Only the Little Bone: Stories

by David Huddle

This stunning collection of short stories, by one of America's finest craftsman of the form, focuses on themes of coming of age in 1950's rural Virginia. Each of the seven stories follows the central character, Reed Bryant, through the difficult emotional passages between childhood and adulthood, with all its complexities and confusions. Huddle's voice is clear and sympathetic, wry and unflinching, rendering memories into an elegy for a time and place that can never be returned to.This edition includes a new forward by the author, who, more than twenty years after the book's release, reflects upon the significance of writing about one's past, and how it has affected and supported what has become a long and much-lauded career.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

206 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

David Huddle (Born 11 July 1942) is an American multi-genre writer. His poems, essays, and short stories have appeared in Esquire, Harper's Magazine, The New York Times Magazine, Story, The Autumn House Anthology of Poetry, and The Best American Short Stories. His work has also been included in anthologies of writing about the Vietnam War.

Reviews

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know it is silly to put my own father's book on my list, but it is getting rereleased in paperback this year. It is a beautiful book of short stories about family and growing up. It is great book to teach to high school students, especially if you are encouraging them to "write what they know" or "show don't tell."

[Sam Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nostalgic.

Etymology of "nostalgia"

From New Latin nostalgia, coined from Ancient Greek νόστος (nóstos, “returning home”) + ἄλγος (álgos, “pain”).

[Pete Andwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my cup of tea but well enough done to finish. Certainly interesting the differences between the time of its publication and the present day. Lot like Sherwood Andersen, less biting.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is some vivid, clean writing. No excess, no melodrama, yet no overt attempt at deliberately being minimalistic. What's needed is just there and the lines cone across plain and moving. I enjoyed reading.

[David Christie · Rating 3 out of 5]

good bones but perhaps a little cluttered.