A season of endings, but also beginnings: our first Barbara Pym! The celebrated British novelist had a bit of a career slump; after publishing six novels between 1950 and 1961, she couldn't find a home for her seventh, and didn't publish anything for more than a decade. Then, in 1977, Quartet in Autumn appeared, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. A true comeback victory.

We chose this book because it deals with a different kind of ending: retirement. Four aging office workers are on their way out, and each is sad in their own way. The book's kind of a bummer, but also funny? Like a certain podcast you all know and love.

We're joined by frequest guest Dave Housley, author of several sad/funny novels, including one about an office.

If you're a fan of the show, and want more of it in your life, we're still posting new episodes every two weeks to our Patreon. Five bucks a month also gets you access to a pretty deep back catalog, including our Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time: https://www.patreon.com/c/BookFight

The problem with writing very short stories is that it forces you to write more endings, which are the hardest part! At least that's our opinion. But we bring on writer and Barrelhouse fiction editor Christopher Gonzalez (I'm Not Hungry But I Could Eat, 2021) to school us in how to stick the landing on flash fiction.

Chris chose four very different flash pieces for us to read, all of which are available for free online:

-Andy Lopez, "How Filipino of Us" (from Split Lip)

-Deesha Philyaw, "Love 1992: A Catechism)" (from Fractured Lit)

-Amy Stuber, "Only a Little Bit Less Than I Hate Myself" (from Longleaf Review)

-Julian Martinez, "Cartoons" (from HAD)

Also in this episode: We review what's going on in shorts (short pants, that is), which includes some conflicting reports in terms of inseam lengths. And do shorts get longer as the government becomes more authoritarian? It's a theory, apparently.

We kick off the final season of Book Fight with a guest-free episode--like the old days! Our reading this week is Geoff Dyer's 2022 book The Last Days of Roger Federer, and Other Endings. Which seemed thematically appropriate as we come to our own ending (of the podcast; we're not dying or anything).