A City in Short Fiction: The Book of BRADFORD

12th March 2026

A City in Short Fiction: The Book of BRADFORD, edited by Saima Mir.

“To know Bradford is to love her contradictions” says the editor, as she introduces short stories to transport the reader to this featured city.

The city often gets a bad press but it was City of Culture 2025 and it played a significant part in the Industrial Revolution, it was The Wool Capital of the World.

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There are 11 stories featured in this anthology and each story offers an insight into people, time and place. It is a multicultural city, reflected in the pieces. “Smoke of the Tide” by Malachi Whitaker is the story of a man, anchored by marriage down South but deeply connected to his city. His wife is derogatory about ‘the North’, so he is alone as he reflects whilst exploring the regular fun fair. In “The Homecoming” Bolling Hall is central to the narrative as Dorothy revisits memories of her childhood, and now is there to scatter her father’s ashes in “one of his favourite places”. It is a poignant story set in a historic home with a touch of ghostly frisson.

In Madam Doctor and the Tea Lady by Sairish Hussain the pressures of working within the health sector are writ large, compounded by Iman’s personal situation in life. Every Friday at Jummah time she arrives for a quick lunch, observed by Sakina who works in the restaurant. The two bond over an incident…

The city is beautifully evoked through these collected stories and certainly if you have an interest in the city, or intend to visit, then you will be richly rewarded by picking up this short book.

Tina for the TripFiction Team

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