An extraordinarily poised debut collection from one of America’s brightest new talents
If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This
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'If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This offers the kind of storytelling that's so deft, so understated, and so compelling that you have to slow down to savor each vignette. Fans of Mary Gaitskill, Amy Bloom, and Miranda July will feel like they've found gold in a river when they discover Robin Black.' --Oprah Magazine
'Black writes with grace and simplicity and there is a quiet strength in her sentences...as considered and rewarding as every piece here.' --Times Literary Supplement
'With festivals and big-money prizes now dedicated to the form, the short story has been having a moment in the sun of late. This quietly satisfying debut volume from American Robin Black stakes out some of the emotional territory occupied by Alice Munro, Amy Bloom and Lorrie Moore. . . In unshowy, measured prose, Black demonstrates an understanding of human foibles of which a therapist might be proud. A nuanced portrait of the heart that repays careful reading.' --Financial Times
'An exploration of secret monologues and private emotions that makes for an illuminating, moving and universally resonant experience.' --Easy Living
`Robin Black's first short story collection must, at the very least, win whatever prizes there are going for evocative titling, and so it's just as well the stories themselves more than measure up...Black's turn of phrase is exquisite...If I Loved You I Would Tell You This is a delicate, beautiful book, luminous in its insights and utterly sad in its humanity and realism.' --Marylebone Journal
'Black writes with grace and simplicity and there is a quiet strength in her sentences...as considered and rewarding as every piece here.' --Times Literary Supplement
'With festivals and big-money prizes now dedicated to the form, the short story has been having a moment in the sun of late. This quietly satisfying debut volume from American Robin Black stakes out some of the emotional territory occupied by Alice Munro, Amy Bloom and Lorrie Moore. . . In unshowy, measured prose, Black demonstrates an understanding of human foibles of which a therapist might be proud. A nuanced portrait of the heart that repays careful reading.' --Financial Times
'An exploration of secret monologues and private emotions that makes for an illuminating, moving and universally resonant experience.' --Easy Living
`Robin Black's first short story collection must, at the very least, win whatever prizes there are going for evocative titling, and so it's just as well the stories themselves more than measure up...Black's turn of phrase is exquisite...If I Loved You I Would Tell You This is a delicate, beautiful book, luminous in its insights and utterly sad in its humanity and realism.' --Marylebone Journal
Book Description
Robin Black creates worlds within worlds. Her stories turn on a glance or a phrase – or, more often, on that which is not expressed. If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This explores life’s rich silences: in relationships both acknowledged and covert, and in the unspoken, often treacherous dynamics of families in which so much goes unsaid. A mother, retired to the countryside with her elderly husband, plays sensitive host to her daughter and her secret lover even while she mourns the embers of her own relationship. A blind teenager sees the fractures in her parents’ marriage more clearly than they can themselves. These stories are luminous, wise and unerringly humane, and their emotional generosity is all the more moving for Black's restrained and accomplished style. This is an extraordinarily poised debut collection from one of America’s brightest new voices. ‘Robin Black knows people. She knows us, she loves us, she takes pity on us and she offers us back to ourselves in clear-eyed and graceful prose’ Amy Bloom ‘She creates that special kind of literary magic, where a reader experiences everything, right alongside, and it all feels new’ Hannah Tinti ‘This collection of short stories might more accurately be called a collection of short novels, such is their richness of characterization and plot’ Elizabeth Berg ‘Like bulletins from the front, these magnificent stories shine a light on what it means to be human’ Dani Shapiro ‘Few first collections – few collections of any sort – are as intelligent and as moving about both the durability of love and the implacability of loss’ Jim Shepard
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was first attracted to this book by the beautiful title and in fact it captures the feel of the book perfectly. These are stories of love in all its different guises. There really isn't one weak story in this collection. The writing is both lyrical and spare and I found myself marvelling at Robin Black's ability to give so much to the reader in each perfectly crafted story. I read this in one sitting and when I'd finished I had that wonderful sensation of being lost in the world she'd created far beyond the time it took to read it. I was so affected by the stories that it took me some time to be able to pick up the next book on my pile. While wonderfully original, I think Robin Black will be the Alice Munro of her generation. This really is an outstanding debut.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Tamara L
Format:Paperback
I hardly know where to begin in describing how good this book is. I wish I had more than five stars to award. As one of its most notable qualities is restraint I am trying to mirror this with an understated review, despite being tempted to scream,'READ IT!!! IT'S AMAZING!!!' in glaring upper case (ok, I smuggled it in). I am astonished that, at the time of writing, mine is only the third review on Amazon, despite this apparently being serialised on Radio 4. What on earth is going on? Why aren't people buying it in droves? Why are there hundreds of reviews for some third rate books when this is sublime?
There are ten short stories and it's a struggle to pick out a personal favourite. Bereavement and loss are strong recurring themes. `Divorced Beheaded Survived' deals with memories that resurface of the death of a brother in childhood. `Pine' is about coming to terms - or not - with widowhood. Some stories deal with the end of a relationship or a family rift. The prose is sparse, unadorned and very readable. I was reminded of Rumer Godden's short stories. Small and perfectly formed. My only reservation is about the title which makes it sound like Chick Lit. Believe me, it isn't.
Robin Black makes writing look effortless, but of course her prose has been finely polished and pared down to its essence to achieve this level of clarity and simplicity. It took her eight years to put together this collection. I hope we don't have an eight year gap until her next book. I'd like a novel please, ASAP, with no compromise on quality. If that's not possible I'm prepared to wait.
There are ten short stories and it's a struggle to pick out a personal favourite. Bereavement and loss are strong recurring themes. `Divorced Beheaded Survived' deals with memories that resurface of the death of a brother in childhood. `Pine' is about coming to terms - or not - with widowhood. Some stories deal with the end of a relationship or a family rift. The prose is sparse, unadorned and very readable. I was reminded of Rumer Godden's short stories. Small and perfectly formed. My only reservation is about the title which makes it sound like Chick Lit. Believe me, it isn't.
Robin Black makes writing look effortless, but of course her prose has been finely polished and pared down to its essence to achieve this level of clarity and simplicity. It took her eight years to put together this collection. I hope we don't have an eight year gap until her next book. I'd like a novel please, ASAP, with no compromise on quality. If that's not possible I'm prepared to wait.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I heard some of these stories on Radio 4 and really like them so got the book, only problem is she hasn't got anymore i can read - what a great talent. For fans of the short story its a must have. I hope she keeps up the supply, can't wait for the next one.
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