Product Description
Winner of the 1991 Before Columbus / American Book Award

For this, her first major collection, Lucia Berlin gathered the best of her work from 1960 to 1990, including stories from The Atlantic and Saul Bellow's little magazine The Noble Savage and the immortal "My Jockey," winner of the Jack London Short Prize, 1985. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

heartbreakingly good; spellbinding
As good a collection of short fiction you will ever read, without a doubt. Her stories often hurt you in that very good way, the way you want fiction to make you feel. Her humor perfectly balances and makes possible theheartache, the subtle tragedies she writes about. This collection is one ofthose books that you simply must read. You will learn from the experience,and you'll never forget.

Amazing stories of extraordinary people inside ordinary shel
This is one of the best books I've ever read, clearly Berlin's best work to date. She writes about cleaning ladies, jockeys, switchboard operators and alcoholics--all with the sensitivity of someone who knows these peoplefrom the inside, yet makes no excuses for them. This is no PC attempt atennobeling them, it's the real thing: fascinating people scrubbing yourfloors, who possess beauty, insight, charm and plenty of flaws. Real flaws.Real people. Berlin's writing is luscious and poetic, but her real gift isher uncanny ablility to see right through people, communicate what isnoteworthy and illuminating in their lives. After 5 years I've read most ofthese stories, but still haven't quite finished, because I've found myselfrationing them. I've read my favorites over and over, but can't bear thethought of having no one left to discover in her world. Apparently her nextbook is due very soon. Can't wait, it's been so long. ... Read more

Product Description
Set mainly in Los Angeles, Lucia Berlin's gritty working-class stories bridge the gap between the Americas - rich and poor, North and South, Anglo and Hispanic. While her style has been compared to Raymond Carver's, and her dream- and drink-addicted characters to Richard Yates', her fictional territory and fatalistic humor are hers alone. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

DARKHORSE OF AMERICAN SHORT FICTION
As in her other collections, Berlin writes to-the-bone truths in language so simple and clear you won't know what hit you. "Where I Live Now" is as deep and honest as an old scar; it will tempt you to keepsneaking glances at its lumpy form, imagining the pain that put it there -and the impossible healing of which we are all capable.

A fascinating collection of stories.
Lucia Berlin is one of the most underappreciated short story writers and her latest collection is full of arresting portraits of women and their families in the contemporary American West.

Who I Read Now.
Lucia Berlin's prose sneaks up on you and, with spare simple language, bowls you over. As with her two earlier collections from Black Sparrow, Berlin fills these stories with sad, yet inspiring characters living on ornear the fringe of society. We get to see the lives of teachers and nurses,people we usually view only in the context of their work, up close and inalarming detail. Berlin is a joy to read. ... Read more

Product Description
Fiction. Lucia Berlin was born in Alaska, raised in Chili, and presently lives and works in California. Her stories have appeared in The Noble Savage, The Critic, The Atlantic, The London Strand, and Quilt, and many other magazines and journals. This is her second volume of short stories. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

More than fiction..
After decades of searching, I finally found Lucia and Molly, my second cousins.Sadly, it's too late for me to meet them in person.

I had a vague, dreamlike memory about Molly, who had - the story went - been disowned by her mother (my dad's cousin) because she married a Mexican man.The memory felt like a myth and I wondered if I made it up.In recent years I couldn't get confirmation from family members that any of what I thought I'd heard was true.All I had was their first names. Every time I traveled through Mexico and Latin America, I wondered if Molly was still there somewhere.

I only knew that Lucia was a writer in California, but wasn't sure if I'd dreamed that, either.

I just found Lucia's name and then her books.Many of the stories are very familiar to me, as family lore or even accounts that I know to be true."Dr H.A. Moynihan", the dentist in El Paso, was my great-grandfather.I come from a family of storytellers, and it was exciting (sometimes in good ways and oftentimes in heartbreaking ways) to hear some of these stories again from one who was estranged from my line of the family before I was born.

Lucia also wrote about Albuquerque, New Mexico where I've lived for the last few decades, and I think she might have even been at the University of Mexico when I was a student there.She wrote about a fictional laundromat on a street that is blocks from my house today.Lucia might have created the laundromat, but she described the street - and other laundromats and characters - that exist here still.Even if the names were sometimes changed (although for some reason she didn't change my grandfather's name, Fortunatus), she weaved pretty accurate portrayals of my grandfather and his siblings into many of her tales.

Lucia's stories are touching to me in ways I can't describe.I am sorry that I never got to meet her but am so thankful that she left such a gifted body of work behind.Only six years after her death, I feel like I'm meeting her now.I am also thankful to Lucia for bringing her gentle sister Molly (in Mexico) into so many stories, so that she lives on for me, too.

Obviously Lucia Berlin left behind many loving friends, family and fans of her work.I'm relieved and glad to know she got the audience she deserved.

excellent collection of short stories
Terse yet luscious stories recounting the simple and the sweet (or bittersweet) thing we call life.Set in Chile, New Mexico, Oakland, and Mexico.I was going to read it straight through, but forced myself to slow down and savor the stories, one by one.

Beautiful and Personal
Lucia Berlin was one of my favorite teachers in college. After taking her creative writing class, I read all of her books. But this one is so beautiful, so candid. Her short stories are flawless and flow into the next. Her descriptions of people and places are right on, although not always lovely. It will leave you with eyes open to the world. ... Read more

Product Description
A dozen short stories by a modern American author who is often compared to Eudora Welty, Raymond Carver and Fielding Dawson. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document, covering the life and work of Lucia Berlin, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 1067 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author