Tag Archives: short stories

Podcast (March): Ernest Hemingway Stories

In 2020 The Catholic Reading Challenge is reading 24 different short stories by 12 different authors. Each month we will focus on one author, reading two stories by that author. During each of our bi-weekly podcast episodes (on the 15th & 30th of the month) we will discuss the stories in turn.

We are reading stories by Ernest Hemingway in March, and here are our selections:

Both of these stories can be found in a collection like this one that we have on our bookshelf. If you want to print off free versions of these stories, there are PDF versions:

“The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”

“In Another Country”

Hemingway is going to be a pretty different read from O’Connor and Forster, both in style and themes. Also, our second story is really short! I think we will have some interesting discussions about theme and what an author is able to accomplish in a very few pages. As we’ve discussed before, good authors capture reality, what they know to be true of the world. It’s always fascinating to see how perspective differs between authors, where it is that each one chooses to focus the gaze.

Copyright 2019 Jessica Ptomey

Podcast (February): E. M. Forster Stories

In 2020 The Catholic Reading Challenge is reading 24 different short stories by 12 different authors. Each month we will focus on one author, reading two stories by that author. During each of our bi-weekly podcast episodes (on the 15th & 30th of the month) we will discuss the stories in turn.

We are reading stories by E. M. Forster in February, and here are our selections:

The only Forster that I have read is “The Celestial Omnibus”, and I was so amazed by it that I thought we should include Forster in our selection of authors for the year. You have probably heard of his famous novels, a couple of which have been made into films, even if his name is new to you.

Both of these stories can be found in this Kindle collection that is only 99 cents! It contains other stories and four of his most famous novels, which is a fantastic deal. You could find these stories in other paperbacks if you prefer. If you want to print off free versions of these stories, I did find PDF versions of “The Celestial Omnibus” and “The Machine Stops”. You can also search YouTube for some free audio recordings of these.

I’m really looking forward to our podcast discussions of these! I think the conversation will take us important places.

Copyright 2019 Jessica Ptomey

Podcast (January): Flannery O’Connor Stories

As we announced a couple of months ago on The Catholic Reading Challenge, we will be spending 2020 reading 24 different short stories by 12 different authors. Each month we will focus on one author, reading two stories by that author. During each of our bi-weekly podcast episodes (on the 15th & 30th of the month) we will discuss the stories in turn.

We are starting our year of short stories with the person who is arguably the master of the genre — Flannery O’Connor. Here are our selections:

Both of these stories can be found in this complete paperback collection of O’Connor stories. I did find PDF versions of “The Displaced Person” and “Parker’s Back” that you can easily print off too.

Those who are already familiar with O’Connor’s work need no introduction to her. But for those of you who have never read her stories, I would say this: she is probably unlike anything that you have ever read. In fact, for most of us who have grown up in a thoroughly modern (philosophically) world, her writing will probably be shocking. Well, that was her intent. She strategically employed violence in her stories (whether symbolic or physical) to “shake” her audience awake to truth about themselves. We will discuss her methods and common themes this month on the podcast. And we will dive in with our discussion of “The Displaced Person” in our first episode of the new year. Mike and I are looking forward to this discussion!

Copyright 2019 Jessica Ptomey