To Cut a Short Story Short: 111 Little Stories

By: Simon J. Wood

Narrated by: Angus Freathy

A young magician in a pub opens his hands to release a cloud of tropical butterflies; a female bookseller is forced to attend a dance in drag to atone for a misdemeanor; a lonely man searches for a mysterious woman on a cruise; four school friends experience terror on a caravan holiday, and a macabre stranger wanders the streets at midnight, stealing dreams.

Ranging from just 100 up to 4000 words, these and 106 other memorable little stories are found in this eclectic and tantalizing collection by Simon J. Wood, an exciting new voice in the Flash Fiction genre.

©2017 Simon J. Wood (P)2017 Simon J. Wood

Outstanding Stories

What did you love best about To Cut a Short Story Short: 111 Little Stories?

Very short stories can be a tremendous challenge for an author, but he consistently rises to the challenge. In a span of a few minutes, he seizes the listener’s attention, and transports the listener to an intriguing setting with intriguing characters. Sometimes the tales are remarkably brief (like “The Majorette” or “What the Devil.”) “Caravan of Nightmares,” however, delivers the goods with over twenty-five minutes of content.

The author quickly establishes himself as a master story-teller, with each tale captivating the listener. Short stories (and very short stories) like this are part of a wonderful genre that is very easy to appreciate and enjoy. The genre works extremely well in the audiobook format, where listeners may want to immerse themselves in something from beginning to end in less than five minutes (perhaps during a car ride, or while running an errand).

What does Angus Freathy bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

In the spirit of full disclosure, I’m already a huge Angus Freathy fan, which is why I selected him to narrate my historical novels. Mister Freathy is an absolutely superb voice actor. In addition to the classical British, Masterpiece Theater-esque gravitas he provides, he also demonstrates a very impressive array of accents and voices. His accents are wonderful in “A Friend in Need,” which takes the listener to a hot, sultry night in Rio. Across more than one hundred distinct tales, the dialogue is crisp and distinctive. I don’t think Mister Wood could have made a better choice for his narrator.

Any additional comments?

Five stars to Simon J. Wood and “To Cut a Short Story Short.” Literature fans and audiobook fans will love these fascinating tales, with each one delightfully interpreted by an outstanding narrator.

BRAVO! BRAVO! I'D GIVE IT A TEN STAR IF I COULD!

TO CUT A SHORT STORY SHORT BY SIMON J WOOD AND NARRATED BY ANGUS FREATHY is comprised of 111 short short stories. Each story has a bit of a weird twist to it. Just when you think they story is going one way,it goes another.

I loved this audiobook and wanted it to never end! The stories are, yes, short shorts,each with a quirky twist to it., Angus Freathy does an excellent job in narration and , along with the writer,makes the listener want to come back for more.