The Snake Handler

by Anthony Doerr

From the prize-winning author of The Shell Collector and Memory Wall comes an intense, rollicking short story, not available in any of his books. Carlos Ninguna is seventeen. His father is a snake-handler and Carlos is his apprentice. When a man who may or may not be on the FBI's Most Wanted List moves into the apartment above them, Carlos is faced with a whole tangle of complicated decisions.

Anthony Doerr is one of the country's most honored young story writers. His short stories have appeared in the Atlantic, McSweeney's, the Paris Review, and Zoetrope: All-Story, where "The Snake Handler" originally appeared. His most recent collection, Memory Wall, won the 2010 Story Prize.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories

16 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 14, 2011

About the author

Anthony Doerr is the author of six books, The Shell Collector , About Grace , Memory Wall , Four Seasons in Rome , All the Light We Cannot See , and Cloud Cuckoo Land . Doerr is a two-time National Book Award finalist, and his fiction has won five O. Henry Prizes and won a number of prizes including the Pulitzer Prize and the Carnegie Medal. Become a fan on Facebook and stay up-to-date on his latest publications.

Reviews

[Stef Smulders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing short story, intense and gripping. This author is a born storyteller.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story. Well done. Like this author.

[Mum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark and beautifully written.