000 01683nam a2200169 4500
020 _a9780395926833
024 _a42442490
050 _aPS648.S5
082 _a808.83
100 1 _aAmy Tan
245 1 _aThe Best American Short Stories 1999
260 _bHoughton Mifflin
_c1999
300 _a320 pages
520 _a"What I look for most in a story," writes Amy Tan in her introduction to this year's volume of The Best American Short Stories, "what I crave, what I found in these twenty-one, is a distinctive voice that tells a story only that voice can tell." Tan found herself drawn to wonderfully original stories that satisfied her appetite for the magic and mystery she loved as a child, when she was addicted to fairy tales. In this vibrant collection, fantasy and truth coexist brilliantly in new works by writers such as Annie Proulx, Lorrie Moore, Nathan Englander, and Pam Houston. "The Sun, the Moon, the Stars," by Junot Diaz, features a young man trying to stave off heartbreak in a sacred cave in Santo Domingo. In "Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter," by Chitra Divakaruni, a mother moves from India to California to be closer to her son, only to sacrifice something crucial along the way. In Melissa Hardy's haunting story "The Uncharted Heart," a geologist unearths a shocking secret in the wilds of northern Ontario. "Maybe I'm still that kid who wants to see things I've never seen before," writes Tan. "I like being startled by images I never could have conjured up myself." With twenty-one tales, each a fabulously rich journey into a different world, The Best American Short Stories 1999 is sure to surprise and delight.
650 _aShort Stories
999 _c4368
_d4368