Beyond Texas with W.F. Strong

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This is an interview I had with the great author, Frederick Forsyth, back when his autobiography - The Outsider - was published a few years ago.  I've always loved this interview because he was so open and enthusiastic and charming about his life and his writing.  So I share it here on Beyond Texas knowing that many of those of you who listen to this podcast enjoy literary insights and peaks behind the curtain where we get to see how geniuses work.  This has a little of that flavor to it.  He talks about his life as a part=time spy for MI6, learning to fly when he was a teenager, how much he loved his father because his father set him free, his life as a war correspondent, and how he wrote The Day of the Jakal in 35 days.  

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The Lottery is one of the absolute finest short stories produced in America in all of the 20th century.  Top ten for sure.  In this episode, I have reserved commentary and interpretations about the story until after you've heard it.  Afterwards, I provide some special background on Jackson's masterpiece, some interpretations of it, and the works it subsequently influenced. 

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This story takes place in the dystopian world of 2081 where a fascist regime has finally made sure everyone is equal, except for those in charge, of course.  The story is a cautionary tale that warns against the sad and dangerous outcomes that will result from the suppression of individuality and diverse human gifts.  

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I love stories about books such as The Shadow of the Wind by Zafon or The Book Thief by Zusak.  This story by Borges is a very short, short story.  It concerns a magical book that the protagonist purchases and the book develops a powerful hold on him.  It has a kind of Black Mirror vibe.  

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Hills LIke White Elephants is Hemingway's most famous and most discussed short story.  And it is short.  Less than ten minutes long in audio form.  And it is a story that can be argued over with great fervor on all sides because there is so much subtle and symbolic information to support the perspectives of all sides.  Ambiguity makes the story one that will call you back to it over and over throughout your life. And you'll never be certain about how it all ends.  

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The Most Dangerous Game is riveting short story by Richard Connell published originally in 1924. It won an O´Henry award shortly after it was first published.  Orson Welles adapted it for broadcast on CBS radio in 1943.  It has been adapted for film several times.  

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Guy de Maupassant wrote some 300 short stories in his short life.  Most he wrote within a ten year period.  This story, the Necklace, is generally considered his best known short story.  

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Often listed as one of the top ten best short stories ever written in America,  The Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,  by Ambrose Bierce remains, even today, a particularly haunting  story for everyone who has ever read it, or seen the Twilight Zone episode based on the story which Rod Serling aired in 1961.  

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Excerpts from the extraordinarily poignant book by Nobel Prize winning Spanish author, Juan Ramón Jiménez.  I call it a children´s book for adults, but children can certainly enjoy it, too.   Like all great literature, it works on many levels. 

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Jack London's To Build a Fire is often listed among the top 100 of best short stories ever written.  Now that North America and Europe are in the deep freeze of winter, it seemed to me a great time, given the natural ambiance, to share London's masterpiece. 

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