Fascinating Short Story Collections Everyone Should Read

A short story is a compelling genre, one that deserves a lot more credit than it receives. To compress an entire tale, twists, turns, drama, and comedy included, into a few pages, requires a specific talent that only a few writers have been able to master. Featuring stories from some of the greatest authors ever, here are four short story collections that will leave you in a state of literary bliss.

1. The Best of Roald Dahl by Roald Dahl

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It's easy to mistake The Best of Roald Dahl as a roundup of his most famous children's stories. In reality, this short story compilation consists of 20 fiendishly delightful horror tales by Dahl, meant for a mature audience. Among the stories are gems like Lamb to the Slaughter, a macabre account of a wife disposing of her husband's body in the most twisted manner imaginable. Then there is The Landlady, a suspense-filled telling of a young man who takes up residence with a rather peculiar old lady. Ideal for night-time reading, The Best of Roald Dahl masterfully challenges the depths of every reader's imagination with its ghastly, goose-bumps-giving quick reads.

2. Lonely Planet's By the Seat of My Pants

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At the heart of traveling is gaining knowledge about new places, understanding different cultures, experiencing the unknown, while simultaneously learning from our adventures and mistakes. By the Seat of My Pants is a look at the lighter side of travel. A must-read anthology, the stories here are tiny but have a common undertone of humor throughout. The editing by Don George deserves special mention as he brilliantly presents a coherent book with easy to understand prose, even though all the writers bring their individuality to the chapters. Brimming with episodes that will make you laugh out loud or think twice about getting in a taxi with a driver carrying an Uzi, By the Seat of My Pants is a fun reminder of why we all love to travel.

3. Manto: Selected Stories by Saadat Hasan Manto

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There's something unassumingly magical about the way Manto writes. The author, surrounded by controversy and personal demons during his lifetime, is by far one of the greatest to have lived in the Indian subcontinent. There are several translations of Manto available nowadays. However, Selected Stories by Aatish Taseer stunningly captures the essence of the author's work that manages to penetrate through the intricacies of human nature in its rawest form. Manto's short stories are deeply seductive, often troubling tales that strike the soul in the most profound way possible. Whether it is the hauntingly reflective Khol Do, about a father in search of his daughter, or 10 Rupees, about an innocent young "prostitute" happy to take a trip in a car with her clients, Manto's writing will undoubtedly astound you with its sharp reflection of society and its virtues.

4. Beggars Banquet by Ian Rankin

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Ian Rankin's work, which primarily examines the eccentricities of the criminal mind, is packed with suspense, murder, and ample twists to keep everyone guessing until the end. Beggar Banquet is his second collection of short stories, first being A Good Hanging, where he captivates readers with brilliant tales of evil and retribution. There's The Only True Comedian, about a deadbeat comic on the run. And, The Hanged Man, which sees a sinister cat-and-mouse game played between a killer and his victim. Regular Rankin readers will be pleased to find a handful of Inspector Rebus stories amongst the lot, including The Death is Not the End, one of the best short stories in the book. Beggars Banquet is an eventful gathering of Rankin's published works, a must for mystery lovers, and perfect for a read by the fireplace, with a glass of hot cocoa, on a dark and wintery evening.