Short stories are my absolute favourite form of literature (and writing – joint with poetry!). Utterly cluttered are the marginalia of every short story I consume/inhale. The gentle and explosive rhythm of the narrative; the way the plot unravels in the story; the twist potential; the preoccupation with time and the ability to give the impression of time expanding as the story is contracting; the heavy, heady significance of every carefully chosen word; the fact that you can be absorbed in several stories within an hour of reading…

I read Kate Chopin’s ‘A Pair of Silk Stockings’ – about a woman who suddenly finds herself in possession of a bit of money. It’s only 8 pages long and utterly enthralling.

★★★★★

The Awakening and Selected Stories by Kate Chopin. Penguin Classics.