2,185 members
28 reviews
3.9
Score 8.54
Added 2022-02-10, 07:37 PM
- 3 Members
- lorax, ManWithAnAgenda, MarianBengal
25
by Lucia Berlin
1,544 members
54 reviews
4.2
Score 8.03
Added 2022-02-09, 08:39 AM
- 3 Members
- charl08, Capybara_99, vwinsloe
27
28
376 members
½ 3.5
Score 8
Added 2022-02-08, 08:24 PM
31
by Tim O'Brien
13,261 members
372 reviews
4.2
Score 7.04
Added 2022-02-09, 09:40 AM
- 2 Members
- susanbooks, Tess_W
- Explanations
- Tess_W: Favorites: On the Rainy River and The Lives of the Dead
32
by Miranda July
2,902 members
89 reviews
½ 3.7
Score 7.04
Added 2022-02-09, 06:08 PM
- 2 Members
- EerierIdyllMeme, -Pia-
34
734 members
19 reviews
½ 4.3
Score 7.04
Added 2022-02-08, 04:43 PM
35
by Alice Munro
112 members
3 reviews
4.1
Score 7.04
Added 2022-02-23, 10:31 PM
- 2 Members
- cornerhouse, c_why
36
by Jacob Grimm
12,545 members
104 reviews
4.2
Score 6.91
Added 2022-02-08, 03:44 PM
- 3 Members
- mstrust, merrystar, AbigailAdams26,pperez333
- Explanations
- AbigailAdams26: I have loved fairy-tales since I was a young girl, and have read the complete Grimm many times through.
43
by Jean Giono
1,622 members
39 reviews
4.1
Score 6.73
Added 2022-02-09, 09:07 AM
- 2 Members
- EMS_24, perennialreader
- Explanations
- perennialreader: You can change your part of the world with a simple but repeated action.
44
45
465 members
15 reviews
4.1
Score 6.68
Added 2022-02-23, 06:04 PM
- 2 Members
- cornerhouse, Morphidae
- Explanations
- Morphidae: When I picked this collection up, I wasn't expecting much. I had read one other book by Butler, Kindred, and thought it was "okay." Then I was blown away by these stories. I don't know if it was the mood I was in or if they really were that good - ever been too afraid to reread something because you're afraid it wasn't as good as you thought it was? Yeah, that's me. However, it's been seven years. It's time...
46
48
by Tom Hanks
1,629 members
86 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 6.19
Added 2022-02-09, 04:09 AM
- 2 Members
- msjudy, TheReadingReindeer
- Explanations
- TheReadingReindeer: Collection of short stories on various themes, but all including a typewriter.
49
50
- 2 Members
- AbigailAdams26, dianeham
- Explanations
- AbigailAdams26: Specific story: "Wilderness Tips." A haunting tale I have never forgotten.
51
847 members
27 reviews
4
Score 6.04
Added 2022-02-27, 11:15 AM
52
485 members
4 reviews
4.2
Score 6.04
Added 2022-02-09, 09:08 PM
- 2 Members
- madhatter22, loulourevisited
53
- 2 Members
- brewergirl, sturlington
- Explanations
- sturlington: An altogether wonderful collection of haunting and melancholy stories. An elegy for the world.
54
by Ron Rash
255 members
12 reviews
4.1
Score 5.87
Added 2022-02-08, 10:19 PM
- 2 Members
- mrswebster, sqr3cls3
55
56
1,404 members
34 reviews
3.9
Score 5.71
Added 2022-02-10, 03:42 PM
57
210 members
20 reviews
4.2
Score 5.71
Added 2022-02-09, 09:51 PM
- 2 Members
- Aquila, paradoxosalpha
- Explanations
- paradoxosalpha: Imaginative tales featuring moral dilemmas of characters in transformed worlds, along with rich veins of emotion.
58
59
3,264 members
84 reviews
4
Score 5.66
Added 2022-02-08, 07:42 PM
- 2 Members
- brewergirl, elenchus
- Explanations
- elenchus: It's not commonly remarked, but this collection is linked by a character (The Tall Man in the Blue Suit) who mostly stays in the wings, if he appears in the story at all. But the original collection was subtitled, "Or, The Adventures of James Harris". Following the thread of this suit through the stories adds another dimension to each tale.
60
67
75
395 members
5 reviews
3.9
Score 4
Added 2022-02-08, 07:45 PM
81
by Mark Haddon
292 members
15 reviews
4.1
Score 4
Added 2022-02-09, 04:23 AM
- Member
- TheReadingReindeer
- Explanations
- TheReadingReindeer: I really enjoyed this collection of short stories and found them well written.
84
192 members
4 reviews
½ 4.5
Score 4
Added 2022-02-09, 09:39 PM
- Member
- paradoxosalpha
- Explanations
- paradoxosalpha: The best short fiction by a master of lapidary dark fantasy
87
94 members
1 review
½ 4.3
Score 4
Added 2022-02-09, 08:58 AM
- Member
- perennialreader
- Explanations
- perennialreader: These protagonists are, for the most part, outsiders looking in at more traditional families and their celebrations. My favorite is Silver Packages.
96
6 members
Score 4
Added 2022-02-08, 07:00 PM
- Member
- tardis
- Explanations
- tardis: On Spec is a fine magazine of short (and mostly Canadian) spec fic, poetry, etc. This collection contains some of my favourite stories, including the eponymous Casserole Diplomacy. Full disclosure: I was art director for them for 5 years and the eds are all good friends.
97
