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Crossing the Border: Fifteen Tales
Men and women approach, contemplate, and sometimes cross borders between themselves, between countries, and between stages of life
256 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 1976
2 people are currently reading
140 people want to read
About the author
Joyce Carol Oates
854 books9,663 followersJoyce Carol Oates is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction. Her novels Black Water (1992), What I Lived For (1994), and Blonde (2000), and her short story collections The Wheel of Love (1970) and Lovely, Dark, Deep: Stories (2014) were each finalists for the Pulitzer Prize. She has won many awards for her writing, including the National Book Award, for her novel Them (1969), two O. Henry Awards, the National Humanities Medal, and the Jerusalem Prize (2019).
Oates taught at Princeton University from 1978 to 2014, and is the Roger S. Berlind '52 Professor Emerita in the Humanities with the Program in Creative Writing. From 2016 to 2020, she was a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley, where she taught short fiction in the spring semesters. She now teaches at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.
Oates was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2016.
Pseudonyms: Rosamond Smith and Lauren Kelly.
Oates taught at Princeton University from 1978 to 2014, and is the Roger S. Berlind '52 Professor Emerita in the Humanities with the Program in Creative Writing. From 2016 to 2020, she was a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley, where she taught short fiction in the spring semesters. She now teaches at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.
Oates was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2016.
Pseudonyms: Rosamond Smith and Lauren Kelly.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 18, 2016
Crossing the Border is interesting but flawed. Having never read any Joyce Carol Oates, I'm not sure if this was the best book to start with. It's composed of short stories that are all intertwined in some way - until they're not. That's the issue with this book of short stories. It's inconsistent. The writing is certainly spectacular (there's one story about dreams, called, er, "Dreams" that has probably the best description of dreams I've ever read) but that story has no connection with any of the other stories. The thing is, some of them do. There is a college where various professors weave in and out of each other's chapters, but then there are other stories that have nothing to do with it. So it's that inconsistency that bothers me. Either have totally different short stories all-throughout, or connect all of them. But don't have a mixture of both. This just feels disjointed. I definitely plan to read more of her work, but I hope it has a better glue to hold it all together than this book did.
August 19, 2025
2.75 stars. There were a couple of gems in here, a few I enjoyed, and a handful I found meh.
January 5, 2024
As per usual, I borrowed this book from a friend after standing in her living room with my head tilted, staring at her bookshelf for an absurd amount of time. It was a lovely companion to read through finals week and my travel back home for Christmas.
Crossing The Border is a series of short stories, with some recurring characters and some standalone pieces, revolving around “almosts” and borders. Wives almost cheat on their husbands, houses almost get flooded, and boundaries are almost crossed.
The stories all have an incomplete quality, making the reader feel like there must be more to the story than what is written. Even the last story and last page of the entire book feels somehow unfinished.
Oates creates vivid, rising suspense throughout each story but with zero payoff. Characters become frantic, nervous, and on the verge of doing something insane — but they don’t. This buildup leading to nothing is what makes the stories so compulsively readable.
Many of the stories approach the verge of insanity. The characters have human, relatable hangups about themselves, their relationships, and their work. The stories aren’t as simple as an unhappy wife leaving her husband.
The point that sets these characters apart is the lack of clarity in their thoughts. The characters’ insights are poignant and relatable when isolated, but they become vague and murky when they are run together in a narrative.
Oates leaves out certain characters’ names or refuses to explain a relationship until the end of the story, making the reader as lost as the character itself is. These imperfect, struggling people felt very real.
From the way I’m describing these scenarios, the characters sound incredibly hard to follow, but I didn’t feel that way at all while reading. The mixed emotions that they feel are honest, and I found certain passages to ring very true.
She captures the complexity of human relationships without shying away from unlikable characters and confusing actions. The book depicts how people try to figure each other out, with varying degrees of success.
With this collection Oates did an incredible job capturing the essence of what makes life confusing and putting it on paper. It was human, and not afraid of saying that people, even characters in books, just don’t always make sense.
Crossing The Border is a series of short stories, with some recurring characters and some standalone pieces, revolving around “almosts” and borders. Wives almost cheat on their husbands, houses almost get flooded, and boundaries are almost crossed.
The stories all have an incomplete quality, making the reader feel like there must be more to the story than what is written. Even the last story and last page of the entire book feels somehow unfinished.
Oates creates vivid, rising suspense throughout each story but with zero payoff. Characters become frantic, nervous, and on the verge of doing something insane — but they don’t. This buildup leading to nothing is what makes the stories so compulsively readable.
Many of the stories approach the verge of insanity. The characters have human, relatable hangups about themselves, their relationships, and their work. The stories aren’t as simple as an unhappy wife leaving her husband.
The point that sets these characters apart is the lack of clarity in their thoughts. The characters’ insights are poignant and relatable when isolated, but they become vague and murky when they are run together in a narrative.
Oates leaves out certain characters’ names or refuses to explain a relationship until the end of the story, making the reader as lost as the character itself is. These imperfect, struggling people felt very real.
From the way I’m describing these scenarios, the characters sound incredibly hard to follow, but I didn’t feel that way at all while reading. The mixed emotions that they feel are honest, and I found certain passages to ring very true.
She captures the complexity of human relationships without shying away from unlikable characters and confusing actions. The book depicts how people try to figure each other out, with varying degrees of success.
With this collection Oates did an incredible job capturing the essence of what makes life confusing and putting it on paper. It was human, and not afraid of saying that people, even characters in books, just don’t always make sense.
August 4, 2022
Fantastiskt roligt att hitta en riktigt gammal bok av en av mina favoritförfattare. Hon har skrivit bättre böcker, men man känner hennes talang. Också kul med många korta noveller, som motvikt till några av hennes senare tegelstenar. Klart läsvärd!
February 17, 2019
3,5 stars
October 2, 2016
(Also on Amazon ...)
One reason it took me so long to read this collection is that I was never able to find out what any of the stories were about, so I hope this review proves helpful. I have read many of JCO's collections and this is the first one that has a novella intertwined with the other stories; seven out of 15 stories and 85 pages out of 320 (equaling just under 1/3 of the book) are devoted to Renee and Evan (hence the "R&E" that you'll find next to story titles).
"Cross the Border" -- [R&E] -- Our first meeting of Renee and Evan. They move from Florida to Canada and we learn that Evan is a doctor in/of biology.
"Love. Friendship." -- Basically a third man is part of a marriage (told from the wife's point of view). She doesn't reciprocate his feelings and he seems to go off the deep end. They used to be really close and spend a lot of time together ... but in the end, it just falls apart.
"Hello Fine Day Isn't It" -- [R&E] -- Young man in their neighborhood is always around, talking in the obnoxious way that JCO seems to specialize in. They're settled in CAN and we meet her mother. Because they aren't citizens, Evan is lucky to have found the crappy job he did and works long hours. She is now a stay at home wife.
"Through the Looking Glass" -- Well liked professor priest teaches English ... Gets involved with a unique student ... Unexpected ending.
"Nocturnal Boundaries" -- [R&E] -- Renee is trying to fill her days with activities outside of her home. Almost has an affair with a local poet, Karl. Evan is very unhappy with his job - he is way too overqualified and over educated, but due to the lack of jobs and being a foreigner, is stuck with what he has.
"Dreams" -- This is probably one of the best stories I've read about an emotionally abusive relationship.
"Customs" -- [R&E] -- A pretty boring story about Renee getting inspected at the border by customs. Great description of how thoughts escalate in times of stress/panic though.
"The Transformation of Vincent Scoville" -- New faculty member at a university gets stuck with the "prestigious" task of studying what turn out to be worthless letters. I get the impression that these letters were the reason he changed - devolved, really - throughout the story.
"The Golden Madonna" -- 24-year-old Alexander has his world turned upside down by his paternal aunt - the type of woman who seems to enjoy tormenting people - especially men.
"The Scream" -- [R&E] *spoiler* -- Return of Karl from "Natural Boundaries." We learn how unhappy Renee is with just about everything in her life. I felt like I was sitting next to her in the art gallery, reading her sad thoughts. This was my favorite story of the collection, hands down. JCO has a way of writing about sadness and depression that really resonates ...
"The Liberation of Jake Hanley" -- Jake gets divorced. We "meet" Scoville and the faculty from the Scoville story again. It almost turns into a comedy, how many men end up with miserable women and wind up sleeping in the English Department.
"An Incident in the Park" -- [R&E] -- First story that focuses solely on Evan. He is in a public park after an argument with Renee, asking if there is someone else - was she in love?
"Falling In Love In Ashton, British Columbia" -- Something about a philandering husband ... 2nd honeymoon ... Getting stranded in Ashton because wife isn't feeling well ... He falls in love with a waitress. I found this story to be very monotonous.
"The Tempter" -- Sister and brother -?- meet up after 17 years. He was in prison and now he's dying ... she doesn't really care ... That's the basically the gist of this meandering, tedious story.
"River Rising" -- [R&R] -- Starts with very irritating letter to Karl about why they chose to break it off ... Basically a story about how a couple endures a storm that threatens their home and even their lives.
One reason it took me so long to read this collection is that I was never able to find out what any of the stories were about, so I hope this review proves helpful. I have read many of JCO's collections and this is the first one that has a novella intertwined with the other stories; seven out of 15 stories and 85 pages out of 320 (equaling just under 1/3 of the book) are devoted to Renee and Evan (hence the "R&E" that you'll find next to story titles).
"Cross the Border" -- [R&E] -- Our first meeting of Renee and Evan. They move from Florida to Canada and we learn that Evan is a doctor in/of biology.
"Love. Friendship." -- Basically a third man is part of a marriage (told from the wife's point of view). She doesn't reciprocate his feelings and he seems to go off the deep end. They used to be really close and spend a lot of time together ... but in the end, it just falls apart.
"Hello Fine Day Isn't It" -- [R&E] -- Young man in their neighborhood is always around, talking in the obnoxious way that JCO seems to specialize in. They're settled in CAN and we meet her mother. Because they aren't citizens, Evan is lucky to have found the crappy job he did and works long hours. She is now a stay at home wife.
"Through the Looking Glass" -- Well liked professor priest teaches English ... Gets involved with a unique student ... Unexpected ending.
"Nocturnal Boundaries" -- [R&E] -- Renee is trying to fill her days with activities outside of her home. Almost has an affair with a local poet, Karl. Evan is very unhappy with his job - he is way too overqualified and over educated, but due to the lack of jobs and being a foreigner, is stuck with what he has.
"Dreams" -- This is probably one of the best stories I've read about an emotionally abusive relationship.
"Customs" -- [R&E] -- A pretty boring story about Renee getting inspected at the border by customs. Great description of how thoughts escalate in times of stress/panic though.
"The Transformation of Vincent Scoville" -- New faculty member at a university gets stuck with the "prestigious" task of studying what turn out to be worthless letters. I get the impression that these letters were the reason he changed - devolved, really - throughout the story.
"The Golden Madonna" -- 24-year-old Alexander has his world turned upside down by his paternal aunt - the type of woman who seems to enjoy tormenting people - especially men.
"The Scream" -- [R&E] *spoiler* -- Return of Karl from "Natural Boundaries." We learn how unhappy Renee is with just about everything in her life. I felt like I was sitting next to her in the art gallery, reading her sad thoughts. This was my favorite story of the collection, hands down. JCO has a way of writing about sadness and depression that really resonates ...
"The Liberation of Jake Hanley" -- Jake gets divorced. We "meet" Scoville and the faculty from the Scoville story again. It almost turns into a comedy, how many men end up with miserable women and wind up sleeping in the English Department.
"An Incident in the Park" -- [R&E] -- First story that focuses solely on Evan. He is in a public park after an argument with Renee, asking if there is someone else - was she in love?
"Falling In Love In Ashton, British Columbia" -- Something about a philandering husband ... 2nd honeymoon ... Getting stranded in Ashton because wife isn't feeling well ... He falls in love with a waitress. I found this story to be very monotonous.
"The Tempter" -- Sister and brother -?- meet up after 17 years. He was in prison and now he's dying ... she doesn't really care ... That's the basically the gist of this meandering, tedious story.
"River Rising" -- [R&R] -- Starts with very irritating letter to Karl about why they chose to break it off ... Basically a story about how a couple endures a storm that threatens their home and even their lives.
June 8, 2013
Reneé und ihr Mann Evan haben die Grenze überschritten, die Staatsgrenze zwischen den USA und Kanada. Der US-Amerikaner Evan Maynard arbeitet als wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter in der Erforschung chemischer und biologischer Kampfstoffe in Telford, Kanada. Mehrere Erzählungen des Bandes spielen im akademischen Mileu dieser Stadt (u. a. Vincent Scovilles Verwandlung). An Telfords durchschnittlichem College halten die Dozenten sich für etwas Besseres, obwohl sie alle inzwischen realisiert haben, dass es auch in Kanada eine Akademikerschwemme gibt und es mit der erhofften akademischen Karriere bald wieder zu Ende sein kann. Kanada wirkt in diesen Erzählungen wie eine diffus gefährliche Wildnis; erst nach Überschreiten der Grenze in südlicher Richtung können Oates Figuren sich wieder in Sicherheit fühlen. Nur weil sie sich nicht in den vertrauten USA befindet, entwickelt sich eine harmlose Alltagssituation mit einem - evtl. behinderten - Jugendlichen für Renée zur Bedrohung (Guten Tag schön heute nicht wahr?).
In "Grenzkontrolle" wird Renées - leerer - PkW auf auf dem Weg zwischen Kanada und den USA vom amerikanischen Zoll durchsucht. In zunehmender Panik beantwortet Renée die Fragen des Zollbeamten nach ihren Absichten. Sie kann dem Mann nur schwer begreiflich machen, dass sie als Amerikanerin in Kanada lebt. Er muss die Autos nach Drogen, sowie Lebensmitteln und Pflanzen durchsuchen, mit denen Krankheiten über die USA-Grenze gelangen könnten. Gesucht wird auch nach Wehrdienstverweigerern oder Fahnenflüchtigen, die sich nach Kanada absetzen wollen. Darum befragt der Zöllner Renée so drängend nach ihrem Mann, der gar nicht dabei ist. Renée steht durch den Arbeitsplatz ihres Mannes in Kanada plötzlich auf der falschen Seite. Den feinen Unterschied zwischen gebürtigen und geduldeten Kanadiern hat sie zuvor nicht realisiert.
In "Träume" betrachtet eine junge Frau ihre Ängste und Panikattacken wie eine neutrale Beobachterin. Sie fühlt sich vom Alltag allein stark beansprucht und verlässt schließlich ihre Heimatstadt, obwohl nur die ihr die nötige Sicherheit vermittelt. Die Frau macht sich klein, damit ein Mann sich ihr überlegen fühlen kann. Ausgelöst wird ihre Einstellung durch eine Gesellschaft, die Frauen danach beurteilt, welche Beziehungen zu Männern sie haben (S. 84).
Das fragile Gleichgewicht, in dem Joyce Carol Oates ihre Figuren ins Wanken bringt, kann eine Ehekrise sein (Liebe), der Versuch einer Frau, ihren Neffen zu verführen (Goldene Drachen), die Grenze zwischen Alkohohlmissbrauch und Alkoholismus (Ein Zwischenfall im Park), die Heirat eines katholischen Priesters (Durch einen Spiegel) und diverse Krisen von Autoren (u. a. Verliebt in Ashton). Renées fragiles Leben in Telford gerät durch einen Sturm völlig aus den Fugen, der den Wasserspiegel des Flusses bis in den Garten ihres Hauses ansteigen lässt. Beide Ehepartner reagieren hilflos, unfähig, Kontakt mit der Polizei oder der Feuerwehr aufzunehmen und sich zum Bleiben oder Verlassen des Hauses zu entscheiden.
Oates zeigt sich in diesem Band wieder als Meisterin, banale Alltagssituationen zu Horror-Szenarien für die Beteiligten zu entwickeln.
In "Grenzkontrolle" wird Renées - leerer - PkW auf auf dem Weg zwischen Kanada und den USA vom amerikanischen Zoll durchsucht. In zunehmender Panik beantwortet Renée die Fragen des Zollbeamten nach ihren Absichten. Sie kann dem Mann nur schwer begreiflich machen, dass sie als Amerikanerin in Kanada lebt. Er muss die Autos nach Drogen, sowie Lebensmitteln und Pflanzen durchsuchen, mit denen Krankheiten über die USA-Grenze gelangen könnten. Gesucht wird auch nach Wehrdienstverweigerern oder Fahnenflüchtigen, die sich nach Kanada absetzen wollen. Darum befragt der Zöllner Renée so drängend nach ihrem Mann, der gar nicht dabei ist. Renée steht durch den Arbeitsplatz ihres Mannes in Kanada plötzlich auf der falschen Seite. Den feinen Unterschied zwischen gebürtigen und geduldeten Kanadiern hat sie zuvor nicht realisiert.
In "Träume" betrachtet eine junge Frau ihre Ängste und Panikattacken wie eine neutrale Beobachterin. Sie fühlt sich vom Alltag allein stark beansprucht und verlässt schließlich ihre Heimatstadt, obwohl nur die ihr die nötige Sicherheit vermittelt. Die Frau macht sich klein, damit ein Mann sich ihr überlegen fühlen kann. Ausgelöst wird ihre Einstellung durch eine Gesellschaft, die Frauen danach beurteilt, welche Beziehungen zu Männern sie haben (S. 84).
Das fragile Gleichgewicht, in dem Joyce Carol Oates ihre Figuren ins Wanken bringt, kann eine Ehekrise sein (Liebe), der Versuch einer Frau, ihren Neffen zu verführen (Goldene Drachen), die Grenze zwischen Alkohohlmissbrauch und Alkoholismus (Ein Zwischenfall im Park), die Heirat eines katholischen Priesters (Durch einen Spiegel) und diverse Krisen von Autoren (u. a. Verliebt in Ashton). Renées fragiles Leben in Telford gerät durch einen Sturm völlig aus den Fugen, der den Wasserspiegel des Flusses bis in den Garten ihres Hauses ansteigen lässt. Beide Ehepartner reagieren hilflos, unfähig, Kontakt mit der Polizei oder der Feuerwehr aufzunehmen und sich zum Bleiben oder Verlassen des Hauses zu entscheiden.
Oates zeigt sich in diesem Band wieder als Meisterin, banale Alltagssituationen zu Horror-Szenarien für die Beteiligten zu entwickeln.
November 6, 2016
Once again, I wonder about Joyce Carol Oates. The characters that seem to preoccupy her in the novels and short stories I've read are unhappy characters in one way or another, and their lives perpetuate that unhappiness. They do not change. I'd forgotten how dim her fictional worlds can be. Like going from Helsinki, Finland -- bright, bustling -- to Moscow, USSR, the land of the 40-watt light bulb. While I admire Oates' prose, I don't much care for her characters. I think I liked her writing much more when I myself was depressed or unhappy with my life in my 20's.
Crossing the Border is a collection of short stories that at times share common characters. The most frequent characters are Renee and Evan, a young American couple that has moved to a small town in Canada not far from Toronto. I looked forward to learning how America and Canada differ in culture and society, but Oates is far more interested in delving deep into her characters' psyches. So it actually didn't matter so much that they were in Canada, except in two stories: one in which they're at the border crossing, and the last story when there's a terrific storm and the river rises into their backyard.
As a primer on point of view, these stories are great. It was interesting to see how Oates used the third person, and yet I was always aware of the author's omniscience. There's not a lot of action in these stories, so I would call them interior psychological studies, enabled by the way Oates uses the third person point of view. I just wish the characters were more interesting and/or likeable.
I hate to say it, but I don't really recommend this collection unless you, as a reader, are a diehard Oates fan. I'm moving on to more science fiction for my bedtime reading!
Crossing the Border is a collection of short stories that at times share common characters. The most frequent characters are Renee and Evan, a young American couple that has moved to a small town in Canada not far from Toronto. I looked forward to learning how America and Canada differ in culture and society, but Oates is far more interested in delving deep into her characters' psyches. So it actually didn't matter so much that they were in Canada, except in two stories: one in which they're at the border crossing, and the last story when there's a terrific storm and the river rises into their backyard.
As a primer on point of view, these stories are great. It was interesting to see how Oates used the third person, and yet I was always aware of the author's omniscience. There's not a lot of action in these stories, so I would call them interior psychological studies, enabled by the way Oates uses the third person point of view. I just wish the characters were more interesting and/or likeable.
I hate to say it, but I don't really recommend this collection unless you, as a reader, are a diehard Oates fan. I'm moving on to more science fiction for my bedtime reading!
September 2, 2023
This is the book that turned me on to Joyce Carol Oates way back in 1975 when I was a freshman in high school. I had read a cover story in Newsweek about her and ran to the library to get her latest collection of stories which was this one. She did not disappoint. Now re-reading these stories some 40 years later, I enjoyed them even more than when I first read them. Included are several stories featuring a young couple named Evan and Renee who make their way from Florida to "cross the border" into Canada to start a whole new life which, like their new country, often seems like strange and unfamiliar territory.
October 14, 2009
i couldn't find a good reason to finish this book, and it was overdue at the library, which seemed like a good reason not to. none of the characters were remotely likable or relate-able to me, and after the first 4 stories, i think i get the idea: sometimes we get freaked out by nothing, especially if "we" are women, and life is full of misunderstandings, which can also freak us out, oh, and men are creepy, and blah blah blah. and, well...i was utterly bored. and i went to library today, so it's gone.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews