This study provides an analysis of three influential and representative writers of the latest minimalist phase of the American short story. Professor Hallett points out that the kind of criticism hurled against minimalism in the late 70s and early 80s is much the same as that which has constituted the fortune of the short story as a genre throughout its history. She argues that such critics have been scornful precisely because they do not know how to read this style, and she sets out to correct the glibness and snobbishness about the short story in our generation. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)