Counterparts (short story) Counterparts (short story) "Counterparts" is a short story by James Joyce published in his 1914 collection "Dubliners". The story recounts an evening in the life of a man named Farrington, frequently referred to simply as "the man". Farrington’s difficulties begin at his clerical job when his boss -- whom he addresses as "Mr. Alleyne" -- berates him for not having finished an assignment. Instead of applying himself immediately to the task, the alcoholic Farrington slips out of the office for a quick "g.p." (glass of plain porter). When Alleyne yells at Farrington again, Farrington replies with an impertinent remark and
The Refugees (short story collection) Yorker", writer Joyce Carol Oates said though these stories are less "stylized and experimental" than Nguyen's novel "The Sympathizer" (published in 2016, but written after many of the stories in this collection), all of his "fiction is pervaded by a shared intensity of vision, by stinging perceptions that drift like windblown ashes." Michael Schaub, writing for NPR, writes that "The Refugees" is "an urgent, wonderful collection that proves that fiction can be more than mere storytelling — it can bear witness to the lives of people who we can't afford to forget." The Refugees (short story collection) The Refugees is