Tales Across After
The Coat on the Hook
Four months gone, and the coat still hangs on the hook. No reason to take it down.
Reading time: 7 minStories of loss and moving on
This collection is slower than the others. There is no moral in it — only people who have lost someone, and who are trying to work out how the days pass afterwards.
The stories do not heal anyone and they do not give advice. They are simply there: at three in the morning, opposite an empty chair, and they do not hurry you.
Please note: these are literary texts, not professional support. If you feel you need to talk to someone, reach out to a professional or a helpline in your country.
Reading time: 6–8 minutes per story. Read them when it helps.
Stories in this collection
Tales Across After
The Doll Who Said Goodbye
One night in the life of a doll doctor: his daughter takes a repaired doll back to its owner and does not return. A retelling of F. Marion Crawford's 1896 story.
Reading time: 7 min
Tales Across After
The First Holiday Without Him
Eleven months after Dad died, the first Christmas. The stuffed cabbage recipe is in his notebook — in his handwriting. I cannot make it another way.
Reading time: 7 min
Tales Across After
The Neighbour's Dog
The dog waits at the gate for fourteen days. Then a neighbour sits down beside it on the pavement.
Reading time: 6 min
Tales Across After
The Garden She Planted
Forty years of garden. After she dies, the son wants to sell — then the raspberries put out shoots.
Reading time: 7 min
Tales Across After
The Story of an Hour
Her sister tells her about the train crash carefully, because of her heart. A retelling of Kate Chopin's 1894 story about one hour in which everything changes.
Reading time: 3 min
Tales Across After
The Little Match Girl
On New Year's Eve a barefoot girl lights matches in the corner of a house, and the flames bring her visions. A retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's 1845 tale.
Reading time: 3 min
Tales Across After
A Wagner Matinee
An aunt from the prairie comes up to Boston over an inheritance, and at a concert forty years of renunciation bring the music back all at once. A retelling of Willa Cather's 1904 story.
Reading time: 4 minFrequently asked questions
Who are these stories for?
For people who have lost someone — and for the people standing beside them. This is not professional help; it is literature. Being together in the difficult hours.
Do they give advice on grieving?
No. These are literary texts, not therapy or medical advice. They do not tell you what to feel, and they never hurry you.
How long are they?
Six to eight minutes, roughly 600–1000 words. Short enough to be read even on a hard morning.
Is there hope in them?
There is — but not a dishonest kind. They never promise that everything will be all right. They only show that moving on is not a betrayal.
What does 'retold classic' mean on one of these stories?
It means the story is our own retelling of a work that is in the public domain worldwide: the author died more than seventy years ago and the work was first published before 1930. We credit the author on the page and explain the copyright status there. Our public domain sources page has the details.
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