The Best Short Stories 2024

The O. Henry Prize Winners

By: Amor Towles - editor, Jenny Minton Quigley - editor

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Kristen DiMercurio, Blair Young, Sean Patrick Hopkins, Vikas Adam, Helen Laser, Johnny Rey Diaz, Jeena Yi, Jason Culp, Annette Amelia Oliveira, Dylan Moore, Alana Kerr Collins, Full Cast

“A diverse and glorious selection . . . a gift of imagination, wit, and wonder. The collection is filled with miniature masterpieces. . . . This must-have anthology is a treasure trove not to be missed.” —Library Journal (starred review)

The prestigious annual story anthology, featuring prize-winning stories by Kate DiCamillo, Jess Walter, Dave Eggers, Allegra Goodman, Jai Chakrabarti, Francisco Gonzalez, and more.

Continuing a century-long tradition of cutting-edge literary excellence, this year's edition contains twenty prizewinning stories chosen from the thousands published in magazines over the previous year. Guest editor Amor Towles has brought his own refreshing perspective to the prize, selecting stories by an engaging mix of celebrated names and emerging voices. The winning stories are accompanied by an introduction by Towles, observations from the winning writers on what inspired them, and an extensive resource list of magazines that publish short fiction.

THE WINNING STORIES

“Roy,” Emma Binder
“The Soccer Balls of Mr. Kurz,” Michele Mari (translated from the Italian by Brian Robert Moore)
“Orphans,” Brad Felver
“The Home Visit,” Morris Collins
“The Import,” Jai Chakrabarti
“Didi,” Amber Caron
“Serranos,” Francisco González
“Hiding Spot,” Caroline Kim
“Junior,” Katherine D. Stutzman
“My Good Friend,” Juliana Leite (translated from the Portuguese by Zoë Perry)
"The Castle of Rose Tellin,” Kate DiCamillo
"Rain,” Colin Barrett
“Marital Problems,” Robin Romm
“The Last Grownup,” Allegra Goodman
“The Honor of Your Presence,” Dave Eggers
“The Paper Artist,” E. K. Ota
“The Room-Service Waiter,” Tom Crewe
“Seeing Through Maps,” Madeline ffitch
“The Dark,” Jess Walter
“Mobilization,” Allegra Hyde

©2024 Amor Towles and Jenny Minton Quigley (P)2024 Random House Audio

Superb!

This is a most enjoyable read. The short fiction quality and diversity entertains and delights. I will listen to it again to pick up anything I missed the first time. I highly recommend it.

A fine collection of short stories

I generally like the competing “The Best *American* Short Stories” a bit better than this series, but this is nevertheless a fine collection.

My favorite stories this year were: Orphans, The Dark, Seeing Through Maps, The Room Service Waiter, and Roy. Occasionally, the same story will appear in both collections as in this years Seeing Through Maps.

The narration varies but is overall is generally good to excellent

First several are Bleak, downers

Stark realism pessimistic bend. Not poorly done.... but are you looking for sad tales that do a good job of pointing out the slings and arrows of life? Stories of despair, futility, of damaged individuals damaging others, damaging children. One painful story emphasizes the plight of a somehow damaged self destructive teen who tortures herself, her father then aunt and uncle with death spiral wild unrepentant acts.
Another about a deceitful moral compass-less father and husband and his family and Nanny whose been ripped away from her child in desperate poverty...hoping to provide. They are bleak and painful stories.

Disappointing

I am very dissatisfied with this title. It was a waste of a credit for sure. These stories are just plain boring and end out of nowhere. If this is the best short stories of last year these writers need to do better.