In the sweltering heat of June, short stories are a better substitute for sunscreen. Instead of going out and bursting into ashes, you’d be better off reading a pleasant tale on your couch with a refreshing mojito in one hand. After all these years, it’s safe to claim that humans’ attention span has dwindled dramatically. So if you find yourself dipping in and out of your books when the weather is nice, one of these fantastic new short story collections might be precisely what you’re looking for.
 Short Stories – Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata (Translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori)
The outstanding Sayaka Murata returns with Life Ceremony, her first collection of short stories to be translated into English. Murata is well-known in Japan for her short stories, which are alternately charming and startling, but always infused with an otherworldly imagination and uncanny realism.Â
In these twelve stories, Murata uses an uncommon combination of humour and horror to show both loners and outcasts and turn societal norms and traditions on their heads to further challenge them.Â
 Short Stories – Cat Person by Kristen Roupenian
In the age of social media, no short tale has gone viral like Roupenian’s contribution to the New Yorker. It opens with Margot, 20, going on the early phases of flirtation with an older man, Robert, amid the height of the #MeToo movement. The power structure in their connection begins to shift as she learns more about this man (and fills in the blanks with her imagination).Â
It has its fair number of naysayers – many are critical of the protagonist heroine, and some are outright offended by the story’s success. On the other hand, it has been applauded for its representation of Margot’s inner life and the worries many modern women confront when it comes to dating. Nonetheless, this narrative unquestionably resonated with readers and will likely remain relevant.
 Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl
While not quite as philosophical or political as our first two examples, Dahl’s twisting short novella explores some dubious moral areas. First, Mary Maloney is introduced to us as a lovely wife and devoted homemaker. Then, Dahl helps us sympathise with Mary in only a few short words detailing how she welcomes her husband home — before a reckless deed turns her life upside down and takes the reader on a horrible trip with her.
We won’t give anything to those who haven’t read it yet. But, on the other hand, Dahl gives up a wicked twist on a platter.
A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin
The 43 short stories in this posthumous book were written throughout Berlin’s life, despite being just released a few years ago. Her lively short stories, which combine comedy, grit, wit, and melancholy, follow a variety of women in various jobs — from cleaning women to ER nurses — all of them are striving to survive.
Fruiting Bodies by Kathryn Harlan
Kathryn Harlan’s debut short story collection is totally up my alley: tales about women and girls who engage with our (very bizarre, sometimes spooky) world with a touch of the supernatural and unusual. For example, two adolescents on summer vacation sneak out of the house to swim in a strange, forbidden, algae-filled lake, only to be confronted with frightening news the following day.
Fruiting Bodies is audacious, startling, and completely unique. It tells stories about knowledge in a world on the verge of collapse, an understanding that empowers or devastates. Kathryn Harlan firmly establishes herself as a startling new voice in literature, drawing brilliantly and boldly from various literary traditions.
