Gene Wolfe is not only known for his novels. He has written great short stories that very often turn out to be some kind of intellectual puzzles. Usually they are not easy to read but they provide great satisfaction and can be re-read many times.
This page lists the stories that I have read including a short rating (A+ = superb!, A = great, B = okay, C = didn’t like it).
The Fifth Head of Cerberus (1972)
- (A+) The Fifth Head of Cerberus
- (A) “A Story” by John V. Marsch
- (A+) V.R.T.
The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories (1980)
- (B) The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories
- (A) Alien Stones
- (B) La Befana
- (A) The Hero as Werwolf
- (C) Three Fingers
- (A+) The Death of Dr. Island
- (B) Feather Tigers
- (A) Hour of Trust
- (A) Tracking Song
- (A) The Toy Theater
- (A) Cues
- (B) The Eyeflash Miracles
- (A+) Seven American Nights
Book of Days (1985)
- (A) Forlesen
- (A) Many Mansions
- (A) How I Lost the Second World War and Helped Turn Back the German Invasion
- (C) Against the Lafayette Escadrille
- (A) The War Beneath the Tree
- (B) La Befana (Note: in Italy the “christmas witch” brings the presents; I liked the story much more after learning that it’s based on a this tradition and that she hasn’t been invented by Wolfe)
- (B) Melting
- (A) Three Million Square Miles
- (A) The Changeling
- (A) An Article About Hunting
- (B) The Adopted Father
- (A) St Brandon (Note: this is an exception from Peace)
- (B) Beautyland
- (C) Car Sinister
- (A) How the Whip came back
- (A) Of Relays and Roses
- (A) Paul’s Treehouse
- (A) The Blue Mouse
Storeys from the Old Hotel (1988) (currently reading)
- (A) A Solar Labyrinth (Note: this is a tough puzzle and easily dismissed if you are not up to it – multiple re-reads are required; my theory is that the labyrinth is a metaphor for books and Mr Smith is Gene Wolfe himself)
- (B) Beech Hill
- (B) Sightings at Twin Mounds
- (A) Continuing Westward
- (B) Slaves of Silver
- (A) Westwind
- (B) Sonya, Crane Wessleman, and Kittee
- (A) The Packerhaus Method
Endangered Species (1989)
- (A) The Detective of Dreams (Note: strong religious context. If you don’t know the Gospel it will be a puzzling experience. I highly suggest to read it first.)
Starwater Strains (2005)
- (B) Viewpoint
- (C) Rattler
- (A) In Glory like Their Star
- (A) Calamity Warps
- (A) Graylord Man’s Last Words
- (A) Shields of Mars
- (A) From the Cradle
- (A) Black Shoes
- (A) Has Anybody Seen Junie Moon?
- (A) Pulp Cover
- (A) Of Soil and Climate
- (-) The Dog of the Drops (Note: I had to skip this one, I wasn’t ready for the dialect.)
- (B) Mute
- (A) Petting Zoo
- (A) Castaway
- (A) The Fat Magician
- (A) The Boy Who Hooked the Sun
Uncollected Stories
- (A+) Memorare
- (A) Donovan Sent Us
