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I definitely hope to participate in this discussion as I loved this book. I will have to re-read it though as it has been a couple years since I read it.

I will definitely be reading this - first time around for me though!

Re-reading this has confirmed my five stars or it! Definitely even better the second time around. Still somber and dark with fallible, human characters in desperate situations. I've read the first four stories and the intensity builds and builds with the first three stories. "The Beginnings of Grief" is just breathtaking. Literally. Mrs. Buckholdt in "The Good Doctor" is an astonishing character, but then so is Owen in "Devotion" and obviously the narrators of "Notes to My Biographer" and "The Beginnings of Grief."

It sounds excellent. I am still a book behind (I meant to read A Single Life for the December group read) but short stories might be easier to fit in.

So glad you're reading Jason (and maybe Bryn too!) :) It sounds like I'm in for a treat Jason!

I'm planning to start on Monday! I'll post thoughts about the stories as I go. As you say Bryn, stories are great to fit in with other reads.

Greg wrote: "So glad you're reading Jason (and maybe Bryn too!) :) It sounds like I'm in for a treat Jason!

I'm planning to start on Monday! I'll post thoughts about the stories as I go. As you say Bryn, stori..."

Thanks, Greg! You are in for a treat but let me tell you these stories are DARK. So be prepared. And I agree about stories....I always am picking up short story collections and fitting a story in here and there as I'm reading other stuff.

Just finished! Hmm.. I'm a bit torn. Some of the stories were beautiful, and I will say I love the way Haslett articulates experiences so lucidly. But the storytelling in some of them felt too fractured and jumbled, and i sometimes found myself loosing interest.

Kat wrote: "Just finished! Hmm.. I'm a bit torn. Some of the stories were beautiful, and I will say I love the way Haslett articulates experiences so lucidly. But the storytelling in some of them felt too frac..."

Which story was your favorite Kat? And which was your least favorite? Just curious .. I got delayed but I started the book this morning.

Jason wrote: "Re-reading this has confirmed my five stars or it! Definitely even better the second time around. Still somber and dark with fallible, human characters in desperate situations. I've read the first ..."

Re: "Notes To My Biographer"

Wow, I read the first story in the collection this morning, and it completely floored me - utterly brilliant! It started out quite humorous. Of course if I had to deal with the man in real life it would be exasperating .. but at a distance, the situation was quirky enough to be quite funny. Then, the second half was so poignant! The son's situation touched me deeply, especially when he (view spoiler)[breaks down and speaks honestly to his father (hide spoiler)] toward the end.

I love the final line too, what a perfect, perfect ending! (view spoiler)["In the distance, the shimmering pier juts into the vast darkness of the ocean like a burning ship launched into the night." An odd, somewhat startling image but so appropriate for these odd men that suffer from delusions and hallucinations ... just not the sort of comparison a person would ordinarily draw. And yet, I feel such a sense of loss and desperation in it - the vast darkness, the burning ship put out to sea almost like a pagan funeral. (hide spoiler)] It seems so exactly appropriate for these characters in this story told by this person. Brilliant!

Another high point for me was when the son explains, (view spoiler)["I used to cast fire from the tips of my fingers some weeks and burn everything in my path and it was all progress and it was all incredibly, incredibly beautiful. And some weeks I couldn't brush my hair. But I take the pills now, and I haven't bankrupted us yet, and I don't want to kill myself ... now." I like the way he describes his mental illness, a bit wistfully despite its destructiveness. He knows he needs to take the pills for his partner and himself, and it's so right and necessary for him to do so, but the sheer power of the experience of his delusions still has a captivating power behind it. This makes me think of the strange (but powerful) play Equus. I think there's a lot of truth here. And then how very revealing and touching when his father comes back with, "But the fire, Graham. What about the fire?" (hide spoiler)] This short conversation between the two of them cuts so deeply to the heart of things.

Anyway, I was very impressed by the first story, and I'm eager to read more!!

Greg wrote: "Jason wrote: "Re-reading this has confirmed my five stars or it! Definitely even better the second time around. Still somber and dark with fallible, human characters in desperate situations. I've r..."

It is an impressive story; and it starts out with a bang. Glad you liked it! I finished re-reading all the stories and I think my favorites are "The Good Doctor" and "The Beginnings of Grief." "Devotion," "Divination," and "Reunion" also really stand out for me. But all of the stories have stellar points and I don't dislike any of them. "My Father's Business," though seems the weakest to me. Overall, the stories convey a deep, deep loneliness to me. Haslett exposes his characters' vulnerabilities and often, mental illnesses, but you never get the sense he's judging them and you definitely feel he has the greatest tenderness for them.

Jason wrote: "Overall, the stories convey a deep, deep loneliness to me. Haslett exposes his characters' vulnerabilities and often, mental illnesses, but you never get the sense he's judging them and you definitely feel he has the greatest tenderness for them. ..."

I definitely can see all you say here even in the first story. So true, and I love the way you put it, "the greatest tenderness." I think that's one of the reasons I found it so affecting!

Greg wrote: "Jason wrote: "Overall, the stories convey a deep, deep loneliness to me. Haslett exposes his characters' vulnerabilities and often, mental illnesses, but you never get the sense he's judging them a..."

Yeah, definitely in the first story as well especially with the parts you considered poignant and powerful. The way the son reacts to the father and revealing how he takes the medication...it works on several levels. He is a mirror to the father but you get he is attracted to the "fire." There is no easy way out for the son; it is a struggle...it is lonely...but he seems to be dealing with it differently than his father...and perhaps BECAUSE of his father. But yeah I think Haslett imbues those scenes with great amounts of tenderness.

I just finished "The Good Doctor" and am half way through "The Beginnings of Grief."

"The Beginnings of Grief" is a weird one, very outside of my experience, but I do feel truth in it. I'll wait to comment before I finish.

But wow, "The Good Doctor" knocks it out of the park! So quiet and yet so devastating. I really feel like I know Mrs Buckholdt, and I care for her deeply. Amazing what he does in a mere 20-something pages! Most full books don't establish such a deep connection. So hearbreaking. It's my favorite story in the book so far.

I've now finished all the stories except "My father's Business" and "The Volunteer" ... only those two left.

I'm very impressed by the book! I think my favorite so far is "The Good Doctor," but I've liked all the others. Quite a bit of range here!

My least favorite so far was going to be "Devotion," but he redeemed it with a gorgeous ending. The final few sentences in "Devotion," "The Beginnings of Grief," and "Notes to My Biographer" were just about perfect - all three ended with vivid, heavily resonant images, so beautiful!

I was really touched by the moments between Paul and the boy in "War's End," and I found "Reunion" heartbreaking. I love in "Reunion" the (view spoiler)[mirage of the his father that James sees, the disapproving phantom that appears to him across the street when he's so close to death (hide spoiler)]

And "Divination" was so different again, a touch of supernatural thriller shaken up with Haslett's psychological depth.

The more I read the more I'm struck by the tenderness in these stories, almost an aching tenderness, that prevents them from ever slipping over into cynicism despite their unflinching acceptance of the reality of things.

This is on track for 5 � from me!

Jason, I agree "My Father's Business" was the weakest, at least so far. It had some funny moments .. but it didn't hold together as tightly as the others, and the ending didn't have as much resonance. Not a bad story though .. just not as good as the others

Now on to the final story .. "The Volunteer"!

Oh Good! Yeah I didn't think it was a bad story either just not as engaging as the others. "The Volunteer" was an odd little duck of a story but i liked it.

I like these quotes from the New York Times review of books by Craig Seligman:

"They're mostly good people, people with the will to do good who, amid all the misery they've been handed, have held on to their souls. Hopelessness hasn't scarred them with cynicism or rage. If there's a ray of light in these stories, here it is."

"There's not a clunker in the group, and this consistency, along with the maturity and the austerity and the exceptional tact of the writing, gives every indication that unless something goes radically haywire, ''You Are Not a Stranger Here'' is the herald of a phenomenal career."

Has anyone read any of Haslett's other work? I'm intrigued to read more!

Hey Greg,

I read Union Atlantic, his novel. It was good but not as good as his stories IMO.

Jason wrote: "Hey Greg,

I read Union Atlantic, his novel. It was good but not as good as his stories IMO."

Thanks Jason! Good to know!

I've finished the final story, and I wish there were more!

I actually quite liked "The Volunteer," odd but very touching, especially the ending ... two very flawed people having a moment of contact. I found both of the main characters remarkably endearing - I have no doubt they'll stay with me a long while. I think maybe "The Volunteer" was my second favorite story, after "The Good Doctor."

Overall, I found the book strikingly perceptive; its treatment of mental illness was tender & empathetic, but also realistic; nothing was soft pedaled, quite the opposite! I gave the book 5 �.

Hey Greg!

Glad you liked it! I agree with pretty much all of what you said; you get that Haslett has a deep empathy for people living and touched by mental illness. He really gives a window into this world. Definitely a 5 star book for me too!