16 modern fiction superstars shine a startling light on the romance and pain of the infamous literary pair Heathcliff and Cathy.
Short stories to stir the heart and awaken vital conversation about love.
Sixteen stories inspired by Wuthering Heights.In 'Terminus' a young woman hides in an empty Brighton hotel; in 'Thicker Than Blood' a man sits in a hot tub stalking his newly-married love on social media; and in 'A bird half-eaten' an amateur boxer prepares for a match.
A woman recalls the 'Heathcliff's I Have Known' and the physical danger she has borne at their hands; in 'Anima' a child and a fox are unified in one startling moment of violence; and in 'One Letter Different' two teenagers walk the moors and face up to their respective buried secrets.
Curated by Kate Mosse and commissioned for Emily Brontë's bicentenary year in 2018, these fresh, modern stories pulse with the raw beauty and pain of love and are as timely as they are illuminating.
The full list of contributors is:
Leila Aboulela, Hanan Al-Shaykh, Joanna Cannon, Alison Case, Juno Dawson, Louise Doughty, Sophie Hannah, Anna James, Erin Kelly, Dorothy Koomson, Grace McCleen, Lisa McInerney, Laurie Penny, Nikesh Shukla, Michael Stewart and Louisa Young.
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[TWO YOUNG WOMEN ARE standing in a hotel lobby, on either side of a polished reception desk - TERMINUS BY LOUISE DOUGHTY]***
(The Borough Press, 26 July 2018, hardback, 304 pages, Around The Year In 52 Books 2019, 4 books inspired by the wedding rhyme, something new, bought from Amazon)
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Stories included
- Terminus by Louise Doughty
- Anima by Grace McLean
- A Bird, Half-Eaten by Nikesh Shukla
- Thicker Than Blood by Erin Kelly
- One Letter Different by Joanna Cannon
- The Howling Girl by Laurie Penny
- Five Sites, Five Stages by Lisa McInerney
- Kit by Juno Dawson
- My Eye Is a Button on Your Dress by Hanan al-Shaykh
- The Cord by Alison Case
- Heathcliff's I Have Known by Louisa Young
- Amulet and Feathers by Leila Aboulela
- How Things Disappear by Anna James
- The Wildflowers by Dorothy Koomson
- Heathcliff Is Not My Name by Michael Stewart
- Only Joseph by Sophie Hannah
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I must be one of the very few people in the world who didn't like Wuthering Heights. I get why people love it so much and Heathcliff and Cathy's disturbing, dark bond is fascinating. I enjoyed every story in this collection. Usually anthologies have one or two weak stories but every story in I Am Heathcliff: Stories Inspired by Wuthering Heights is good. The reason for 4 stars and not 5 is that I enjoyed some stories a lot more than others and even though they were all good stories some were better than others. Among the best are Terminus by Louise Doughty, Thicker Than Blood by Erin Kelly, The Cord by Alison Case and The Wildflowers by Dorothy Koomson.