About this episode
Host Meg Wolitzer presents two unconventional love stories that avoid typical romantic tropes.
Host Meg Wolitzer presents two unconventional love stories, one classic, one contemporary, that avoid the usual tropes of “meet cute,” “opposites attract,” or “happily ever after” but are still engaging. In “Love in the Slump,” by Evelyn Waugh, clueless upper-crust newlyweds are sent on a comic odyssey. The reader is Jane Kaczmarek. And Esther Yi’s “Moon” explores something we often mistake for love—obsession--as a young woman is drawn farther and farther into K-Pop fandom. The story was selected by guest editor Min Jin Lee for Best American Short Stories 2023. It’s read by Hettienne Park. And we hear Lee’s and Park’s thoughts about the story.
People in this episode
Host: Meg Wolitzer
Guest: Min Jin Lee
Topics covered
- love stories
- unconventional relationships
- K-Pop fandom
- obsession
- literature
Keywords
- love
- obsession
- K-Pop
- Evelyn Waugh
- Min Jin Lee
- short stories
- literature
More episodes of Selected Shorts
- The Pursuit of Happiness with Death, Sex and Money · June 4, 2026 · 58 min
- Death Sex Money · May 28, 2026 · 58 min
- Modest Expectations · May 21, 2026 · 60 min
- Save the Date with Belletrist Book Club · May 14, 2026 · 59 min
- Fork in the Road · May 7, 2026 · 59 min
- Elements of Nature · April 30, 2026 · 57 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Selected Shorts podcast page.