“The Coffee-House of Surat” by Leo Tolstoy — Review

In 1791, the French writer Jacques Bernardin de Saint-Pierre wrote a parable story, which was translated into Russian in 1887 by Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy.

The story takes place in Surat, India. There was one famous coffee shop. Foreigners gathered there and had their conversations where a single follower of Judaism, Hinduism, Protestantism, Catholicism, and Islam argued with each other about the true path to salvation.

At the end of the story all guests turned to a quiet Chinese man and asked his opinion.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/6157/6157-h/6157-h.htm#link2H_4_0015

The Limpet by Daphne du Maurier — Review

This story “The Limpet” by Daphne du Maurier is a kind of psychological training on the topic of manipulation.

The main character of the story does not realize that she is manipulating everyone who comes into her hands.

Daphne du Maurier portrayed a real monster of manipulation under the guise of a fragile woman, posing as a victim, demonstrating widespread concern for those around her.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://vk.com/doc19855333_672269811?hash=63MZ4xiE5itvuTA9l3BT67JMPwJvoFNSpH7akUuAXgg&dl=EVyv4tX1GQo18cM5Y15HTG2HdezHXqYyKDCjBjIymZs&api=1&no_preview=1

Rainbows by Joseph O’Neill — Review

"Rainbows," is a short story about an Irish immigrant who lives in the U.S. Difficult to say what is this story "about"? One possible option to summarize the story is that it is about different cultures and different attitudes toward relationships in society.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/10/05/rainbows

Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach — Review

«Jonathan Livingston Seagull» by Richard Bach is a philosophical work which requires philosophical understanding.

The first thing that comes to mind when reading the story is that the book is about freedom, choice, the ability to fight off the crowd, and so on.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Richard%20Bach%20-%20Jonathan%20Livingston%20Seagull%20(1973).pdf

Kalinin by Maxim Gorky — Review

In the story “Kalinin” Maxim Gorky tries to prove to readers that the basis of human consciousness is not based on physical instincts but based on some ideals embedded in them by Nature or by God himself.

In addition, the author tries to explain the natural tendency of some people towards laziness and indifference, on which the ideas of anarchism are based such as “give up everything” and live without any obligations to anyone.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://americanliterature.com/author/maxim-gorky/short-story/kalinin

Obituary by Isaac Asimov — Review

The story “Obituary” by Isaac Asimov is about the marriage of two people who do not understand each other at all, who has completely different values ​​and dreams. One has a passion for science and an incredible eager for recognition. The other has hope for a save of personal happiness.

As usual with Asimov, the story is about the future, where a physicist discovered a way to move matter from the future. The ending is very interesting. The story, although with ironic humor, also includes a lesson for readers. At least in the fact that people should try to understand and feel the emotions of their partners. Otherwise, everything could end tragically.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://novel12.com/asimovs-mysteries/obituary-993119.htm

The Last Inch by James Aldridge — Review

The short story “The Last Inch” by James Aldridge keeps the reader in suspense. The plot intrigues readers right away. This work, despite its small size, has a very strong emotional impact on the reader.

The book raises the issue of relationships between parents and children and raising children. Two people, an adult man and a boy who so needs parental love, must pass this life test.

Parents sometimes do not think about the fact that their children are wise and strong in spirit. The author showed this perfectly in his book. He shows how a ten-year-old boy behaves in a difficult situation. The child, without tears, overcoming fear, copes well with the difficult situation with the help of his father’s guidance.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://doclecture.net/1-6775.html

Nocturne by Kazuo Ishiguro — Review

The nocturne is very short - listeners don't even have time to understand if they like it or not.

So the main characters of this story manage to tell their stories, reveal their inner world, and show a part of their lives.

The story is light, captivating with lively characters and ease of storytelling. The problems of the main characters are understandable, readers feel sad and hope with them.

Here is the link to the tex of the story:
https://litlife.club/books/115348/read?page=23&ysclid=lohyx7bd65764558057

May Night by Nicholai Gogol — Review

“May Night” by Nicholai Gogol is a story about the love of a guy and a girl and obstacles between them.

The narration is sincere, stylish and colorful, even poetic. He gives a detailed description of the people, place and surrounding nature.

The plot includes a lot of mysticism, a lot of hidden, secret meaning. Reading it, readers start to believe in spirits (unfortunate souls that roam in the world).

Here is the link to the text of the story:

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/36238/36238-h/36238-h.htm#Page_141

Half a Day by Naguib Mahfouz — Review

Half a Day is a short story by Nobel Prize-winning Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz. The author uses in this story elements of allegory and surrealism.

The story opens in an unnamed city early in the morning. The narrator, a little boy, walks with his father to school for the first time. The father cheerfully and encouragingly says that this day is an important step forward in life.

This is half a day and … this is all life.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
http://englishiva1011.pbworks.com/f/HALFADAY.PDF

The Sentry by Nikolai Leskov — Review

In the story “The Sentry” by Nikolai Leskov, the soldier is standing guard in a sentry box at the palace, and then he hears cries for help - a man is drowning nearby. What to do? He can’t leave his post... But he can’t abandon a person either... What choice will the sentry make and how will he respond to him?...

This is a small story with a lot of meaning.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://archive.org/details/NikolaiLeskov-SentryAndOtherStories/page/n17/mode/2up

A Little Cloud by James Joyce — Review

The main character of the story “A Little Cloud” by James Joyce compared his life with the life of his former friend who was more successful in their careers...

The story ends with a scene of an alarmed mother calming a crying child: “My little man! My little mannie! Was ' ou frightened, love?... There now, love!”. The mother holds the child in her arms. This is the author’s positive assessment. There is a motherly principle here, there is love here. Only for this reason it is possible for the main character to return to himself: “felt his cheeks suffused with shame” …

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://genius.com/James-joyce-a-little-cloud-annotated

The Table by William Trevor - Review

The epigraph to this story “The Table” by William Trevor might be: business first. The main character is a furniture dealer. He finds an antique table for sale in a newspaper he makes money for himself.

The story is written in the genre of irony of people who know how to make money out of nothing.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/william-trevor/p,8,65597-the_collected_stories_read.html

Birthmark by Mikhail Sholokhov — Review

This is a story about the fate of the heroes, about a young commander, a young man tired and matured from life on the march, about an ataman - an “old wolf” who has seen hard times.

The story little by little leads us to the finale. Here people are on opposite sides of Civil War after the Russian Revolution.

Despite the tragedy of the story "Birthmark", reading the syllable of the work is ecstasy! How many forgotten, thrown out of everyday life, how many unexpected, but at the same time understandable and fascinating words, comparisons, adjectives, in the end.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://sovlit.net/birthmark/

The War of the Wall by Toni Cade Bambara — Review

The short story “The War of the Wall” by Toni Cade Bambara is dedicated to kids' impressions about graffiti - big painting on the wall.

The story includes social part - it shows the beauty of good deels for society.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://www.cbsd.org/cms/lib/PA01916442/Centricity/Domain/1670/War_of_the_Wall.pdf

“The Social Sense” by William Somerset Maugham — Review

The most well-mannered people have a so-called “The Social Sense” - when you have to behave not as you want, but as is expected in a cultural society.

There is no way to do this without lying. It is how Maugham’s story begins. The narrator is invited to visit and he is forced to go because of a sense of decency.

This phenomenon is represented in the plot of the story.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
http://gutenberg.ca/ebooks/maughamws-completeshortstories02/maughamws-completeshortstories02-00-h.html#thesocialsense

The Rocket Man by Ray Bradbury — Review

The purpose of the short story “The Rocket Man” by Ray Bradbury is to show that people are always faced with a choice. What will a person choose: a family or a job?

This story will be relevant at all times. Every person asks such questions during his life and decides for himself what to do.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://royallib.com/read/bredberi_rey/The_Rocket_Man.html?ysclid=lm28ifqib1580209130#0

The Stupid Frenchman by Anton Chekhov — Review

The short story “The Stupid Frenchman” by Anton Chekhov tells about the Frenchman who comes to Russia for the first time. He doesn’t know the mysterious Russian soul, or rather the mysterious Russian appetite.

The Frenchman even thought that the Russian peasant wanted to take his own life with the help of pancakes. He even tried to save him, to talk to him. What Russian man answered him, readers can find out after reading the story to the end.

Here is the link to the text of the story:

https://ajuna5.livejournal.com/1275.html

The Hotel of the Idle Moon by William Trevor - Review

The story “The Hotel of the Idle Moon” by William Trevor represents a genre of story which can be interpreted as a horror story. It is not obviously that there were crimes but readers cab suspect so.


Here is the link to the text of the story (page 46):
https://libcat.ru/knigi/starinnaya-literatura/216693-46-william-trevor-the-collected-stories.html#text

A Mayor and His People by Theodore Dreiser

The story “A Mayor and His People” by Theodore Dreiser reminds us of the current situation in political life of one very developed country.

It is sad that people have a bad memory for good deeds. What happened with the new mayor in this story and how his work affected the city, readers can know after reading this short story.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/14717/pg14717-images.html#A_Mayor_and_His_People

"Girl" by O. Henry — Review

The short story "Girl" by O. Henry is like a riddle, and only in the finale readers can understand the true meaning of the title.

A small story that represents the writing skills of O. Henry and his sense of humor. Nobody expects a completely different ending.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://americanliterature.com/author/o-henry/short-story/girl

The umbrella by Guy de Maupassant — Review

The short story “The umbrella” by Guy de Maupassant represents a genre of tragicomedy. The process of reading it becomes sad and funny at the same time.

It is funny because of the absurdity and even the comical nature of the forms that human greed sometimes takes. And it’s sad that, putting yourself in the place of the main character’s husband, you feel sympathy and realize how unbearable life can be.

Some people try to save money by buying goods at discount sales, but sometimes the craving for savings is completely unreasonable, it is very difficult for a person to part with the accumulated funds in principle - such was the wife in this story.

She saved on everything she could, although there was plenty of money in the family, and her husband went to work with an old patched umbrella, causing grins from colleagues. In the end, he nevertheless forced his wife to buy a new umbrella, and you can find out how it ended by reading this not very long, but interesting story.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://www.yeyebook.com/en/guy-de-maupassant-short-story-the-umbrella-english-text-eng/

A Desperate Character by Ivan S. Turgenev — Review

A story “A Desperate Character” by Ivan S. Turgenev is about a man who went out of his frame, went out of the way of life of his parents.

He sold his estate, spent his money and his life went down. Maybe he didn’t have enough attention from his parents, maybe it was because of specific features of his character.

What can save a person who is burning his life and whether something can save him … - the reader can see after reading this story.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://americanliterature.com/author/ivan-s-turgenev/short-story/a-desperate-character

Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut - Review

After the novel , "Cat's Cradle" the story "Welcome to the monkey house" looks to be honest a little bit strange. I don't want to say anything bad. Vonnegut's stories seemed to me somehow different, different from his major works.

Here is a bleak future, overpopulation of the planet and a scientist inventing maybe not a harmful thing, but the government again distorted everything and turned it upside down. Vonnegut talks about serious things with humor.

Anyway, it is very strange work.


Here is the link to the text of the story:

https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/kurt-vonnegut/31647-welcome_to_the_monkey_house_read.html

The Music on the Hill by Saki — Review

A story “The Music on the Hill” by Saki is about the god Pan, which was popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Pan here is a very jealous and vengeful god who severely punishes disrespect for himself.

Here is the link to the text of the story:
https://americanliterature.com/author/hh-munro-saki/short-story/the-music-on-the-hill

Lifeguard by John Updike Review

In the story “Lifeguard” by John Updike Review the narrator is the rescuer who literally perches above the rest of the society, looks down, observes. It gives us an eloquent overview of how society works.



Here is the link to the text of the story:

https://www.bookfrom.net/john-updike/page,75,45130-the_early_stories_1953-1975.html?ysclid=ljk2yrq942353234654