Short Stuff

Lots of short stories being read, particularly yesterday. Some stories by Donald Barthelme (he reminds me of Steven Millhauser, but better); some Hemingway stories (two bullfighting ones, as it happens, 'The Undefeated' and 'The Capital of the World'); some stories by Conan creator, Robert E. Howard (some gothic stories set in Africa of all places; he really should have stayed away from Lovecraft, the racism is sickening); Katherine Mansfield ('Sun and Moon'; she's 'just the greatest'); Roald Dahl (more African tinged fiction; 'An African Tale'); and Paul Bowles. Although not one of his greatest, Hemingway's famous economy is much in evidence in "The Capital of the World", a pre-civil war microcosm of Spain. A little mechanical, but still nicely done. 'The Undefeated' got a mention in 'F for Fake', a late Orson Welles movie I watched on Saturday.