Hi all,
In June, the 6th month, I read 6 short stories… Which sounds rather neat and satisfying, does it not? We could pretend this was on purpose! (To be frank, June was simply not built to be a reading month and this was not a surprise. Some months are like that.)
So given it’s a short and sweet rec list either way, trying a new format this time and listing all the stories! So here are the 6 I read:
Office Hours and Los Angeles - Ling Ma. Of all 6 stories, Office Hours was definitely my favourite. Normally, the initial setting and characters would have put me off reading further but I’m glad Ling Ma’s writing is so engagingly lovely that I did stick with it because the development of the story (the genres of it…) was delicious. It’s hard to explain the story without giving away too much! But the ‘disappearing woman’, the film class commentary, and the lake… Such a wonderfully crafted short story!
Also, in news that feels like it was designed for me personally, was so very happy to discover at the end of this one that Ling Ma is publishing a magical realism short story collection (Bliss Montage) later this year! Look forward to reading more from them.The Coward Who Stole God’s Name - John Wiswell. What if you interviewed the most adored person alive? What if they wanted the world to hate them? Pop culture references aren’t my favourite but despite that, this had a rather unsettling atmosphere to it. Made me think of parasocial relationships a fair bit.
Arbitrium - Anjali Sachdeva. A diplomat submerged in conduction medium to reach a diplomatic agreement with viruses who communicate to her via her memories of her daughter… What a concept huh.
Two Hands, Wrapped in Gold - S.B. Divya
The Mathematics of Fairyland - Phoebe Barton
Didn’t I say this would be short! And I imagine July’s will also be rather brief - summer break means I have the time (!) and energy (!!!) to catch up on reading some novels/collections. [Summer being the best time for me to read leads to some delightfully discordant experiences such as reading The Haunting of Hill House during a heatwave esque day eating ice cream. Would recommend - both Hill House and reading horror on a warm day]
Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer and happy reading as always!
Y.
Read all of these :) My favourites were the last two.