Short Stories: A Gateway to New Authors

There are lots of ways to find new favorite authors. At the library you can always ask a librarian for suggestions, or request a book list through My Next Read, but sometimes it feels like a lot to commit to a whole novel. Short stories are a great way to try an author's work and get a taste of their style in a single sitting!  

Short story anthologies contain stories from several different authors, usually centered around a particular genre or topic. Here are some recommended anthologies:

• Tablet & Pen: Literary Landscapes from the Modern Middle East: A Words Without Borders Anthology by Reza Aslan
• Hokum: An Anthology of African-American Humor by Paul Beatty
• The Diné Reader: An Anthology of Navajo Literature by Ester G. Berlin
• Jewish American Literature: A Norton Anthology by Jules Chametzky
• Shaking the Tree: A Collection of New Fiction and Memoir by Black Women by Meri Nana-Ama Danquah
• The Best Horror of the Year by Ellen Datlow
• The Storied South: Voices of Writers and Artists by William R. Ferris
• Fools in Love: Fresh Twists on Romantic Tales by Ashley Herring Blake and Rebecca Podos
• The Norton Anthology of Latino Literature by Ilan Stavans
• Love After the End: An Anthology of Two-Spirit & Indigiqueer Speculative Fiction by Joshua Whitehead
• The Future Is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin and The Future is Female! More Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women: Volume Two: The 1970s by Lisa Yaszek

You can also browse many volumes of “Best of” collections. These come out each year with a fantastic selection of stories:

• The Best American Short Stories
• The Best Short Stories of... O. Henry Prize Winners
• The Best American Mystery Stories
• The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy

There are also anthologies based on the work of a single author. These collections gather writing from several authors who were all inspired by the same person. If you like Agatha Christie, check out Marple: Twelve New Mysteries. Or if science fiction is more your thing, check out Octavia’s Brood: Science Fiction Stories from Social Justice Movements ed. by adrienne maree brown for stories inspired by the author Octavia Bulter.

If you read a story that you really enjoy, often you can find more work by that author. They might write short fiction and have a collection of their work, or they might have published a novel or essay collection. Visit our catalog and search by author to see what else we might have.

There are many wonderful short story anthologies in our collection and available on OverDrive! If you need help finding the right one, you can always submit a My Next Read request or contact us through our Ask a Librarian service (green tab on the right side of our website). We hope you find something new and exciting to enjoy in the coming year!