Birthday Party

Hello, and welcome to “Little Bibliophile,” the podcast where some of the most impacting short stories I have ever come across I now read to you. This week's story is an extremely short one. It is about four paragraphs long. However, this did not exclude this piece from The New Yorker some years ago. I first came across it when I was twelve years old, and even though my education was merely budding, I was still quite impressed with it. Recently, I had forgotten what it was called and had to search on Google some key words in order to find it. Obviously, the story matter had stuck with me. The thing I love about this story is how quietly heartbreaking it is, how everyday heartbreaking. And then when you think about how it was written in the 1940s, it really just makes it even more sad. All of the torment that the woman feels, as well as the story of her life and her marriage, is portrayed in four short paragraphs. It astounds me. And now, I invite you to close your eyes as this wonderfully brilliant story sets a stage for you. Here is Katherine Brush's “Birthday Party.”