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American Flash Fiction: An Anthology

Edited by David L. Ulin

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Overview
Table of Contents
Contributors

Overview

The hundred writers in this dazzling new collection show that less can indeed be more. American Flash Fiction celebrates the beguiling art of the very short story across a century and a half of American literary history, from Mark Twain and Bret Harte to Rabih Alameddine, Venita Blackburn, and Diane Williams. These flash fictions, as they began to be called in the 1980s, explore the imaginative possibilities of brevity for satire, horror, speculative fiction, crime fiction, protest fiction, metafiction, naturalism, minimalism, postmodernism, and other modes that resist easy categorization. Some read like modern-day parables or fractured fables, or resonate with the revelatory surprise of a koan. Some are lyrical, or recall the unsettling logic of dreams. Many seem to contain worlds or traverse vast imaginative territory, while others quietly frame a moment, a feeling, or a relationship. All are full of “unexpected depths and sustaining energy,” as David L. Ulin writes in his introduction, and will invite readers to return to them again and again with fascination and delight.

David L. Ulin is the books editor of Alta and former book editor of the Los Angeles Times. A 2015 Guggenheim Fellow, he is the author or editor of more than a dozen books, including Sidewalking: Coming to Terms with Los Angeles, The Lost Art of Reading: Books and Resistance in a Troubled Time, and most recently the novel Thirteen Question Method. For Library of America, he has edited Writing Los Angeles: A Literary Anthology and The Joan Didion Collection.

This special publication features full-cloth binding, acid-free paper, and a unique design with specifications differing from those of Library of America series titles.
Table of Contents

Introduction by David L. Ulin

Mark Twain, Aurelia’s Unfortunate Young Man
Bret Harte, Waiting for the Ship
William Dean Howells, Incident
Lafcadio Hearn, A Creole Mystery
Charles W. Chesnutt, A Virginia Chicken
Charlotte Perkins Gilman, An Extinct Angel
Ambrose Bierce, The Ingenious Patriot
Sadakichi Hartmann, Critical Moments
Kate Chopin, The Story of an Hour
Alice Dunbar-Nelson, A Carnival Jangle
O. Henry, Something for Baby
George Ade, The Feud
Stephen Crane, The Upturned Face
Paul Laurence Dunbar, An Old-Time Christmas
Sui Sin Far, What About the Cat?
Gertrude Stein, Ada
W.E.B. Du Bois, The Call
Anita Loos, Plagiarism
Sherwood Anderson, Paper Pills
Djuna Barnes, Finale
H. P. Lovecraft, The Terrible Old Man
Fenton Johnson, The Minister
Jean Toomer, Calling Jesus
Edna St. Vincent Millay, Look Me Up
Ernest Hemingway, Cat in the Rain
Dorothy Parker, Dialogue at Three in the Morning
Zora Neale Hurston, ’Possum or Pig?
Wallace Thurman, Cordelia the Crude
Katherine Anne Porter, Magic
James T. Farrell, Slob
Ben Hecht, The A
Laura Riding, Experts Are Puzzled
James Thurber, If Grant Had Been Drinking at Appomattox
William Carlos Williams, The Knife of the Times
Dawn Powell, Bon Voyage
Dashiell Hammett, Albert Pastor at Home
Dorothy West, The Black Dress
Langston Hughes, Racket
John Steinbeck, Breakfast
Eudora Welty, A Piece of News
Nancy Hale, The Last Time
Carlos Bulosan, The Soldier
Shirley Jackson, Charles
David Goodis, The Time of Your Kill
Carson McCullers, Art and Mr. Mahoney
Charles Jackson, In the Chair
Richard Matheson, Born of Man and Woman
Martha Gellhorn, The German
John Cheever, Reunion
Joe Brainard, Nancy
Damon Knight, Shall the Dust Praise Thee?
Richard Brautigan, Greyhound Tragedy
Grace Paley, Wants
Alice Walker, The Flowers
Paul Auster, Pages for Kafka
Patricia Highsmith, The Dancer
Jayne Anne Phillips, Cheers
Gayl Jones, Asylum
Carolyn Forché, The Colonel
Jamaica Kincaid, Girl
Robert Coover, In Bed One Night
Mary Robison, Yours
Lucia Berlin, My Jockey
Ann Beattie, Snow
Donald Barthelme, The Baby
James Purdy, Dawn
Robert Hass, A Story About the Body
E. L. Doctorow, The Water Works
Amy Hempel, The Man in Bogotá
Joyce Carol Oates, August Evening
Susan Minot, Blow
Raymond Carver, Lemonade
Tim O’Brien, Style
Sandra Cisneros, My Lucy Friend Who Smells Like Corn
Sam Shepard, Packing
Kenneth Koch, Negative Blood
Guy Davenport, And
Amiri Baraka, Rhythm Travel
Gina Berriault, The Woman in the Rose-Colored Dress
Yusef Komunyakaa, Nude Interrogation
Annie Proulx, 55 Miles to the Gas Pump
David Foster Wallace, Incarnations of Burned Children
Lydia Davis, Happiest Moment
Lydia Millet, Walking Bird
Lynne Tillman, More Sex
Junot Díaz, Alma
Amelia Gray, AM:51
Ben Loory, The Book
Peter Orner, Foley’s Pond
Sofia Samatar, How I Met the Ghoul
Steven Millhauser, Home Run
Joy Williams, The Brain
Lore Segal, Divorce
Amber Sparks, Mildly Unhappy, with Moments of Joy
Thomas Pierce, Tardy Man
Rabih Alameddine, Break
Venita Blackburn, Fam
Rion Amilcar Scott, Jane Death Theory #13
Danielle Dutton, Acorn
Diane Williams, Live a Little

Notes
Sources & Acknowledgments
Index of Authors
Contributors
George Ade
Rabih Alameddine
Sherwood Anderson
Paul Auster
Amiri Baraka
Djuna Barnes
Donald Barthelme
Ann Beattie
Lucia Berlin
Gina Berriault
Ambrose Bierce
Venita Blackburn
Joe Brainard
Richard Brautigan
Carlos Bulosan
Raymond Carver
John Cheever
Charles W. Chesnutt
Kate Chopin
Sandra Cisneros
Robert Coover
Stephen Crane
Guy Davenport
Lydia Davis
Junot Díaz
E. L. Doctorow
W.E.B. Du Bois
Paul Laurence Dunbar
Alice Dunbar-Nelson
Danielle Dutton
Sui Sin Far
James T. Farrell
Carolyn Forché
Martha Gellhorn
Charlotte Perkins Gilman
David Goodis
Amelia Gray
Nancy Hale
Dashiell Hammett
Bret Harte
Sadakichi Hartmann
Robert Hass
Lafcadio Hearn
Ben Hecht
Ernest Hemingway
Amy Hempel
O. Henry
Patricia Highsmith
William Dean Howells
Langston Hughes
Zora Neale Hurston
Charles Jackson
Shirley Jackson
Fenton Johnson
Gayl Jones
Jamaica Kincaid
Damon Knight
Kenneth Koch
Yusef Komunyakaa
Ben Loory
Anita Loos
H. P. Lovecraft
Richard Matheson
Carson McCullers
Edna St. Vincent Millay
Lydia Millet
Steven Millhauser
Susan Minot
Joyce Carol Oates
Tim O’Brien
Peter Orner
Grace Paley
Dorothy Parker
Jayne Anne Phillips
Thomas Pierce
Katherine Anne Porter
Dawn Powell
Annie Proulx
James Purdy
Laura Riding
Mary Robison
Sofia Samatar
Rion Amilcar Scott
Lore Segal
Sam Shepard
Amber Sparks
Gertrude Stein
John Steinbeck
James Thurber
Wallace Thurman
Lynne Tillman
Jean Toomer
Mark Twain
Alice Walker
David Foster Wallace
Eudora Welty
Dorothy West
Diane Williams
Joy Williams
William Carlos Williams

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ISBN: 978-1-59853-853-3 371 pages

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