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Design by Amber of Shelf Notes |
Today we’re giving love to those little stories in our lives. These are my recommendations for short story collections and novellas by genre. I’m a huge fan of shorts, so I got a little carried away when working on this topic. (Also, I promise I don’t work for CCLaP or anything! They just publish a lot of short works, and I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve read so far). I’ve divided my recommendations into three categories: coming of age literary fiction, sci-fi and speculative fiction, and quirky reads with elements of surrealism and magical realism.

Adé: A Love Story by Rebecca Walker – American & Swahili Muslim fall in love
Women Float by Maureen Foley – complex female relationships
four sparks fall by T.A. Noonan – teenage pressures; very unique layout!
Late Lights by Kara Weiss – overcoming the hand life deals you

S Is for Space by Ray Bradbury – classic sci-fi!
Sad Robot Stories by Mason Johnson – robots, post-apocalyptic
Life After Sleep by Mark Brand – society transformed by technology
Long Live Us by Mark Brand – vivid characters and scenarios

Safe As Houses by Marie Helene Bertino – strange, fantastical, yet down-to-earth
The Color Master by Aimee Bender – fables, social commentary, surreal
xo Orpheus edited by Kate Bernheimer – large collection, reimagined mythology
Lungs Full of Noise by Tessa Mellas – bizarre, outlandish, loved every story
And because I’m a huge Haruki Murakami fan, of course I have to include his short story collections in my recommendations for this genre, especially as an introduction to his writing:
Do you enjoy reading short stories and/or novellas? What are some of your favorites?