I thought of having a theme, but I couldn’t keep myself disciplined. Instead, I’ve chosen as wide a mix as possible – from classics to things that some wouldn’t really consider short stories at all. As soon as I finished, I wanted to tear it all up and start again – but you’ve got to draw the line somewhere. Perhaps the best way of describing this list in the end is that, rather than being the best stories I know, it’s the ones that have stuck with me, and spring to my mind most readily.