The Best Asian Short Stories 2020

From the mountains of Uttrakhand in India to the Rocky Mountain in Canada, the stories in this volume represent the multitude of Asian voices that capture the wishes, aspirations, dreams and conflicts of people inhabiting a vast region of our planet. While some contributions deal with the themes of migration, pandemics and climate change, others give us a peek into the inner workings of the human heart through the prism of these well-wrought stories. This volume is the expression of a community, "a community of Asian writing that stands on its own two - no, its own million - feet!", as novelist and critic Tabish Khair says in his 'Foreword'.

Like any proper anthology of short fiction, Asian or not, this one is a celebration of, indeed a valentine to, the short story. One way we know we have read a great short story, as you will here again and again, is the recurrent, delicious mistake of feeling like we have actually just read an entire novel. Short stories are dense and compact; novels are, by definition, loose and baggy. To read a short story in one sitting, as we are so tempted to do here, is to have the artistic equivalent of expanding a compressed computer file: so much life comes pouring out, jack-in-the-box or clown- car style, of these meticulously crafted sentences and scenes. These brave, talented, unforgettable writers from the Philippines, Afghanistan, India, Japan, and Singapore have compressed so much life, so much hard-fought wisdom, battered grace, and sweet delight, into these seventeen moving stories in alluring voices.

Fittingly for a crime collection, this debut anthology offers thirteen stories, stretching from India to Japan, with key stops along the way in Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines. Some of the authors whose work is being showcased in this anthology are Priya Sood, Carol Pang, Timothy Yam, Lee Ee Leen, Wendy Jones Nakanishi, Ricardo Albay, and Aaron Ang, among others.About the Editor: Richard Lord has written or co-written over 20 books. He was the editor of two popular crime fiction anthologies: Crime Scene Singapore and Crime Scene Asia. He wrote the acclaimed novel The Strangler's Waltz, and one of his crime short stories was adapted as a TV mini-series by Singapore's Mediacorp.

The Malaysian Writers Society presents a decade of quality short stories in The Best of Malaysian Short Fiction in English 2010–2020. A wish for better weather has unexpected consequences. A pianist finds an unlikely audience in her next-door neighbour. A girl attempts Mount Kinabalu only to regret it. Curated by editors Zhui Ning Chang and JY Tan, The Best of Malaysian Short Fiction in English 2010–2020 spans the speculative and realist to thrillers and drama. It explores the bold new directions of contemporary Malaysian writing and hints at the new heights of our future national literature. The Best of Malaysian Short Fiction in English 2010–2020 includes: Hugo Award winner Zen Cho; 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize Regional Winner Saras Manickam; Fixi Novo Contest winners Terence Toh and Chua Kok Yee; and USA Today bestselling author Cassandra Khaw.

Inspiring insights on what is often unsaid In the last volume of our Letter series, we invited 18 contributors to write to their partners. These heartfelt words are at once a celebration of romance and that first flush of love. Perhaps what needs to be said, things to be thankful for, but they’ve never had the chance to do so. Perhaps hurts they had inflicted over time on their partners, but never made amends for; such matters left unresolved eventually become a thorn in the relationship. These private words, publicly uttered, reflect on how marriage is not always the happily-ever-after movies portray it, but a coming-to-terms with differences and distances, trauma and pain. Contributors include: Jon Gresham, Donna Tang, Hamish Brown, Ning Cai, Marc Nair, Baskaran Narayanan, Nuraliah Norasid, Anisa Hassan, Tara Dhar Hasnain, Laila Jaey, Shirlene Noordin, Md Sharif Uddin, Hernie Mamat, Fann Sim, Shirley Kwan, Amy Chia, Paul Rozario-Falcone, Adib Jalal

New York Times best-selling author Curtis Sittenfeld selects the twenty best short stories of the year.

This book comprises stories from Southeast Asia, South Asia and East Asia, written especially for young adults. This specially curated anthology of short stories from Asia explores the human spirit and lives of the common man separated by time, space and culture, and yet united in the human spirit to overcome the difficulties that they face in life. It provides an insight into the rich and diverse landscape of Asia, as well as heritage and cultural practices. It also challenges pre-conceived notions of biases and beliefs about other cultures and opens up room for discussion on the differences that define the human race. A Tapestry of Colours 2 provides a platform for readers to develop global awareness of the landscape and the people of Asia.