Synopses & Reviews
Marisa Silver dazzled and inspired readers with her critically acclaimed andlt;Iandgt;The God of War andlt;/Iandgt;(a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist), praised by Richard Russo as and#8220;a novel of great metaphorical depth and beauty.and#8221; In this elegant, finely wrought new collection, andlt;Iandgt;Alone With You, andlt;/Iandgt;Silver has created eight indelible stories that mine the complexities of modern relationships and the unexpected ways love manifests itself. Her brilliantly etched characters confront lifeand#8217;s abrupt and unsettling changes with fear, courage, humor, and overwhelming grace. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;In the O. Henry Prizeand#8211;winning story and#8220;The Visitor,and#8221; a VA hospital nurseand#8217;s aide contends with a family ghost and discovers the ways in which her own past haunts her. The reticent father in and#8220;Pondand#8221; is confronted with a Solomonic choice that pits his love for his daughter against his feelings for her young son. In and#8220;Night Train to Frankfurt,and#8221; first published in andlt;Iandgt;The New Yorker, andlt;/Iandgt;a daughter travels to an alternative-medicine clinic in Germany in a gambit to save her motherand#8217;s life. And in the title story, a woman vacations in Morocco with her family while contemplating a decision that will both ruin and liberate them all. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;From and#8220;Temporary,and#8221; where a young woman confronts the ephemeral nature of companionship, to and#8220;Three Girls,and#8221; in which sisters trapped in a snowstorm recognize the boundaries of childhood, the nuanced voices of andlt;Iandgt;Alone With You andlt;/Iandgt;bear the hallmarks of an instant classic from a writer with unerring talent and imaginative resource. Silver has the extraordinary ability to render her fictional inhabitants instantly relatable, in all their imperfections. Her stories have the singular quality of looking in a mirror. We see at once what is familiar and what is strange. In these stirring narratives, we meet ourselves anew.
Review
and#8220;andlt;iandgt;Alone With Youandlt;/iandgt;, a collection of wondrous stories by Marisa Silver, will endure. Each story shatters the commonplace with the telling detail that evokes crucial events in human lives. She is a real writer; the breath of life infuses her work.and#8221; and#8212;Paula Fox, Newbery Medal-winning novelist and author of andlt;iandgt;Borrowed Finery: A Memoirandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;andlt;iandgt;Alone with Youandlt;/iandgt; offers eight extraordinary portraits of lifeand#8217;s tender humiliations as well as its sharp, rude jolts. Marisa Silverand#8217;s virtuosic range seems endless, and yet her ear and heart are in each case mining for a precise kind of undoing: when the fog suddenly lifts and people manage stark contact with themselves, if only for a fleeting moment. These moments are brought to bear with deftness, compassion, and an eerie, unflinching grace.and#8221; and#8212;Rachel Kushner, author of andlt;iandgt;Telex From Cubaandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;Marisa Silverand#8217;s andlt;iandgt;Alone With You andlt;/iandgt;is a triumph for the short story. Funny and surprising and unsentimental, the collection finds in dark situations a persuasive hope. Every story is striking both in its emotional complexity, and in the wry clarity with which itand#8217;s told.and#8221; and#8212;Maile Meloy, author of andlt;iandgt;Both Ways Is the Only Way I Want Itandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;What makes Marisa Silverand#8217;s portraits of contemporary American life so powerful is her unblinking gaze, her willingness to look imminent disaster straight in the eye. And what makes her characters unforgettable is the combination of bewilderment and resilience with which they navigate this precarious life. andlt;iandgt;Alone With Youandlt;/iandgt; is a beautiful collection: urgent, clear-sighted, wide-ranging, profound.and#8221; and#8212;Sarah Shun-lien Bynum, author of andlt;iandgt;Ms. Hempel Chroniclesandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;[In] andlt;iandgt;Alone With Youandlt;/iandgt;, Marisa Silver explores the impact of collateral damage, whether sustained in war or lifeand#8230;.brisk and keenly observedand#8230;Silverand#8217;s characters manage somehow to emerge as credible realists, unafraid of the rigors of making do. Even in the darkest moments, their stories are illuminating as they find the courage to face who they are.and#8221; and#8212;Jane Ciabattari, andlt;iandgt;O, The Oprah Magazineandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;Longing swells each of the eight stories in andlt;iandgt;Alone With Youandlt;/iandgt;, as Silver investigates and#8216;alonenessand#8217; and the dear and inevitable distance between people in loving relationships. These stories stand out because of their high tolerance for complexity, never opting for a single note. The situations here don't settle on the neat broad themes of loss or connection, but there are always surprises, nuances, changes of heart." and#8212;Ron Carlson, andlt;iandgt;Los Angeles Timesandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;Marisa Silver tells eight quietly haunting tales about love, memory and making ends meet.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;iandgt;The Wall Street Journalandlt;/iandgt;
Review
and#8220;The stories in andlt;iandgt;Alone With Youandlt;/iandgt; are portraits of everyday sorrows, but Silver keeps hope alive, even when it's on life support. Her characters often feel powerless, then discover what they can doand#8230;.Silver makes clear with devastating simplicity, that tendency to change course works to our advantageand#8230;and passes it along to her characters with grace and insight as they grapple with change, revelation and the complexities of modern life. These are clear-eyed, unsentimental stories that resound with resilience.and#8221; and#8212;Connie Ogle, miamiherald.com/and#8221;Between the Coversand#8221; book blog
Review
and#8220;[E]ight beautiful and brutal stories...finely wrought...Silver infuses her characters with a fatalistic resilience that's revealed through tiny, perfect details.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;iandgt;Publishers Weeklyandlt;/iandgt;, starred review
Synopsis
Author of The God of War, Marisa Silver's extraordinary book, Alone With You, is a starkly elegant and superbly rendered collection of short stories.
Synopsis
Marisa Silver dazzled and inspired readers with her critically acclaimed The God of War (a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist), praised by Richard Russo as a novel of great metaphorical depth and beauty. In this elegant, finely wrought new collection, Alone With You, Silver has created eight indelible stories that mine the complexities of modern relationships and the unexpected ways love manifests itself. Her brilliantly etched characters confront life s abrupt and unsettling changes with fear, courage, humor, and overwhelming grace.
In the O. Henry Prize winning story The Visitor, a VA hospital nurse s aide contends with a family ghost and discovers the ways in which her own past haunts her. The reticent father in Pond is confronted with a Solomonic choice that pits his love for his daughter against his feelings for her young son. In Night Train to Frankfurt, first published in The New Yorker, a daughter travels to an alternative-medicine clinic in Germany in a gambit to save her mother s life. And in the title story, a woman vacations in Morocco with her family while contemplating a decision that will both ruin and liberate them all.
From Temporary, where a young woman confronts the ephemeral nature of companionship, to Three Girls, in which sisters trapped in a snowstorm recognize the boundaries of childhood, the nuanced voices of Alone With You bear the hallmarks of an instant classic from a writer with unerring talent and imaginative resource. Silver has the extraordinary ability to render her fictional inhabitants instantly relatable, in all their imperfections. Her stories have the singular quality of looking in a mirror. We see at once what is familiar and what is strange. In these stirring narratives, we meet ourselves anew."
Synopsis
From the author of "The God of War" comes this starkly elegant and superbly rendered collection of short stories.