Comments on: Searching for a short story from This American Life

Question: Searching for a short story from This American Life

By The Grace of God — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 07:39:47 -0800

I'm searching for a short story from This American Life. It was read at the end of the show and is probably 2 or 3 years old. The story was about a little boy with a superpower of finding lost objects who, at the end of the story, focused the power on himself and discovered that he, too, had strayed from his rightful place.

By: jessamyn

jessamyn — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 07:50:14 -0800

I'm not sure how many episodes of This American Life end with stories about lost items, but this was one of them, though it doesn't really match what you are looking for, but I think this one does, maybe?

By: matildaben

matildaben — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 08:07:33 -0800

Sounds like an Aimee Bender story they had a while back. Yeah, Jessamyn has it.

By: MLIS

MLIS — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 08:23:51 -0800

It is Loser By Aimee Bender (#2 on Crimebusters & Crossed Wires: Stories From TAL).

A boy develops the power to find lost objects and solve crimes, but it doesn't seem to get him very far in the world.

By: joshgray

joshgray — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 09:37:32 -0800

that was on XM the other day.. great story.

By: muddgirl

muddgirl — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 09:53:28 -0800

mmm...get the whole collection. The Girl in the Flammable Skirt is quite possibly the best collection of short stories I've ever read.

By: gregariousrecluse

gregariousrecluse — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 10:55:59 -0800

not directly related, but The Fortress of Solitude by Jonathan Lethem has a similar theme (kids, superpowers and a failure to enhance their lives with them) and is an awesome read...

By: odinsdream

odinsdream — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 19:58:49 -0800

gregariousrecluse, here's a related TAL show along those lines.