Stories to read aloud to your sweetheart

March 20, 2018 6:47 AM

I've recently taken up recording myself reading short stories for my long-distance sweetie. We're both well-read and adventurous sorts, but I'd love recommendations of individual short stories that she might like to hear.

All genres are welcome, with an emphasis on really lovely writing. Shorter is good, but as long as I can read it out loud in under an hour I'm not picky. Bonus points for queer themes and genderfuckery. Tragedies need not apply. Straight white cis men are discouraged but not barred outright if you can really sell them to me. I'm not looking for smut but sexy bits are welcome too. Classics, new experimental things, it's all fine.

Authors I have in the pipeline already: Daniel Ortberg; Ali Smith; Kelly Link; that one Mieville horror story about the lesbian academic. Maybe some Ken Liu?

I've seen this post, which comes close, but I really am looking for standalone short fiction.

posted by libraritarian to Writing & Language (14 answers total)

Daniel Orozco. "Officers Weep" was one of my most fun read-alouds with my wife. I like his other work too.
posted by dlugoczaj at 6:50 AM on March 20, 2018

Marlin Barton - Into the Silence
posted by falsedmitri at 7:01 AM on March 20, 2018

Best answer: I like this one, it's short

- I was trying to describe you to someone

And this one, it's a little surreal.

- The Great Hug
posted by jessamyn at 7:06 AM on March 20, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: I'm not through it yet, but I'm enjoying the stories in The Merry Spinster.

Also anything out of Her Body and Other Parties
posted by emkelley at 7:14 AM on March 20, 2018

Best answer: Eley Williams - Smote, or When I Find I Cannot Kiss You in Front of a Print by Bridget Riley.
posted by misteraitch at 7:14 AM on March 20, 2018

Murakami's On Seeing the 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning
posted by pinochiette at 7:27 AM on March 20, 2018

Best answer: I love Zen Cho and her short fiction a lot a lot, but some of it might be awkward to read aloud for those who don't know bits of Manglish (or just bits of Hokkien and Malay?). (But it's so good.)

I read Cassandra Khaw's "A Priest of Vast and Distant Places" yesterday and liked it quite a lot -- I don't know whether the second person would come off better or worse when you literally are reading aloud to one person. Kai Stewart's "A Very Large Number of Moons" definitely looks like it would be fun to read out loud, though.

From a few years back, Yoon Ha Lee's "The Contemporary Foxwife" is a fun story with that touch of genderfuckery.

Ann Leckie's small-gods stories are also pretty wonderful, although the first that caught me -- "The Nalendar" -- might be pushing it at 8k. I'm not really sure how long things take to read aloud!
posted by inconstant at 7:28 AM on March 20, 2018 [2 favorites]

Paige Cooper's "Moria" from Zolitude. The title short story from that same collection, too, come to think of it. (Difficulty level: published by a Canadian Literary Press.) Neither is a tragedy, but their tone and subject runs to serious.

Anything from Annette Lapointe's most recent collection, You are Not Needed Now. The stories run on the long side, but they're amazing. I especially like "The Witch Invites Herself to Dinner," but if you like the truly weird, try (the very short) "Clean Streets are Everyone's Responsibility."
posted by platitudipus at 7:29 AM on March 20, 2018

Helen Oyeymi, What is not yours is not yours

Spooky, sweet, sometimes heartbreaking interlocking tales with lots of queer characters.
posted by momus_window at 8:15 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

I use an app called Calm that reads me bedtime stories; it's absolutely lovely. I particularly like the children's stories; both The Velveteen Rabbit (30 mins) and the first 30 minutes of The Wind in the Willows are great.
posted by DarlingBri at 8:18 AM on March 20, 2018

Oh this this: The Gentle Seduction by Marc Stiegler.

I read this to my SO on a long car journey, partly because I knew he'd like it, partly because I just wanted to read it again. I might read it again now.
posted by greenish at 8:57 AM on March 20, 2018

No single recs but Grace Paley, George Saunders & the trans SFF collection "Meanwhile, Elsewhere" are gold.
posted by fritillary at 2:46 PM on March 20, 2018

If you can manage to read them without cracking up, slipping in a few stories from David Sedaris' Naked or Me Talk Pretty One Day would be super fun.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 3:35 PM on March 20, 2018

Ellen Klages' Portable Childhoods
posted by azalea_chant at 8:03 AM on March 22, 2018