If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This

February 22, 2010
The stories in Black's solid debut collection are fraught with loss, usually of a loved one. Evocative and lyrical, the characters' introspections, while sometimes overwrought, are balanced by the sharp dialogue. In “The Guide,” a father takes his blind teenage daughter to meet her new seeing-eye dog and is forced to confront her independence. While painting a portrait of a man with Alzheimer's, the aging main character of “Immortalizing John Parker” grapples with the recent death of her lover. The title story is the tale of neighboring couples battling over a fence, told from the perspective of the wife with terminal cancer. In “Pine,” a woman must decide whether to move on from the memory of her dead husband to begin a love affair with her male best friend. Each story is carefully crafted, though Black is at her best when she resists the impulse toward tidiness.

Starred review from March 1, 2010
Ten stories cast an unsparing yet tender eye on the human condition.

The death or impending loss of a loved one drives every narrative in this poignant collection. Jack Snyder's daughter Lila, blinded at six in a freak accident, is now 17 and poised for independence, but he's not really ready to give up being"The Guide" as he takes her to choose a dog. Claire lost her beloved husband to cancer when she was 36; three years later, she clings to grief so tenaciously that she loses Kevin, the good man who loves her. The author so warmly draws shell-shocked Claire and faithful Kevin that we hope for a happier resolution beyond the last page of"Pine," but in this collection mistakes are mostly irrevocable. Jeremy's bitter response to an incident of teenage recklessness destroyed his marriage and his relationship with his daughter before"A Country Where You Once Lived" begins, and a visit after 13 years of estrangement merely underscores that ex-wife Cathleen and daughter Zoe have an intimacy based partly on his exclusion. Jeremy's new love for the much-younger Rose offers hope that fresh starts are possible—"wishes made correctly do come true," asserts the title character in"Harriet Elliot." But note that caveat, and people seldom do things correctly here. The collection's most wrenching piece, the title story, is a monologue by a woman whose arrogant young neighbor builds a six-foot-tall wall on their mutual property line. He doesn't care that it forces her to park 20 feet from her door, a long way for a woman dying of cancer, or that her devastated husband is trying to figure out how to break the news to their brain-damaged, institutionalized son. Neither Black nor her characters have any use for"the fantasy of putting things to rights," or"the myth of uncomplicated lives." Yet there is redemption in finding the courage to love and the wisdom to see clearly.

Sensitive insights conveyed in elegantly plain prose—an auspicious debut.

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

Starred review from March 15, 2010
Eight years of writing and revision result in a high-caliber short story collection reminiscent of works by Atwood and Paley. The winner of multiple literary awards, including repeat laurels from the Pushcart Prizes, Black pits achingly believable characters who could be our friends and neighborswho could, indeed, be ourselvesagainst life's heavy hitters: death, disability, disease, and divorce. Like hooked fish, Black's characters struggle quietly, then wriggle free or ultimately succumb to despair. The showpiece here, "If I Loved You," takes us behind the scenes of a neighborhood property feud and illustrates the fragmented, disconnected nature of our civic lives with heart-stopping clarity. Other must-reads include "Immortalizing John Parker" and "Pine," tales that explore women's grief over lost love from two dramatically different angles. Peopled with precocious yet believable children, perpetually perplexed men, and strong yet mostly silent women, Black's stories quietly usher us through worlds of grief in a heartfelt yet dignified fashion. VERDICT Like fine chocolate or wine, a little Black goes a long way. Savor this collection slowly and reflectively, then share with a friend.Leigh Anne Vrabel, Carnegie Lib. of Pittsburgh

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2010
A blind daughter prepares to leave her parents and go to college. An artist paints a portrait of a terminally ill man. A young widow contemplates life alone. This collection of poignant stories about lifes transitions examines the truths of human relationships, even when those truths seem almost unbearably depressing. On its own, each story is a delicately crafted look at relationships and life, and is easily read. As a collection, though, a moment or two of comic relief, or a story or two not about death, illness, dying, or betrayal, would help lighten the overall feeling of gloom the book currently evokes. These are well-written explorations of characters and situations sure to appeal to readers of Alice Munro and Mary Gaitskill.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)