Largehearted Boy: Favorite Short Story Collections of 2014

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December 23, 2014

Favorite Short Story Collections of 2014

These are the short fiction collections I have recommended most to blog readers, friends, and family throughout the year.

All links go to the authors' contributions to the Book Notes series. I have reposted my original comments for each book.

What was your favorite short story collection of 2014?

Flings by Justin Taylor

Justin Taylor's Flings is filled with stories both strikingly modern and perfectly structured, easily one of the year's finest short fiction collections.

The Heaven of Animals by David James Poissant

David James Poissant's The Heaven of Animals may be my favorite short story collection of the year. His skill at creating sympathetic, yet unlikeable, characters is impressive, as is the emotional depth found in these stories.

Karate Chop by Dorthe Nors

Dorthe Nors acutely mines the unexpected and explosive of everyday lives in this brilliantly understated short story collection.

Praying Drunk by Kyle Minor

Kyle Minor's new collection Praying Drunk remarkably explores themes of faith, family, and friendship in its linked stories filled with desperate characters.

Thunderstruck by Elizabeth McCracken

Elizabeth McCracken's new short fiction collection Thunderstruck is the work of a storyteller at the top of her game, the stories both poignant and resonant.