Short story collections of the year 2010

There's been a resurgence of late in short stories, with a rising number of literature nights, new online portals and apps for the form and celebration from other writers. So we thought we'd give you our short story collections of the year...

Things We Didn't See Coming

by Steven Amsterdam

Harvill Secker

These apocalyptic stories make an oddly reassuring read. In the face of fire, flood, draught and plague, people remain basically the same they tell us. We are violent, tribal, insecure - yes - but creative, loving and cooperative too.

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Echoes

by Laura Dockrill

HarperCollins

The new book from Laura Dockrill is a collection of modern-day fairytales, poems and retellings of classic stories, all with a slightly sinister edge. Reminiscent of Roald Dahl, Tim Burton and even Grimm, the stories take on a not-quite supernatural...

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The Spot

by David Means

Faber

This short collection of short short stories all take place in a particular 'spot'. The singular sense of place in each story gives the eccentrics, hoboes, lowlifes and meanos a specific place to carve their loneliness and reflection.

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Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It

by Maile Meloy

Canongate

The characters in these eleven stories include a love-struck young ranch hand, an aging Argentine lover, a self-involved grandmother who comes back from the dead, and two hitchhikers named Bonnie and Clyde. All of them are caught between opposing forces:...

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The Theory of Light and Matter

by Andrew Porter

Jonathan Cape

This debut collection of stories introduces a new and distinctive voice in American fiction. Porter has a unique and quietly heartbreaking range, examining everyone from small children to the disappointed adults they become. This might sound depressing, but there are...

Read about 'The Theory of Light and Matter'