Selected Shorts

It’s June, time to celebrate Pride privately and publicly. Host Meg Wolitzer presents four works that delve into the complexities of love, family and belonging. Ivan E. Coyote’s “No Bikini,” read by Becca Blackwell, offers one child’s act of quiet rebellion. Lovers drift together, and apart, in Michael Cunningham’s “Sleepless,” read by Mike Doyle. A newish couple faces harsh weather in Deesha Philyaw’s “Snowfall,” read by Michelle Beck, and poet Kay Ulanday Barrett shares their “Song for the Kicked Out.”

On this SELECTED SHORTS, we celebrate Memorial Day. Host Meg Wolitzer presents two stories that feature men in uniform, codes of honor, and how conflicts can sometime lead to connection. Maile Meloy’s “Red,” performed by Keith Szarabajka, takes place in London during the Blitz, where a man and woman find a rare moment of peace. In Kurt Vonnegut’s “The Cruise of the Jolly Roger,” a retired army man searches for the next chapter in his life. The reader is Teagle F. Bougere. We also hear Vonnegut’s “Letter Home,” written to his family after being a prisoner-of-war. It’s read by Jordan Klepper.

Host Meg Wolitzer presents four stories in which characters give, and get, a little assistance, from friends, strangers and family. A daughter copes with a cantankerous parent in “How to Take Dad to the Doctor,” by Jenny Allen, performed by Jennifer Mudge. A woman moves to a new town and makes a strange new friend in Laura van den Berg’s “Friends,” performed by Roberta Colindrez. A Tyrolean café improbably situated in South America is home to mysterious strangers and new and old romances, in Isabel Allende’s “The Little Heidelberg.” It’s performed by Kathleen Turner. And a budding singer and socialist gets unwelcome help from Mom in Grace Paley’s “Injustice,” performed by Jackie Hoffman.

American guest editor Andrew Sean Greer, “The Little Widow from the Capital,” by Yohanca Delgado, performed by Krystina Alabado. And our second story was selected by John Updike for the volume Best American Stories of the Century. It’s Grace Stone Coates’ “Wild Plums,” read by Mia Dillon. This episode features on-stage commentary by Greer. It's dedicated to mix engineer Dennis Jacobsen.

Host Meg Wolitzer presents two stories about selves obscured and revealed, by characters whose own identities are mysteries to them.In Aimee Bender’s “Un-Selfie, a woman reveals her extraordinary past to a stranger. The story was a commission for our 2022 Small Odysseys anthology, and is read by Alysia Reiner. In our second story, “Best Western” by Louise Erdrich, a young wife struggles to maintain a romantic fiction, until the real world crashes in on her. It’s read by Patricia Kalember.

A story with double timelines that depart and converge about marriage, love and the path not taken. Read by Holly Hunter (The Paino, Succession and Mr. Mayor). The story was written by Erin Somers. She has a novel, Stay Up with Hugo Best, and has been published in The Paris Review, The New Yorker and elsewhere. This particular story, "Ten Year Affair," was chosen for the Best American Short Stories collection of 2022. Too Hot is hosted by Aparna Nancerla. This episode includes a conversation between Aparna Nancherla and Erin Somers.

Host Meg Wolitzer presents stories chosen by On the Media’s Brooke Gladstone. Gladstone was our guest for a live Selected Shorts event in which all the stories explore the theme of tales we tell ourselves—and others. The title says it all in Mary Gordon’s “My Podiatrist Tells Me a Story about a Boy and a Dog” read by Bebe Neuwirth and Richard Masur. Two imaginative cooks reinvent themselves in a new country in Meron Hadero’s “A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times” read by Chinasa Ogbuagu. And a child imagines an absent parent through her postcards in “Love, Your Only Mother” by David Michael Kaplan, read by Bebe Neuwirth. In addition to Gladstone’s on-stage remarks, this episode features backstage interviews with actors Masur, Neuwirth and Ogbuagu.

Meg Wolitzer presents two stories about secret spaces, and what they represent. In N.K. Jemisin’s speculative fantasy “Elevator Dancer” a security guard in a totalitarian regime is beguiled by an act of freedom. The reader is Laura Gomez. And Hugh Dancy reads Greg Jackson’s “The Hollow,” about a secret room, a purposeless life, and a guy who can’t stop talking about Vincent Van Gogh.

Meg Wolitzer presents three provocative works about rituals that reshape and define their characters. In “oh she gotta head fulla hair,” by Ntozake Shange, a woman’s attention to her hair consumes her life. The reader is Tamara Tunie. In “Half a Day,” by Naguib Mahfouz, performed by Bruce Altman, time collapses and a lifetime goes by in a flash. And in Charles Baxter’s “Fenstad’s Mother,” a mother and son rehearse old patterns and find new ones. The reader is Edie Falco.

Host Meg Wolitzer shares our tribute to the influential and outspoken New Yorker Grace Paley, who would have turned 100 in 2022. Her emphasis on friends, family, and doing the right thing are evident in the three stories on this show. In “Wants,” a woman has a chance encounter while returning a lot of overdue library books. It’s read by Adina Verson. Two old friends work their way from childhood to middle age in “Ruthy and Edie,” read by Rita Wolf. And we meet a woman with a wonderfully checkered past in “Goodbye and Good Luck,” read by Joanna Gleason. Backstage interviews with Wolf and Gleason are featured.

On this show, host Meg Wolitzer gets friendly, and shares three stories about friendships of all kinds. Kelly Stout’s zinger “Let’s Get Drinks,” offers up the perils of conducting a social life via hyperbolic texts, which are hilariously performed by Jane Curtin and Jane Kaczmarek. Next, “True Friendship,” by Jorge Hernandez describes a life-long friend who’s almost too good to be—true. The reader is Michael Urie. And three misfits fit together in Anthony Marra’s “The Last Words of Benito Picone,” performed by John Turturro. A brief interview with Turturro follows the story.

On this show, Meg Wolitzer hands things off to guest host Hope Davis, who presents three stories about finding some kind of peace and stability in a variety of challenging circumstances. In Rabih Alameddine’s “Break” a trans woman reconnects with a sibling. The reader is Pooya Mohseni. Dave Eggers imagines a world changed by determined parents in “Your Mother And I,” performed by the late David Rakoff. And love triumphs over illness in Amy Bloom’s “Silver Water,” performed by Linda Lavin.

Host Meg Wolitzer presents two stories in which some things are saved and some are left behind. Both stories also have a connection to the German language. In Haruki Murakami’s “Lederhosen,” performed by Aasif Mandvi, the traditional German shorts become a singular obsession for one half of a married couple. In Elizabeth McCracken’s “Robinson Crusoe at the Waterpark,” a couple and their son find themselves in over their heads. Mike Doyle is the reader.

Host Meg Wolitzer presents stories by Kurt Vonnegut in which the Slaughterhouse Five author somehow managed to make a bleak dystopia funny and a high school band teacher a hero. The stories explore the darkly absurd side he’s known for—“Harrison Bergeron” performed by Becky Ann Baker––and a softer, touching side in “The Kid Nobody Could Handle” performed by Dylan Baker. The show features commentary from The Daily Show’s Jordan Klepper and backstage interviews with the Bakers, a husband-and-wife duo.

Roxane Gay's story was published in an issue of McSweeney's Quarterly Concern in which all the authors "covered" a story, in the way a musician might cover a famous song. Gay took a famous Margaret Atwood story, titled "Rape Fantasies," as her inspiration. Both "Rape Fantasies" and "Men on Bikes" are about imagination, revenge and joking about subjects that make people uneasy. It's read by actress Jane Kaczmarek. Comedian Alison Leiby knows how to make us laugh about a subject people aren't prepared to laugh about. Her solo show "Oh God, a Show About Abortion," had a sold-out run in New York and has been touring the U.S. She and host Aparna Nancherla discuss how she approached finding the funny in a hot button topic.

On this Selected Shorts program, host Meg Wolitzer presents stories about journeys—physical and emotional—that end in unexpected places. In “A Woman Driving Alone,” by Marie-Helene Bertino, the main character travels s long way to see a friend, but seems also to be escaping a challenging moment in her life. The piece was commissioned for Selected Shorts’ anthology Small Odysseys, and is read by Amber Tamblyn. In Tom Perrotta’s “Nine Inches”, a teacher drives only across town, to chaperone a middle school dance, but almost gets into trouble himself. The story is performed by Santino Fontana.

Host Meg Wolitzer presents stories of inspirations small and large. In these tales, writers investigate moments in which art inspires life, or life inspires art, especially in a visual medium. In Elizabeth Crane’s “Blue Girl,” read by Valorie Curry, a young woman's secret life is given an unusual public forum. In Jai Chakrabarti’s “Lessons with Father,” commissioned for our Small Odysseys anthology, a middle-aged child tries to connect with her late father through brushstrokes. The reader is Purva Bedi. And in William Boyd’s “Varengeville” read by Dan Stevens, a young man strays from his famous family as he discovers himself on canvas.

On this week’s SELECTED SHORTS, Meg Wolitzer presents two stories about love, or the next best thing. In Pam Houston’s “How to Talk to a Hunter” a smart woman can’t get enough of what her man can’t offer. The reader is Mia Dillon. And a widow and a lonely man make an odd couple in Lisa Ko’s “Pat + Sam,” performed by Jennifer Ikeda.

On this week’s SELECTED SHORTS, we're going to hear stories about students and schools that abandon the usual rules to follow their own, unusual, codes of behavior. In "Singin' in the Acid Rain," by Patricia Marx, performed by Katrina Lenk, it’s recess at a post-apocalyptic school. Marx talks with Meg Wolitzer about the story and her unique brand of humor after the read, and check your feed for our bonus segment featuring the full interview. The class in “The School,” by Donald Barthelme, performed by Laura Esterman, is facing a difficult test; and young love is framed by larger issues in "Melvin in the Sixth Grade," by Dana Johnson, performed by Nikki M. James. We hear from James about this nuanced rite-of-passage story.On this week’s SELECTED SHORTS, we're going to hear stories about students and schools that abandon the usual rules to follow their own, unusual, codes of behavior. In "Singin' in the Acid Rain," by Patricia Marx, performed by Katrina Lenk, it’s recess at a post-apocalyptic school. Marx talks with Meg Wolitzer about the story and her unique brand of humor after the read, and check your feed for our bonus segment featuring the full interview. The class in “The School,” by Donald Barthelme, performed by Laura Esterman, is facing a difficult test; and young love is framed by larger issues in "Melvin in the Sixth Grade," by Dana Johnson, performed by Nikki M. James. We hear from James about this nuanced rite-of-passage story.

In this bonus conversation, host Meg Wolitzer talks to friend and New Yorker humorist Patricia Marx about her story “Singin’ in the Acid Rain,” and writing funny.