"A nomad I will remain for life, in love with distant and uncharted places." -Isabelle Eberhardt
"A nomad I will remain for life, in love with distant and uncharted places." -Isabelle Eberhardt
Favorite Short Story Collections
Aimee Geurts • Mar 28, 2020

My last post ended up being about Richard Brautigan but it was supposed to be a list of my favorite short story collections. I got a little bogged down by my love for his writing and revisiting his work. And that’s ok!

Inspired by my impending short story class at Lighthouse Writers Workshop , here’s a list of a few of my favorite short story collections:

Better Than Fiction 2: True Adventures From 30 Great Fiction Writers : I’m sure there is a Better Than Fiction 1 however, I was gifted the 2nd edition so that’s what I’m going with. This is a collection of travel adventures from fiction writers. It’s been a great example for me on how to think about writing about my travels. Also, it’s just entertaining!

The Color Master by Aimee Bender: I can’t remember if I read this first or Bender’s lovely work of fiction called, The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake first but either way, I love her writing. Whether full-lengtthh fiction or short stories, Bender certainly has a way with words. She also contributed to xo Orpheus: Fifty New Myths , which I would recommend as well.

Wild Ducks Flying Backward: The Short Writings of Tom Robbins : I have read Robbins’ Jitterbug Perfume a handful of times. I love it. I was going through my bookshelf a few days before my latest trip and I saw my copy of this short writing collection. I was in the mood of getting rid of things I haven’t used and I thought, I’ve had that for years. I’m clearly never going to read it, I should get rid of it. And then I remembered short story class! So instead, I started to read it. It’s mostly essays and articles he wrote about travels and musicians with a few stories and even some country song lyrics. His phrases are like no other and I’m glad I picked it up instead of giving it away.

Where the Light Falls: Selected Stories of Nancy Hale : I can’t remember where I heard about this one but I remember them saying Nancy Hale had been forgotten and rediscovered. I was really enjoying these stories and then the book was due back at the library so I didn’t get to finish them. I will be requesting it again as soon as I can enjoy the library again.

The Book of Delights : This is a collection of essays written by poet Ross Gay. He set out everyday to document on experience that delighted him. It’s such a funny, warm and endearing collection.

And last but not least…. 100 Years of the Best American Short Stories . Need I say more?

I have had the Joyce Carol Oates collection FOREVER but have never read it so I can’t say anything. But it was on the coffee table so it made the photo🙂

 

 

 

 

 

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By Aimee Geurts 07 Feb, 2023
An Ode to Midge
By Aimee Geurts 29 Jan, 2023
A poem
By Aimee Geurts 20 Jan, 2023
In Great Circle Jaime says, “The compromise is that I’m living day to day without making any sweeping decisions.” I realize I have fallen into this way of thinking. Whispering to myself, everything is fine today. Although I do still enjoy imagining other lives, get caught up in the swell of possibility, for the first time in a long time I feel settled.  Jamie’s sister Marian says, “Is that compromise? It sounds a bit like procrastination. You don’t think you’ll go back to being how you were before, do you?” I know I won’t go back to being how I was before. I know that today. I’m not sure what I’ll know tomorrow. Reading articles about women realizing they are tired of working the corporate ladder and feel vindicated in my low-paying jobs with no benefits. When the farmer in Spain doesn’t reply to my emails about a room and board work agreement, when the Airbnb host in Greece offers me his camper van instead of his home, I decide it’s all too much and I give up. I’m not upset about it. I’m relieved. Instead, I make easy plans to see the Redwood Forest, right here in the good ol’ U. S. of A. I plan to stop in Medicine Bow, WY on my way from Denver to Bismarck next time I’m there. My next adventure is right around the corner instead of a nine-hour flight away. I make plans to make less plans. I stop looking for more jobs. The low-paying jobs I have now are quite fulfilling and they pay me enough to cover my health insurance and put a little aside. What they give me is time. Time to have lunch with my sister-in-law on her birthday. Time to take a 4-day weekend to see my new niece. Time to take a walk downtown on a Wednesday and bring Roxy a sandwich while she slings books at the low-paying bookstore where I no longer work. Time to read all the books in my house. Time to volunteer in the middle of the day. Call it compromise. Call it procrastination. I call it feeling settled.
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