<![CDATA[SAM – Senior Active Men’s Group of Illinois - Short Story Group]]>Thu, 05 Jun 2025 10:38:18 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[Jue 10 - The Second Bakery Attack]]>Sun, 01 Jun 2025 05:05:12 GMThttp://samgroupil.org/short-story-group/jue-10-the-second-bakery-attackWHEN: June 10, 2025; 1:30-2:30
WHERE: Beth Emet
 
In our last meeting…
…we had a lively and in-depth discussion of “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” by J. D. Salinger. Larry Cohen led the discussion after first providing the group with interesting and relevant background information about the author and the story. Thank you, Larry! Well-done!

The next story…
…is “The Second Bakery Attack” by the popular contemporary Japanese author, Haruki Murakami. Randy Balla will lead the discussion. Randy recently took an OLLI at NU course about Murakami.
Murakami’s story adds variety to the kinds of stories we read. As you read the story, keep in mind that his writing dips into magical realism.

The story is below.

Please RSVP here.

Questions and suggestions about our group or about stories are always welcome.

If you don’t have the flaw [in your character], you don’t have much of a story.  I see the narrative arc of a story as a series of decisions made by the main character(s), and some of them must be bad decisions in order to create the tension the story needs to keep a reader engaged and the plot moving forward.
           Christine Sneed
(Christine Sneed is on the faculty at Northwestern University, as the Faculty Director of the MFA and MA in Creative Writing programs within the School of Professional Studies.)

Phil
the_second_bakery_attack_by_haruki_murakami_word.pdf
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]]><![CDATA[May 27 “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” by J. D. Salinger]]>Fri, 16 May 2025 15:46:03 GMThttp://samgroupil.org/short-story-group/may-27-a-perfect-day-for-bananafish-by-j-d-salingerWHAT:  Next SAM Short Story Group Meeting
WHEN: May 27  1:30-2:30
WHERE: Beth Emet
 
In the last meeting…
…the group discussed the story “The Brothers” by Lysley Tenorio. Marty Freed led the discussion.
 
The next story…
…is "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" by J. D. Salinger.  You may remember him as the author of Catcher in the Rye. The Bananafish story was first published in The New Yorker in 1948, and republished in 1953 in Salinger’s collection of stories titled Nine Stories. Larry Cohen will lead our discussion.
 
The story is linked below.

Click here to RSVP.

[As an author…] It’s not my place to make terrible truths easier to hear; all I do is reveal them.
          Lysley Tenorio


Call or text me if you have questions.
Phi
a_perfect_day_for_bananafish_by_j_d_salinger_word.pdf
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]]><![CDATA[May 13 - The Brothers]]>Wed, 30 Apr 2025 04:57:03 GMThttp://samgroupil.org/short-story-group/may-13-the-brothersWHAT:  SAM Short Story Group Meeting
WHEN: May 13, 1:30-2:30
WHERE: Beth Emet


In the meeting…
…the group discussed Nadine Gordimer’s story “Six Feet of the Country” and that discussion led into a discussion of South Africa and the system of Apartheid, and Gordimer’s means of protesting. Thanks to Don Garfield for assisting.

The story for the next meeting…
…is “The Brothers” by Lysley Tenorio, a Philippine American writer. Published in 2012, the story is about prejudice of a different kind. It takes place in San Francisco with a Catholic family. It could have been set many places and in many times, including right here and now.

The story is below.

Click here to RSVP.
​.
Call or text me if you have any questions.
Phil
the_brothers_by_lysley_tenorio.pdf
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]]><![CDATA[April 29 - Six Feet of the Country]]>Thu, 17 Apr 2025 01:09:33 GMThttp://samgroupil.org/short-story-group/april-29-six-feet-of-the-countryNext Meeting Date: Tuesday, April 29
Time: 1:30 - 2:45
Where: Beth Emet

In the last meeting……the group discussed Michael Kahn’s story “The Bread of Affliction” and also asked questions of Michael about his writing. Many thanks to Mike for sharing with us. Thanks, too, to Ed, for filling in for me.

The next story…
…is “Six Feet of the Country." The story is set in South Africa in the 1950s. The author, Nadine Gordimer, grew up in South Africa. She lived from 1923 to 2014, during the time of apartheid, and wrote many novels and short stories about its effects, especially the sense of alienation. She received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1991.

"Six Feet of the Country" is below.

Click here to RSVP.

Call or text me if you have any questions.
Phil
six_feet_of_the_country_by_nadine_gordimer_word.pdf
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]]><![CDATA[April 1 - After the Denim]]>Tue, 25 Mar 2025 02:12:53 GMThttp://samgroupil.org/short-story-group/march-24th-2025Next Meeting Date: Tuesday, April 1
Time: 1:30 - 2:45
Where: Beth Emet

In our last meeting…
Garry Sigman led our discussion of the science fiction story “Nightfall” by Isaac Asimov. Thanks, Garry, for the assistance with the background regarding Asimov and with the analysis of the story.

 Our next story…
..is another one by Raymond Carver, “After the Denim.” First published in the New England Review, 1981, the story was included in his collection of short stories titled What We Talk about When We Talk about Love (yes, the title of one of his stories and also the title of the collection containing that story).

Carter is credited with having had a profound influence on American short story writers during the eighties, at the head of the line of  'dirty realists' or 'K-mart realists'. Set in trailer parks and shopping malls, Carver’s stories tell of banal lives that turn on seemingly insignificant details. His ability to create simple scenes that evoke almost subliminal emotions has been compared to Edward Hopper’s ability to do so with paint.

Click here to RSVP.

“After the Denim” is attached.

Please call or text me if you have any questions.
Phil
after_the_denim_by_raymond_carver.pdf
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