Synopsis

Best British Short Stories invites you to judge a book by its cover – or more accurately, by its title. This new series aims to reprint the best short stories published in the previous calendar year by British writers, whether based in the UK or elsewhere. The editor’s brief is wide ranging, covering anthologies, collections, magazines, newspapers and web sites, looking for the best of the bunch to reprint all in one volume. Neither genre nor Granta shall be overlooked in the search for the very best new short fiction.

The first book of the series includes stories published in 2010 by the following authors: David Rose, Hilary Mantel, Lee Rourke, Leone Ross, Claire Massey, Christopher Burns, Adam Marek, SJ Butler, Heather Leach, Alan Beard, Kirsty Logan, Philip Langeskov, Bernie McGill, John Burnside, Robert Edric, Michèle Roberts, Dai Vaughan, Alison Moore and Salley Vickers.

Table of Contents

Flora – David Rose
Winter Break – Hilary Mantel
Emergency Exit – Lee Rourke
Love Silk Food – Leone Ross
Feather Girls – Claire Massey
Foreigner – Christopher Burns
Dinner of the Dead Alumni – Adam Marek
The Swimmer – SJ Butler
So Much Time in a Life – Heather Leach
Staff Development – Alan Beard
The Rental Heart – Kirsty Logan
Notes on a Love Story – Philip Langeskov
No Angel – Bernie McGill
Slut’s Hair – John Burnside
Comma – Hilary Mantel
Moving Day – Robert Edric
Tristram and Isolde – Michèle Roberts
Looted – Dai Vaughan
When the Door Closed, It Was Dark – Alison Moore
Epiphany – Salley Vickers

Praise for this Book

‘An assiduous champion of the short story’ —Laurence Phelan, Independent on Sunday

‘Some pairings can be relied upon – literature and life, Steptoe and Son, Lennon and McCartney, Nicholas Royle and a good anthology.’ —Andrew O’Hagan

Reviews of this Book

‘Slip this lightweight but nourishing anthology into your holiday bag. Editor Royle has selected 20 published stories from British writers. His own (excellent) taste means that little explosions of weirdness or transcendence often erupt amid much well-observed everyday life.’ —Boyd Tonkin, The Independent

‘It's so good that it's hard to believe that there was no equivalent during the 17 years since Giles Gordon and David Hughes's Best English Short Stories ceased publication in 1994. The first selection makes a very good beginning … Highly Recommended.’ —Kate Saunders, The Times

‘The collection illustrates just how vibrant and varied the UK short story writing scene is ... each is well crafted and there’s much breadth in terms of style, tone and theme – running from love to war and covering everything in between.’ —Sarah-Clare Conlon, Bookmunch

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