José Saramago tackles the conflict between mind and body in ‘The Centaur’, says Nadine Gordimer

Charles Dickens celebrated Christmas throughout his writing life. His autobiographical story ‘A Christmas Tree’ is ‘almost Proustian’, says Simon Callow

Ruth Rendell doesn’t believe in ghosts, of course, but MR James’s stories, like ‘Canon Alberic’s Scrapbook’, frighten her nonetheless

Despite their restraint, Raymond Carver’s ‘early-period’ stories, such as The Student’s Wife, are full to the brim, says Richard Ford

Zadie Smith launches our winter series of short stories with an almost ‘anti-Italian’ story from Giuseppe Pontiggia, ‘Umberto Buti’

In the last of our 12 tales for Christmas, Helen Simpson reads Angela Carter’s ‘triumphant comedy’, ‘The Kitchen Child’ For more podcasts, including Philip Pullman reading Chekhov and Helen Dunmore reading Frank O’Connor, visit the Guardian short stories podcast page. To nominate your own favourite short story, join the discussion on our open thread

Ali Smith reads a ‘breathtaking, breathgiving’ look at an argument between an elderly father and his writer daughterIn the original version of this podcast, Ali Smith’s reading was cut short. The version below has been corrected with the full-length reading

Tessa Hadley reads a story from one of her ‘writing family’, Elizabeth Bowen’s ‘The Jungle’

Margaret Drabble reads Katherine Mansfield’s ‘memorable, painful’ The Doll’s House – the first adult short story she ever read For more podcasts, including Philip Pullman reading Chekhov and William Boyd reading JG Ballard, visit the Guardian short stories podcast page. To nominate your own favourite short story, join the discussion on our open thread

Colm Tóibín delights in the hidden landscapes and hidden lives revealed in Eugene McCabe’s Music at Annahullian For more podcasts, including Philip Pullman reading Chekhov and William Boyd reading JG Ballard, visit the Guardian short stories podcast page. To nominate your own favourite short story, join the discussion on our open thread