# What's your favorite Short Story? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 4, 2001, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732 "2001-04-04T04:10:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Ned](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/848f3c/32.png) [@Ned](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ned)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/61 "2001-04-08T02:25:44Z")
Lots of wonderful choices that I would agree with in this thread and several that I haven’t read but have noted for the future. I think Heart of Darkness deserves a place here too. ---
**Author:** ![upperdeckfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/65b543/32.png) [@upperdeckfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/upperdeckfan)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/62 "2001-04-08T03:08:03Z")
A couple that come to mind - Leo Tolstoy : The Death of Ivan Ilych Karen Bender : Eternal Love For short story fans, I’ve found the annual Best American Short Stories series (houghton mifflin co.)to be very worthwhile reading. ---
**Author:** ![Man\_from\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Man\_from\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_from_Mars)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/63 "2001-04-08T03:29:43Z")
It’s hard to come up with a specific favorite, but I’ll mention a few of my personal favorites: The Cask of Amontillado, by Edgar Allan Poe My Kinsman, Major Molineaux, by Nathaniel Hawthorne The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson ---
**Author:** ![Ross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@Ross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ross)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/64 "2001-04-08T07:49:54Z")
[QUOTE] \*Originally posted by Ukulele Ike \* \*\* > [@](#): > > … it turns out that old Ray is not only a right-winger, but an ED MEESE right-winger. No shit…Meese with white hair and a big pair of horn-rims… > \*\* Ah, well. It’s amazing what’s true, as someone might have said once. I’m told TS Eliot was pretty right-wing himself. Anyhoo, the guy’s _old_… I don’t know who Ed Meese is, but y’know. People are assholes. That includes you and me. [Work with me here, people. I cannot allow myself not to like Bradbury] Now let’s write _Usher III,_ and never speak of this episode again. ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/65 "2001-04-08T20:37:49Z")
O. Henry is the master of the twist. Try “The Last Leaf”. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/66 "2001-04-08T21:11:09Z")
Sorry, my friend, but **Chubby Checker** is the master of the twist. ---
**Author:** ![Brennan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Brennan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brennan)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2001, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/67 "2001-04-09T06:39:13Z")
Is also my favorite. Conrad Aiken is really a forgotten marvel. ---
**Author:** ![barton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@barton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barton)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2001, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/68 "2001-04-09T14:58:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AV8R \* > \*\ ***For a Breath I Tarry** , by Roger Zelanzy > > After all humans on earth have died, conscious intelligent computers debate what it means to be a Man. One of them spends centuries sending out probes throughout the earth looking for artifacts and other evidence of man’s culture, and attempts to become a human. > > \*\* Second from me. The first one I thought of, automatically. ---
**Author:** ![DynoSaur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DynoSaur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DynoSaur)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2001, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/69 "2001-04-10T07:31:15Z")
I’ll go with \*\* The Star\*\* by Arthur C. Clarke. At least, I think that’s the name… and **The Mangler** by Stephen King is pretty damn good, too… ---
**Author:** ![berdollos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@berdollos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/berdollos)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2001, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/70 "2001-04-10T07:36:14Z")
“dream of a … man” I forgot the adjective, it is a short story about the transformation of human nature. ---
**Author:** ![berdollos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@berdollos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/berdollos)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2001, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/71 "2001-04-10T07:46:37Z")
Dream of a Ridiculous Man A great short story that changed my life. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2001, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/72 "2001-04-14T14:29:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Superdude \* > “The End of the Whole Mess” is, IMHO, one of the best short stories King has written (if you’re referring to the one from “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” that is written from first-person as the narrator is slowly losing his memory). I’m not a big King fan (the uncut _The Stand_ nearly killed me), but I have a thing for interesting narrative points of view, so I got hold of this and read it. The narrator is dying, actually, but the effect on the story is essentially the same. It was an good story with lots of fun moments. Thanks to both Dopers who recommended it! ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2001, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/73 "2001-04-14T14:41:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pepperlandgirl \* > **Silent Snow, Secret Snow** (Can’t Remember the author) > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Brennan_ > **Silent Snow Secret Snow** > Is also my favorite. Conrad Aiken is really a forgotten marvel. Nothing to add but my hearty agreement. “Postin’ ‘me too!’ Like some brain-dead AOLer” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2001, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/74 "2001-04-14T22:35:39Z")
I can’t believe no one has mentioned Heinlein’s short stories. A few of his best: “The Green Hills of Earth” “The Long Watch” “Life-Line” “The Man who Sold the Moon” “Requiem” In mainstream fiction, I like a lot of Hemingway’s short stories. Ambrose Bierce’s “An Occurance at Owl Creek Bridge” is great stuff. Or Richard Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game”. My favorite short story (actually a novella) would be “Flowers for Algernon”. It was later padded out into a novel, but the shorter work is better, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![pluto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f08c70/32.png) [@pluto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pluto)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2001, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732/75 "2001-04-15T05:12:58Z")
**"The Rocking Horse Winner"** by D.H. Lawrence is far and away my favorite short story. But I’ll second **pepperlandgirl’s** vote for **“Young Goodman Brown”**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-short-story/60732.md?page=3)