In the Gloaming

by Alice Elliott Dark

From the author of Think of England and Fellowship Point , a captivating collection of stories—the title piece successfully made into an HBO film—about the complex relationships between lovers, spouses, neighbors, and family members. By turns funny, sad, and disturbing, these are stories of remarkable power.

When the austere and moving title story of this collection appeared in The New Yorker in 1993, it inspired two memorable film adaptations, and John Updike selected it for inclusion in The Best American Short Stories of the Century. In these ten stories, Alice Elliott Dark visits the fictional town of Wynnemoor and its residents, present and past, with skill, compassion, and wit.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Literary Fiction, Short Story Collection

286 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

I have written four books of fiction, Naked to the Waist (1991), In the Gloaming (2000), Think of England (2002) and Fellowship Point (2022). I write everyday at least for a few minutes. I also teach in the English department and the MFA program at Rutgers-Newark. I have learned so much from teaching! I'm working on a new novel, a sequel to my short story "In the Gloaming." That story was made into two films, one by HBO (it's available on Amazon Prime) and one by Trinity Playhouse. I always have a cat or a dog or both sitting near me when I work.

Reviews

[Shana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I know the author of this book personally, and I adore her. She was my creative writing teacher in graduate school, so even though I feel like I am going to provide a review based on the book, my feelings can't help but seep in.

The book cover sets a high bar since it touts the fact that the title story, "In the Gloaming," was chosen as one of the best American short stories of century, and the title story is amazing. It is a quiet, gentle story. There is nothing overwrought about it, and given the topic, that was a real possibility. Dark really captures the tenuousness of human connections in a way that makes it easy to see the miraculousness of those connections even being made or holding up at all. Coming away from the story, I felt a deep sense of how precious each little moment can be. And yes, I realize that for some this would be a good reason not to read the story, but my futile attempts to capture what makes the story fantastic should not dissuade you.

Many reviewers on goodreads seemed to dismiss the rest of the collection, feeling that it didn't live up to the first, but much as I loved the first story and fantastic as it was, I found the later stories to be even better. Basically from "The Secret Spot," the sixth out of ten stories, to the end of the collection, the stories are all strong. I particularly like "Close" and "Maniacs."

The only story I was less than thrilled about was "The Tower." It contains a lot to like. A lot. However, there is a plot twist that I really felt didn't serve the story. It was too shocking, felt like something too much from a soap opera. Even with the distracting twist, though, Dark manages to make something of the story by the end.

Endings, in fact, are one of the collections many strengths. If you are the kind of person who likes a tidy resolution where everything falls into place and nothing is unaccounted for, you probably won't like these stories. Dark lets them just be without feeling the need to answer all the reader's questions. She provides readers with a snapshot of the characters' lives and allows the reader to picture what is outside of the frame. I, for one, really enjoy that. This is a great short story collection.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit, I only read the title story. It was the one I was after, having discovered that John Updike chose it as one of the best American short stories of the (last) century. So my rating is just for "In the Gloaming." It's certainly worth getting your hands on. A woman's adult son returns home for his final days, and mother and son fall into an intimate evening routine of getting to know each other. The hunger this woman has for her child, whom she will lose shortly, is heartbreaking. But sharing the thrill of her connection to her child in the beautiful twilight hour is a pleasure.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written. Dark captures the characters of Wynnemoor so that the place seems real and familiar. "In the Gloaming" is my favorite story, as it best represents the collection (hence its the title book). The story as well as the collection examines the silences that stitch lives and relationships together, revealing that in those twilight moments between what's said and unsaid we just may find ourselves.

[Moira · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing for people looking for a good collection of short stories. Alice Elliot Dark is great with the gripping, visceral feelings, although I would say she is more of a writer for women than men. And she's better with older women than anything else. But she does show some range and the book was a really fast read.

[Julene · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is named after the first short story in the book, In The Gloaming. Alice Elliott Dark, has a keen eye and a deep understanding of the inner world of her characters. This first story is about a young man who has come home to die, he is too young, the word AIDS is never mentioned, but there are enough subtle comments to know this story, first published in the New Yorker on May 3, 1993, is about AIDS. Mother and son have time 'in the gloaming,' a Scottish term for the time near the end of the day before the sun sets, when the sky turns purple. "Yes," the mother says, "as if all the earth was covered in heather." This piece brought me to tears.

The relationships in this book of stories are family & relationship focused: mother and son, sisters, sister and step dad, mother and daughter, husband and wife, single man dating. And each has its own emotional impact. There is sexual abuse, rivalry, first love, needing to choose love, losing a lover and settling, having to take mother to the nursing home. Loaded and well written where we feel these characters and have a look inside their minds. She also ends stories well, open ended often, or emotionally loaded like in the first story, In the Gloaming, where the father who was mostly absent while his son was dying asks, "Please, Janet, tell me, what else did my boy like?"

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love short stories, really good ones, and these ten are superb. The title story had me in tears and so did the last one- Watch the Animals. They touched my personal life. That's what this author does so easily.
The ninth, Home, triggers the fears many of us have about declining age and facing submission to the care of others.
The Tower, The Secret Spot, and Close delve into marital and familial relationships, leaving the reader surprised and wondering.
The Jungle Lodge takes the reader along with a tour group in the Amazon, but the fierce crocodiles are not the expected predators.

Alice Elliott Dark's ability to probe the depths of human emotions and relationships in its infinite variety make this a memorable collection.
I read her latest lengthy novel, FELLOWSHIP POINT, and have enjoyed the excellent reading experience that comes from this author, whether it is in the short or long form.

These are excellent choices for book groups.

[Janet Eshenroder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alice Dark is a master of writing about ordinary people in not unusual circumstances, delving so deeply into the characters' lives that it takes your breath away. "In the Gloaming" is one of her best, but in all the stories we get inside the characters so that it is hard to emotionally let go when the story ends. Like a door being quietly shut in my face, hiding the life that is sure to follow, I found myself haunted at each ending.

[Jaykumar B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stumbled upon this gem of a short story that needs to read by one and all... so poignant, so swift and so profound and most importantly so tragic... and most difficult to accept such incidents is that they have happened and are happening even today, as I'm typing this insufficient review..

[Bill Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title story in this collection is by far the best…just devastating in its restraint and impact…it’s not to be missed. Several other stories are almost as good…all in one way or another focus on love, loss (not just personal loss—loss of innocence, too), and the struggle to communicate (between parents and children, siblings, spouses, lovers, friends, you name it). The stories aren’t flashy or gimmicky, just well-crafted and quietly moving. There’s no real clunker, but one or two seem to turn too much on coincidence. Still, this is one of the better story collections I’ve read recently.

[Anna Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

So incredibly beautiful and haunting.

[John Treat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just want all of you have have read at least the title story of this collection this: so few of us died like Laird did. Quietly, at home, in front of a fire with our mothers and without pain. Do not call this story beautiful. Do not call it touching. Call it what it is: a made-for-TV movie, a book-of-the-month selection, an emotional salve; call it your comforting and obscene lie.

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author has a pleasing voice and tone, which makes me trust her, as I would trust Richard Yates after reading Revolutionary Road or Jane Smiley. There's something familiar and unapologetic about the characters. I did not fall as deeply in love with Dark's worlds, however, though, like many other reviewers here, the title story was incredible. The characters themselves were what made reading worth it; there are so many strange and believable desires frothing about in each story, so many difficulties and lies, though there are also twists that seem a disservice to the stories ("The Tower" is one strong example, and I felt "The Secret Spot" was wobbly; "The Jungle Lodge" had some great moments, but it felt as if the horrible climax before the bigger reveal went too far--the same moment could be as jarring without the extremes).

[JimZ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the word "gloaming". I do not remember if that is why I purchased this book 19 years ago...it could have been a favorable review of it that I still have tucked in the ARC that I have...that I pulled from the Times Literary Supplement (June 29, 2000). In that article Joyce Carol Oates reviewed 5 short story collections and Ms. Dark was in very fine company indeed! Everything in This Country Must by Colum McCann, Scar Vegas and Other Stories by Tom Paine, Dressing Up for the Carnival by Carol Shields, and Pastoralia by George Saunders.

Gloaming: the part of the day after the sun has gone down and before the sky is completely dark AND Middle English (Scot) glomyng from Old English glomung from glom, twilight, akin to glowan, to glow: adopted in literature from Scottish dialect...

[Tricia Sutton · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, for the most part, but I felt it could have used a good copy editor. Typos or small grammar mistakes became more noticeable after a while. It went from forgivable to wondering if it was self published without the benefit of even a beta reader. Even the layout was a mess. Some chapters had no indentations for new paragraphs or dialogue. Then the next chapter was structured normally. It was such that I became distracted and irritated. A corrected copy would add a star as I liked the author's voice: quiet and ominous.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book sometime in 2000, because I liked the cover art. I was the only person I knew who hadn't seen the hbo movie version of the title story. I loved it at the time. Re-reading it, I love pieces of it -- there are beautiful moments within each story (e/g "the distraction of human love") and also painful cliches. If nothing else, read "In the Gloaming."

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this as part of my ongoing quest to understand and conquer short stories. Some of the stories I truly loved (In the Gloaming, The Tower, The Secret Spot), some I thought were good, and a few I just didn't understand. So overall, a decent read. The author has a lovely writing style and a firm understanding of people, which was great to experience.

[Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark writes powerfully. Her construction of each story feels seamless with every sentence delivering on multiple levels. It is amazing how she delivers such a poignant depth of emotion with the most simple sentences. My favorite stories were "In the Gloaming", "Triage", "The Secret Spot", "Home", and "Watch the Animals".

[Annemariem · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read three of the ten short stories in this collection so far and can't contain myself. Every single story is a gem. Why don't more people have this book?! It's amazing!

Update: I've now finished the book. It's still amazing, but the first - and title - story is without question the best of the collection.

[Ronald Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable collection of short stories. My two favorites were the first and last ones in the collection - "In the Gloaming" about a man dying of AIDS who lives with his parents towards the end of his life; and "Watch the Animals" about a rich woman who loves animals more than people who is dying of cancer and looking for people to take care of her menagerie.

[lola · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I wanted to know more about boring rich people I could have just taken Metro North back to Ardsley. The stories in this book go from totally awesome (In The Gloaming) to less awesome to less awesome to less awesome until the last story is like "Oh god, might as well."

[Joe Starnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title story was selected one of the best short stories of the century by John Updike, but I think it is maybe the very best story ever. The other stories here hold up to the title story too -- a great, great collection.

[Violet Muhle Bruce · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found that each of these stories was a hit or miss for me. Some I found myself spacing out completely from boredom and some I am still going back to read. In that sense it was confusing, but when it was good it was really good and the character development was really important and honest.

[Hannah Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed all the stories in this book. I think they do a great job at exploring the complexities of human relationships. It was very compelling to read the motivations of different characters and even made me think more deeply about my own life and what I desire from it.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the stories were so-so, but the title story is so wonderful that the entire collection earns 4 stars from me.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

The collection as a whole is not outstanding but the first story should be mandatory reading for anyone human.

[Kossiwa]

These stories feel like miniature novels. Alice Elliot Dark does so much in a short story. I'm glad I was able to read this for my Master of Fine Arts class

[Teri Zipf · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm pretty sure I gave this away, but wish I hadn't. I would like to read it again someday.

[Mel King · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely book of austere short stories.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Autorin erzählt in zehn Geschichten, wie Menschen damit fertig werden müssen, wenn ihr Leben plötzlich außerhalb der gewohnten Bahnen verläuft.

Ob das langsame Sterben des einzigen Sohns, Sprachlosigkeit zwischen Ehepartnern oder Müttern und Töchtern oder Konkurrenz zwischen Schwestern, die so schwer wiegt, dass man sich nichts anvertrauen will: jede der Geschichten hat mich auf eine ganz eigene Art berührt. Denn in jeder war etwas, was ich so oder so ähnlich schon einmal gefühlt hatte, auch wenn es nicht zu so dramatischen Entwicklungen kam wie sie teilweise hier erzählt wurden.

Trotzdem wirkt die Sammlung nicht traurig auf mich, wenn auch sentimental und berührend. Ich habe mir Zeit für die einzelnen Geschichten gelassen und die sollte man ihnen auch zustehen.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wanted to read the title story and unfortunately I could only find it at my library in a book of "Best American Short Stories." So I have not been able to read the full book of stories but this one is marvelous. Very short (it was published in The New Yorker), very sad, wonderfully written. I love when short story writers can write with such immediacy and just plunge you straight into the psyches of their characters in a few pages. This story achieves that and I would love to read more by this author.