Master's Choice

By Peter LovseyJoyce Carol OatesVarious, et al.

Book Overview

Penzler Pick, January 2000: I love short stories, and having read scores of anthologies over the years I rejoice when someone comes up with an especially nifty theme for one. Lawrence Block has... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425170314
• ISBN13: 9780425170311
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 0.8" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

Good effort

Block has created an interesting concept in this new anthology series. He contacted several mystery writers asking for what they considered to be their best story as well as the best story they have ever read. The response was overwhelming and the editor collected some of them in this book...In the first volume of this anthology the adage `less is more' can be applied to the best stories in the collection. Some of the best include Ed Gorman's EN FAMILLE and Joan Hess's ANOTHER ROOM. Ms. Hess's choice for best short story is Judith Garner's TRICK OR TREAT. It is about four pages long and one of the scariest stories ever written. It is not because of what happens in the story but what may happen. A sample of good writing is when the author forces the reader to use their imagination in order to create their own ending. There can be different interpretations but each one is precious. The imagination is a powerful weapon. The least favorite story in this book is Harlan Ellison's TIRED OLD MAN. The problem with this story is that Ellison describes the incident that inspired his story creating a carbon copy with fictional characters. Who wants to read a story twice?

A great collection

I bought this book for my mother, who has a passion for mystery stories. She absolutely loved it, and now I'm reading it myself. The diversity of styles, and the revelation of what top writers consider great writing, make this not only a fun read, but also an informative one for the aspiring writer. I whole-heartedly recommend it.