How have you been? We have all the time in the world, but indulging in something such as a short story can be a transformative experience. Within a few pages, a story can put words to a feeling you’ve never been able to express. It renders epiphany and leaves you thinking, much like a great book (only shorter).

So this week in our segment NP Recommends, our editors have picked some of our best Short Stories. You can use our Read Instantly platform to begin reading these books online even as your physical copy makes its way to your doorstep. Here is a list of books you should not miss.

Politically Incorrect Children’s Stories

S. Ram Kumar

Industrial-strength stories treat children and adults as equals. And told it as it is. No pussy-footing, moral science or sugar coating. Spades are spades! No quarter given, none taken. No mythical characters beggaring belief and science. Just brute logic and empirical evidence. Two kids, Bila & Kabun; a dog – Mr. Morkley and a story-mongering PICS Dad explore the world around them. Meant to be bedtime stories, they mostly left the teller and the listeners sleepless. 
Praise for Politically Incorrect Children’s Stories
OUTSTANDING…..an outstanding book,  it should be made to stand outside the house. Every parent should read it, I haven’t.
L.M., Ram’s mother
TOP BESTSELLER.  2,013,896 copies of this book should definitely sell. Or else
Mr. Mustanda, Credit Card Loans Collection Agency
UNBELIEVABLE. Absolutely UNBELIEVABLE. He actually wrote something readable.
JJ, Ram’s  English Teacher
DIRECT and INDIRECT will apply at the same time…
Taxation department

Click here to read. 

Amongst Monkeys

Narendran

Getting into one of the country’s top management schools is hard. Dreams are many. Expectations are high. So what happens when a budding leader from one of India’s famous Public sector company ends up there, hoping IIM–A is all about leadership. And then, his dreams start to crumble. There’s probably no one who can narrate those feelings better than Naren, a simple student at IIM – Ahmedabad. His journey, through a fiercely competitive world, that is, the most premier management school in India, is by turn thoughtful, poignant and hilarious; sometimes laced with sadness. And it quickly becomes apparent, that it is not what he was looking for. And the pressure of memories, of unrequited love, and the expectations of everyone around make things that much harder. The course is tough. The hours are long. Grades are hard to come by… Is all lost? Or is there a treasure left for Naren to take back… Click here to read.

Cinnamon Bizarre

Nishta Kochar

Cinnamon Bizarre is a fun and quirky collection of nine short stories that will take you on a spectacular journey across genres and timelines. The stories range from whacky, odd humour to stranger darker things. 

From the tickling account of a nearly cuckoo screenwriter’s quest for inspiration and his most eccentric muses to the amusing tale of an odd friendship spun over a curious case of some missing buttons; from the hilarious journey of a multi-millionaire diamond merchant’s wife who finds herself in a pickle to the haunting story of the mysterious Achaari Begum, the sinister Pickle Queen – Cinnamon Bizarre is a handful of tickles, amazement, shock and entertainment, all at once. This is a book for everyone with an appetite for lighthearted fun and hilarity. If you relish the funny, the quirky and the bizarre, then this book will take you on a hysterical joyride. The straight, the gay, the old, the young, men, women. Click here to read.

Has Everything Been Done?

Alisha Rajpal

Each of these stories is a window into the lives of fictional characters experiencing real things. Bombay (or Mumbai if you prefer, I don’t want to get in trouble) is a large soup of humans. No matter where the residents of this city go, something from this city goes with them. In contrast, New York City is a smoothie, a blend only as delicious as the variety of ingredients used to create it. Here are ten stories that take place in these two cities; starting in the year 2000, going all the way up to the year 3000. There is a story about a single mother who is as honest as she is hilarious, except this is not the type of humour most people like. There is another story about a man and his two interns who have to investigate a heist, but then they get in too deep, and one of them is gone. There is also a story here about carrots and peas. I could tell you the rest, but it is more fun to find out yourself. Click here to read.

Come Tomorrow

Jayaprakash Satyamurthy

Ghost stories within ghost stories, shadows from the past and strange intimations from the cosmos converge with the shifting realities of the city of Bangalore in this collection of lyrical, haunting short stories. There are shades of Lovecraft, Ligotti and Aickman, but most of all these stories seek to capture something of the layered, uncanny nature of the city they are set in. Let Jayaprakash Satyamurthy be your guide on a tour of the bean town that might change you forever. Click here to read.

We hope you enjoyed the list! Catch you next Monday to explore more books!