Short Family

John Updike reads six stories he has selected from the 100-odd he has published. Mr. Updike, when asked to described his method of reading aloud, said "I try to picture the things described and to speak the words distinctly, and to let the emotion come through on its own." The method works beautifully.

In a romantic comedy, a man and woman player decide to date one another because they are incapable of being faithful and knowing they’ll cheat on each other, won’t hurt one another. But because they are so much in love, they never see other people, which is “cheating” because they’re violating their agreement to continue seeing other people. Falling, deeper and deeper in love their mania grows as each suspecting the other is cheating by not cheating and tries to catch the other “cheating”, while pretending they’re being faithful, by pretending their dating around.

Girl meets boy on the worst night of her life, when she's decided to take a drastic step that there is no going back from. Girl is used to sitting by, letting fate deal cruel hand after cruel hand to good people with soft hearts, and she's had enough. Girl thinks it's time to fight back against fate and against men who aren't careful with all the precious things a woman in love has to give him. Fate shows girl who's boss and turns her world and plans upside down without breaking a sweat.

Have you ever asked “What’s it all for?” or “Is my life enough?” Jack finds himself back at the local pub after another monotonous day at work asking himself these very questions. From an outside perspective, Jack has a good job and a supportive family, but somehow it’s not fulfilling his true desires, which has created a deep sadness. Seeing Jack’s hopelessness, the bartender, Lloyd, suggests a short story for him to read about a cowboy going through similar struggles in wanting better for his family and his life. Jack is not much of a reader, but finds some solace in ...

Where there’s a Will, there’s not always a way in Japan. For the unsuspecting, risks and dangers lurk in the shadows of Japan’s unique inheritance system. These fictional short stories illuminate the real-life system’s inner workings in an easy-to-understand format. A revealing, entertaining window into a rarely seen corner of modern Japanese life. The protagonists represent a cross-section of modern Japan (urban and rural, suburban and expat). What links them all is how they confront the inheritance system's unexpected risks and deal with them in equally unexpected ways. (Earlier ...

As the Bagram crew assembles at a guest ranch in Montana to celebrate the wedding of two of its own, everyone expects a fun weeklong vacation enjoying some much-needed downtime together. But in the picturesque foothills bordering the ranch, a hidden danger lurks. When the guys stumble upon evidence of a domestic terrorist cell, it puts everyone directly in the crosshairs of a lethal enemy determined to remain unseen, unleashing a wave of danger every bit as deadly as what they faced overseas.

In 1956, Updike published a story, "Snowing in Greenwich Village," about a young couple, Joan and Richard Maple, at the beginning of their marriage. Over the next two decades, he returned to these characters again and again, tracing their years together raising children, finding moments of intermittent happiness, and facing the heartbreak of infidelity and estrangement.

Love and marriage. Children and family. Death and grief. Life touches everyone the same. But living under lockdown, it changes us alone. In these ten beautifully moving short stories written mostly over the last year, Booker Prize winner Roddy Doyle paints a collective portrait of our strange times.

She’s out of second chances. He’s losing hope. Will love lead them home? Emma Smucker thought Paradise Township would be her fresh start. But when her new teaching methods spark suspicion, she risks losing another home—and the children who depend on her. Matthew Blank was once the town’s finest carpenter. Now blind, he struggles to keep his family’s workshop alive. Helping Emma craft learning tools gives him new purpose and draws them closer than either expected. As gossip spreads and fear grows, Emma and Matthew must stand together. Will they find the courage to build a future on...

Two sisters quarrel over an inheritance and a new baby; a child awake in the night explores the familiar rooms of her home, made strange by the darkness; a housekeeper caring for a helpless old man uncovers secrets from his past. The first steps into a turning point and a new life are made so easily and carelessly: Each of these stories illuminates a crucial moment of transition, often imperceptible to the protagonist.

Omnibus is an engrossing ride through Jo’s wacky world. There are articles and stories on ski jumps, drumming, music and dogs; even Mary Poppins gets a mention. There’s a friend lost, then found, then slowly lost again as his mind begins to crumble – thank goodness we shared some laughs in days gone by. There’s even a set of Antlers and my favourite aeroplane, the S71 Blackbird at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford, England. And then there’s the odd ride on a bus! No ordinary journey this. Many years ago, following some dire health issues, Jo and wife Jan discarded their long-term ...

Jackson Evans, the billionaire owner of Ivy Ridge Ranch, hires the private investigator who, seven years ago, uncovered the truth of his wife’s betrayal. Jackson fell hard for Valerie Meyers back then, but he was too embroiled in the chaos of a bitter divorce to be able to even think about such things. Valerie feels similarly about Jackson but doesn’t think he’ll ever reciprocate her feelings. Nevertheless, she’s happy to be back in Copper Canyon, among old friends. But what Valerie discovers in her investigation is far more sinister than anybody could have imagined. As dark secrets...

Alien invaders take one of America’s most contentious issues, Gun Control, and use it for their interest.

Thakur Vijay Singh Rathod was one of the richest political businessmen in Mumbai. He was revered by his wife, Savitri, who wanted to give him a son, the heir to his inheritance. But fate decreed otherwise. This is a story of Thakur Vijay Singh Rathod, a proud and ruthless man, his wife Savitri - religious and completed devoted to him, his offspring, and his abandoned child.

Assembled here are stories new and old, spanning from 1960 to today. Meet the death-defying motorcycle trick riders in the carnival's Devil's Tub, a man who keeps an alligator in his bathtub, a Chinese launder in Coney Island in search of love, a frontiersman who saves himself from a mauling grizzly bear by hiding in a beaver dam, three men from a circus looking for trouble at a rodeo, a washed out boxer trying to hang onto his career, and dozens of others rich characters.

The unstoppable, irreverent mother-daughter team presents a new collection of funny stories and true confessions that every woman can relate to. From identity theft to the hazards of bicycling to college reunions and eating on the beach, Lisa and Francesca tackle the quirks, absurdities, and wonders of everyday life with wit and warmth.

In Polygamy: A Very Short Introduction, Sarah M.S. Pearsall explores what plural marriages reveal about the inner workings of marriage and describes the controversies surrounding it. The book emphasizes the diversity of historical polygamist societies, from the Shi'ite Muslims and Wendat men who practiced short-term marriages to the Mixteca, Maori, Inca, Algonquin, and Marta indigenous people of North America and the Pacific Islands. Pearsall also explains the divides within Christianity that led to Joseph Smith's establishment of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Book Two in the Series: A must-read for mystery and imagination fans of all ages. New from the San Francisco Bay Area's Broadwayworld nominee director, author, and award-winning artist. Nine new Sherlock Holmes adventure stories are published by John DeGaetano. These new adventures, like his his best-selling Sherlock Holmes 10 Minutes Plays Collection, are adaptable for the stage as well as the books in the story series. The books also include a stunning gallery of full-color images to follow along with as the stories unfold. Based in part on the career writings of Holmes' long-time friend ...

A trip to the library prompts one woman to question her fate in this galvanizing short story. For a woman like Hadley, deemed not acceptable to procreate, there’s only one recourse. Unlicensed for motherhood, she can alleviate her grief and frustration at a “baby library,” where a curiously endless supply of infants is available for a two-week loan. But the borrowed life that serves as a temporary balm leads to a journey of self-discovery that will forever change the direction of Hadley’s future.

A year ago in the midst of his parent’s divorce Nate Handen surprised everyone in his extended family when he talked his father into leaving the family home and moving in with him and his friend and business partner. He also convinced him to go into business with the two of them. So far both ventures were working out better than anyone ever expected.His father was happy and despite the acrimonious divorce proceedings his parents were friends. The way he saw it they got along better now than he could ever remember when they were married. Now he was on his way to visit his mother. Livia ...