Best Short Shorts

by Eric Berger (Editor), Lois Dykeman Kleihauer, Marc Connelly

Best Short Shorts is a collection of short, short stories from Scholastic Book Services, published in several printings from 1958 until at least an eighth printing in 1967. There are thirty-five stories in the book, about one-third of which are from Collier's. Others are reprinted from This Week, Senior Scholastic, Seventeen, Liberty, and The American Magazine.
(from Tellers of Weird Tales)

Genres: Short Stories

183 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1958

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stumbled upon this book in my grandmother's attic, the spine falling apart and the pages emitting that "old book" smell. (My edition has a teenaged boy and girl on the cover, standing back to back supposedly reading, coyly studying one another). Even before I opened it and began reading, I could tell it had been published in the 1950's.

Short short stories that appeared in various magazines such as Collier's and Seventeen comprise this delightful little book. The themes are widely diverse, from action/adventure to romance to espionage to patriotic and even dramatic suspense. While it wasn't difficult to figure out the ending's twist for many of them, the style of writing, artfulness of the different authors in using the brevity of a short short to get the message across, and the messages were well worth the read.

Again, I found myself amazed, and wistful, at the "innocence" of the writing, due supposedly to the innocence of the audience of this era. Even the heavier themes of war and crime were conveyed in a way in which one still felt "protected" - that honor was a big deal some sixty or seventy years ago.

One of my favorite stories was "The Spelling Bee," by Laurene Chinn, in which a young Chinese girl is caught between the prestige of representing her teacher and her school in a spelling competition, and the despair of knowing that her Cantonese mother refuses to leave the house and come watch her, due to her mother's poor English language skills. "Language is a highway, linking all peoples and all ages. Mama was wrong to use language as a wall." What a wildly different message from today's post-modern America, in which there is so little pride in learning the national language and assimilating into the culture.

The very last short story was by Isaac Asimov, and it was chillingly prophetic in its ironic description of a society that no longer utilizes textbooks, but everything written and taught is computerized. "The Fun They Had" could hardly have been a more accurate glimpse into today's cyber world, and the gradual extinction of humanity's workings as we know it.

All in all, this was a thoroughly enjoyable book, and I read it with a pang in my heart as I realized afresh what a can of wormwood secular humanism has been to American society - 1962 indeed was a line in the sand for the assault that was to take place on our nation. It is clear even in the literature of secularists published before it how differently the world was viewed, how haughty it has since become.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of 35 microfiction and flash stories, published way back in '58, was fun to read. I probably picked this little book up at a used bookstore or maybe one of the little libraries near the street in front of someone's house. It's an old book and, being the book geek I am, I like to smell the pages. That's the first thing I always do when reading an old book, because I love the smell of old books! There is no other smell like with which to compare. I get transported back to childhood with library memories and picking out books from the monthly Scholastic catalogues.

The stories in this collection read fast and most of them are well-written. Almost all end in a twist and the best stories were the ones where I did not see the twist coming. I had some clear favorites that I will read again. Among them were:

- The Shanahan Strad. The story does a nice job of setting up the background, highlighting the importance of the violin and then moving forward in time to complete the story with the twist it richly deserves.
- Champion Stock. This one got to me emotionally. This was the first story where I didn’t see the twist coming.
- A Secret for Two. I was a little misty eyed at the end of this one. Pierre and Joseph, the two protagonists, were quite a pair. I enjoyed it one hundred percent!
- Two Were Left. Excellent tension. I also enjoyed the thumbnail short short (no title) that directly follows this story. It's about a monkey playing first base. Funny!

If you like short shorts and can get your hands on a copy of this book, you won't be disappointed. It's a great little book that can be read and enjoyed anywhere no matter if you're standing in line for coffee or waiting for the bus.

[Marian Schultz]

I just found this book in my collection of letters and old school stuff that I am going through. I believed I first read it when I was 14, and a Freshman in HS. My English teacher had this great book carousel in class, and we were free to read anything on it...I may have forgotten to return the book....I love this book, and it is literally falling apart, but the stories are fabulous; they remind me of how material is found and used for short films, which I also love. The authors seem to be long forgotten now which is a shame. Books matter.

[Les Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining and memorable short stories by Saki (H. H, Munro), Asimov and many other writers. A lot of surprise endings. The stories are fast-paced, clever and often heart-warming.

[goober]

Didn't read this book but one that I think is included in here- Cub by Lois Dykeman Kleihauer, which is not on goodreads :(. anyway, OW. GROWING UP. OW

[Joanne G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book probably ignited my life-long love of short stories. This compilation includes:

"The Shanahan Strad" - A family survives the hard times knowing that if things got too terrible, they could always sell the family heirloom. Or could they?

"A Battle Over the Teacups" - When an enemy serves tea, which teacup do you choose?

"August Heat" - The heat is stifling--enough to make a man go mad.

"The Open Window" - A man suffering from nerves takes a trip to the country for his health. A young lady with tales about ghosts isn't the curative he'd hoped for.

Read April 30, 1971.