The short story will continue to be the staple of the one-semester literature course, and rightfully so, but for those instructors who would like to add a longer piece or two without committing to a full-scale novel, the in-between stories I've suggested are worth consideration. Of course, my list is far from exhaustive and there are many more fine works whose lengths fall in that gray area betwixt story and novella. Teachers have to beware of publishing tricks and traditional perceptions. They have to look between the covers of the book to decide if it is a length their students can manage. They very well may discover what Forster described as a "beautifully shaped" work whose "final effect is pre-arranged. . .and is completely successful when it comes" (153). A gift well worth sharing with students of literature.
