Customer Reviews

The Identity Club: New and Selected Stories

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Richard Burgin's wide range of gifts as a writer of fiction are on generous display in this selection, which includes both new short stories and an assortment of his finest work from previous collections. His edgy, troubled, isolated characters struggle to connect with others, with themselves and their own pasts, with the world around them. There are never easy resolutions to the alienation and loneliness experienced by his characters, only honest, haunting, sometimes frightening choices about what to do. Readers unfamiliar with Burgin's work would benefit from beginning their acquaintance with it here; those who already know and admire it can sample the best of his earlier work alongside several newer pieces. Burgin has won a remarkable five Pushcart Prizes for his stories and readers will leave "The Identity Club" convinced he deserves such honors.

While many readers may find Richard Burgin's work disturbing, there is no doubt he is a master storyteller. Each word and phrase is carefully crafted and compels the reader forward. Often the endings do not seem to resolve much, rather they seem to hurl you into darkness, spinning and twirling, disoriented, and awash in loneliness, with an eerie sense of "it's not over yet." But if you are confident enough to regain your footing and if you appreciate the glow of exquisite writing, then don't deny yourself these stories.

Women in particular may have a hard time finding Burgin palatable, as his work is often about male strangeness, lurking emotional twists, and implied violence. But for those women wanting to explore the dark psyche of disturbed men, and the motives of female characters who interact with them, it can be eye-popping and intellectually stimulating.

Even trying to review Burgin's work can be daunting. The stories vary widely in content. The characters are complex. And the endings often leave you feeling uneasy. (Maybe that's why there aren't many reviews here on Amazon. I'd love to hear from others.) Bottom line, however, this is superb writing. Don't miss out. I echo Floyd Skloot; it's no wonder he won five Pushcart Prizes.

An excellent review of The Identity Club by Julia Gordon-Bramer can be found at nighttimes.