Alice Munro Won the Nobel! Celebrate the Short Story With 10 Other Masters of the Form
Where were you when you found out that Alice Munro won the Nobel Prize? I was woken up out of a deep sleep because my aunt texted me, clearly thinking that I am a better person than I actually am, that I am, in fact, the kind of person who wants to be woken up at 7am with the breaking news of the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature. But so, I was happy that Munro won. I was happy because I love Munro—”The Bear Came Over the Mountain” is still one of the most profoundly affecting things I’ve ever read. But I was also happy because I love short stories as a form, and was happy to see a short story writer get the acclaim that she deserves. And so in honor of Munro (who, obviously, you should read and read and read again), I thought it would be a good time to highlight some other masters of the form. Some of these writers focus primarily on short fiction, and others write novels as well (and are perhaps better known for longer form writing), but all of them have elevated short fiction to heights that are rarely seen in any kind of literature.