Chekhov: The Lady With The Little Dog.

Anton Chekhov was a genius. His stories are written so elegantly that it is difficult to choose just one among his many great stories. "The Lady With The Little Dog" is a masterpiece. A great text to begin my holiday readings.

There is a 1960 film based on this story that you can watch here.

Chile: Roberto Bolaño

I have just come back from Santiago, Chile. When I travel, I usually try to find out about local short story writers. This time, I already knew what I wanted: Roberto Bolaño´s books. I only read my first story by this fantastic writer about three years ago, and since then I have been longing for more of his sophisticated stories.

Here is one of his stories: Sensini.

You can read an article about Bolaño in the New York Times.

You can learn more about Roberto Bolaño here.

Writers and their websites: Road Dahl

Some writers have such well-designed web sites that it would be a pity not to publicise them as much as possible. This is the case of Road Dahl. His website is full of treats. For example, there you can listen to the man himself talking about his craft. Definitely worth a visit.

Also, you can read one of his stories "Beware of the Dog" here.

And the winner is...

The BBC Radio 4 neglected classic chosen by most people was Michael Morpugo´s choice The Snow Goose, by Paul Gallico. And guess what? It is a novella, almost a short story. It seems to be such a powerful slim volume that we all ought to read it.

Enjoy the story here.

Neglected classics

I know the blog is about short story , but BBC Radio 4 will announce today the winner of "Neglected Classic" , i.e., a book that deserves to be read, or re-read, and that has been neglected over the years. Therefore, please, allow me.

Ten great authors have advocated in favour of their preferred book and the public has voted. You can listen to the podcasts in which writers such as Colm Toibin, Ruth Rendell, Joanna Trollope and Michael Morpugo talk about their favourite classics. My vote is also for Colm Toibin´s choice Esther Waters, by George Moore. I read it years ago and Mr. Toibin is absolutely right: you cannot forget Esther. The result will be on today at 4pm (GMT)

You can find most of the classics (if not all of them!) here.

Paul Theroux for the Weekend

I love Paul Theroux´s writings. Fact or fiction, I find him highly entertaining. My suggestion for the weekend is this story, The Lower River, published by The New Yorker.

You can also read Mr. Theroux´s controversial article on celebrities helping Africa.

Or watch a short video with Mr. Theroux talking about writing.

Rana Dasgupta

One of the things I like about reading is that it gives me an opportunity to dive into a totally new world. This is what I felt when I read Rana Dasgupta´s story The Flyover. His prose strikes me as fluent, cosmopolitan and unforgettable. One of those stories that remains with you long after you finished reading it.

Mr. Dasgupta´s website is very creative and worth visiting.

Also, you can read an article on The Guardian about Rana Dasgupta´s first novel, Tokyo Cancelled.

Hemingway: A Very Short Story

Hemingway´s stories are all about saying the maximum with the minimum. Also, his tales have a haunting quality about them. I still think about the first text by Hemingway I read : The Snows of Kilimanjaro.

Here is "A very Short Story", by Ernest Hemingway.

And here is a video about Hemingway´s life.

Short stories for EFL learners

Reading short stories in a language we are learning is a great way to enlarge our vocabulary. If you are learning English the number of stories available on the net is enormous.

Please, take a look at this link. Or this one for more advanced readers.

Lorrie Moore

I just love reading The New Yorker. Its Poetry and Fiction column gives me the opportunity of discovering new (to me!) short story writers. This is what happened when I came across this story by Lorrie Moore, "Childcare".

Nadine Gordimer

As today is Nelson Mandela´s birthday, here is the great Nadine Gordimer reading one of her short stories: 'The Loot', from the book "The Loot and Other Stories".

Writers on Writing

As a reader, I always find fascinating to know more about writers and their writing process. It seems I´m not alone on this one. The New York Times has published a series on the topic.

And talking about writers, the Guardian has a series called Writers´room, also very interesting.

An ideal family, by Katherine Mansfield

Is there such a thing as "an ideal family"? Katherine Mansfield´s story invites us to think about this.

You can listen to the story here.

Sin Dolor, by T. Coragheesan Boyle

This is the first story by T. Coragheesan Boyle I read. And what a disturbing - in a good way - tale! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

If you want to know more about the author, visit his website.

Julian Barnes

If you have not read any books by Julian Barnes, you do not know what you are missing. His prose is elegant, sophisticated and very, very clever. I just love his books. Here is a short story, and also a great site that will help you to know a bit more about Barnes: 10 Reasons why we love Julian Barnes.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Audio

I have just found this audio recording of "The curious case of Benjamin Button" on the net. Enjoy it!

Adventures in communal reading

The idea of meeting a bunch of people to discuss my readings has always puzzled me. Reading is such a solitary activity...anyway, for those of you who have always wanted to be part of a book club but could not for some reason, the waiting is over: The New Yorker has got The Book Club. At the moment, they are discussing Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates. There are some interesting points being made.

Daisy Miller, by Henry James

At the moment, I am reading the wonderful novel, written by Colm Tóibín , The Master; a fictional biography of Henry James. And I cannot stop thinking about how much I want to read (or re-read) all of Henry James´ books, as well as all the ones by Colm Toíbín.

Here is a novella by Henry James, Daisy Miller. It talks - not only, but also - about Europeans versus Americans, and I believe is a great start to my(re)readings of Henry James´works.

Araby

This is a short story from one of my favourite books by James Joyce: Dubliners. You can listen to this story here.

Anton Chekhov

Chekhov was a master and here is a set of stories in audio format: Collected Short Stories, by Anton Chekhov.

The Late Story

BBC Radio 4 is a wonderful website. There are loads of programmes about arts and literature, in general. Try their late stories page.

1000 novels everyone must read: the definitive list

Whenever I come across lists such as this one published in The Guardian, I get a little sad. So many good novels and so little time to read them. Take a look at the list and see if your favourite books have made to the top 1000.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I love to watch a film based on good stories. Even if it is just to compare and find the story much better than the director´s vision.

This story by Scott Fitzgerald is unforgettable. And, by the way, so is the film.

I´m back...Europeana is back!

The problem with blogs is that you must... keep them! After some time away, I´m back. Just like Europeana.

New Year, new stories!

It is quite easy to find classic stories online. Sometimes, I am even lucky enough to find an audio recording of them. However, it is a difficult task to find more contemporary stories to share with you. That is why a visit to the Short Story Website is a must for all those interested in reading new writers.