A bit behind schedule, but I am finally reading The Best American Short Stories - 2005. The first story in the anthology is "The Smile on Happy Chang's Face" by Tom Perrotta, and it can be read here in its entirety. Great story, with a Little League championship game as the backdrop. In the "Contributors' Notes" section of the anthology, Perrotta writes, "...it was a pleasure to describe a baseball game in minute detail, from the perspective of a troubled umpire...." He nails it, and I absolutely love the opening line:
"The Superior Wallcoverings Wildcats were playing in the Little League championship game, and I wanted them to lose."
The stories are well selected, and I buy this collection every year. It makes a perfect travel companion / gradual bathroom read (a high compliment coming from me). My favorite story in the 2005 edition is the incredible "Until Gwen" by Dennis Lehane, who wrote Mystic River, among other novels. The opener to this one is as good as I have seen in a long, long time:
"Your father picks you up from prison in a stolen Dodge Neon, with an 8-ball of coke in the glove compartment and a hooker named Mandy in the back seat."It just gets better from there.
1 comment:
May I suggest another baseball (but not MLB) related read? Battle Creek by Scott Lasser is a great one about the minors. And has the added benefit of being set in the home state.
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