Charters, Ann, ed. The Story and Its Writer: An Introduction to Short Fiction. 6th ed. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 1060 pp.

The most comprehensive and diverse selection of stories in a compact edition. Arranged alphabetically by author, the 72 stories by 64 authors represents a variety found in no other brief fiction anthology -- the widest representation of stories by women (32), American multicultural stories (16), contemporary stories (15 stories written since 1990), and stories by writers from countries other than the U.S. (20).

The most extensive selection of commentaries. Cross-referenced to individual stories and writers for easy use. The 53 commentaries, a rare feature in a compact edition, show how writers think and write about literature, providing students with unparalleled opportunities for discussion and writing.

In-depth Casebooks on authors important to the study of short fiction. Each comprising multiple commentaries by and about the featured writer and by other writers and critics, casebooks enable in-depth study of Raymond Carver and Zora Neale Hurston.

Thorough editorial apparatus that keeps the focus on the writers. Taken directly from the longer edition, the apparatus includes lengthy headnotes that introduce each writer and six informative appendices that instruct on the history of the short story, the elements of fiction, and writing about fiction without interfering with students' own reading and interpretation.