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Twenty Grand Short Stories, Bantam
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May 15, 2021
Short stories by twenty-somethings for YA readers. Not really my cup of tea as an adult reader committed to no-fiction, but I dived in. At a high-level, no stories about youths finding they are magically powerfully and cosmically important in a setting of fantastic enemies and dire threats as seems to be what youths are reading when I talk to to them. These stories are very down to earth about the human condition, by and large. Many have pained, tragic endings like a phone call from a new boy that will never come ("Sixteen" by Maureen Daly). That are some top-shelf writers that of course stand out: Steinbeck, Sinclair Lewis, Irwin Shaw, etc. That one that really knocked me out was the tragic tale of one blind child's cruel taunting: "Clothe the Naked" by Dorothy Parker. Even the writer's bio here points to as superlative for her specifically and generally.
"Clothe the Naked" by Dorothy Parker ran in Scribners, January 1938, pp. 31-35.
They were actually cruel jeers.
"Clothe the Naked" by Dorothy Parker ran in Scribners, January 1938, pp. 31-35.
Raymond goes out alone while Big Lannie is at work, and his excitement in preparing for the excursion is barely contained. "As he folded the sleeves back over his thin arms, his heart beat so that the cloth above it fluttered."
He heard the laughter once again, but:
"As quickly as he could, he gained the walk and set forth, guiding himself by the fence. He could not wait; he called out, so that he would hear gay calls...
They were actually cruel jeers.
Displaying 1 of 1 review