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Black Bark
A story-within-a-story vexes two cowboys on the run, looking for a cabin that may not exist.
Time: 28 minutes
Time: 28 minutes
1 pages, Audiobook
First published February 1, 2015
About the author
Brian Evenson
270 books1,557 followersBrian Evenson is an American academic and writer of both literary fiction and popular fiction, some of the latter being published under B. K. Evenson.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
July 29, 2023
I recently saw that Brian Evenson had a few copies of this one on hand that he was willing to sign and ship out and, I mean, how could I say no to that?! You could say I'm a bit of an Evenson fangirl, but again, if you've read his work, how could you not be?
Black bark is an incredibly dark collection - clocking in at just under 150 pages - that showcases some of Evenson's creepiest stories. Pitch black tunnels that house dripping, whispering creatures. A strange cabin that beckons to a lost and injured man may be the last threshold he crosses. Due to a series of unfortunate events, a young boy is forced to live with his estranged grandmother, who is anything but the kindly old woman he was hoping for. And two men are sent out on a one-way mission to follow a fence line to determine where the contagion began...
His writing gets under your skin. It itches. It twitches. It burrows in deep and never leaves you. It's the movement in the corner of your vision. The noise you hear downstairs just as you're about to drop off to sleep. The slight disturbance in the air that tickles the hairs on the back of your neck.
Which of Brian's books have you read? Do you have a favorite?
Black bark is an incredibly dark collection - clocking in at just under 150 pages - that showcases some of Evenson's creepiest stories. Pitch black tunnels that house dripping, whispering creatures. A strange cabin that beckons to a lost and injured man may be the last threshold he crosses. Due to a series of unfortunate events, a young boy is forced to live with his estranged grandmother, who is anything but the kindly old woman he was hoping for. And two men are sent out on a one-way mission to follow a fence line to determine where the contagion began...
His writing gets under your skin. It itches. It twitches. It burrows in deep and never leaves you. It's the movement in the corner of your vision. The noise you hear downstairs just as you're about to drop off to sleep. The slight disturbance in the air that tickles the hairs on the back of your neck.
Which of Brian's books have you read? Do you have a favorite?
September 18, 2023
These are stories of lonely men in bleak landscapes; weird fiction, skirting dark fantasy, likely to appeal to fans of Thomas Ligotti. ‘Black Bark’ is a startling opener – not least because its placement means there is a murky and unsettling implication that the ensuing tales are, in fact, part of Sugg’s story. ‘The Cabin’ and ‘Grottor’ put more meat on the bones of this approach: dismal settings, isolated places, chillingly ambiguous statements. ‘Contagion’ is probably the strongest story here, and feels like a truly complete work, but it cemented my feeling that this style is not for me. Too many barren places and grim injuries, too little sense of the characters’ inner lives. Still, the atmosphere is superbly crafted. (And the Black Shuck Shadows mini-collections are perfect for sampling an author’s work in exactly this way.)
December 23, 2019
Black Bark by Brian Evenson
3 stars
3 stars
I just really liked this one. The story follows two cowboys looking for a cabin that may not even exist. One of the cowboys gets injured and tells the story of Black Bark. I wish this was longer because it was excellently done and I think if it went further, I would've loved it even more. Alas, it didn't and it cut off at a part that I think did the story a disservice, but Evenson does a great job of creating a suspenseful and unsettling atmosphere through the injuries of the two cowboys. Pleasantly impressed and surprised.
Whimsical Writing Scale: 3
Villain Scale: 3
Plotastic Scale: 3
Cover Thoughts: I like the color palette, but it's an ugly cover.
November 3, 2023
Great atmospheric writing. Wish it was longer.
August 20, 2023
If I were a new Evenson reader, I'd consider this a great little appetizer to introduce me to his style, subject matters of choice, and the like. It's a nice mix of (mostly) previously released material with a new story thrown in at the end, all in a bite-sized morsel of a pocket-sized collection. I'd previously read I think two of the stories, but they were both still quite enjoyable on a reread, and the rest were new to me, which is always a joy. Evenson is a great author when he's working in weird fiction/horror, and this collection is no exception.
September 29, 2024
Don't read/listen to this story without reading "The Blood Drip" afterwards.
"Black Bark" is the first story in an anthology by Evenson called A Collapse of Horses. "The Blood Drip" fills out the story. You can read it here: https://granta.com/the-blood-drip/
"Black Bark" is the first story in an anthology by Evenson called A Collapse of Horses. "The Blood Drip" fills out the story. You can read it here: https://granta.com/the-blood-drip/
May 16, 2025
This small, slim book contains six exquisitely crafted tales. They are~
1. Black Bark;
2. The Cabin;
3. Grottor;
4. The Dismal Mirror;
5. Contagion (novella);
6. Malcher in the dark.
Every single tale built up a suffocating suspense with vivid characters and atmosphere. And then...
They stopped!
I know that open-ended tales, especially such well-written stuff, are highly regarded by some. I have also appreciated such tales from time to time. Unfortunately, in these tales TOO much was left to be filled up by our imagination. That has its own appeal. But...
Now it’s your call.
1. Black Bark;
2. The Cabin;
3. Grottor;
4. The Dismal Mirror;
5. Contagion (novella);
6. Malcher in the dark.
Every single tale built up a suffocating suspense with vivid characters and atmosphere. And then...
They stopped!
I know that open-ended tales, especially such well-written stuff, are highly regarded by some. I have also appreciated such tales from time to time. Unfortunately, in these tales TOO much was left to be filled up by our imagination. That has its own appeal. But...
Now it’s your call.
January 25, 2025
Amazing.
I normally write a little more for reviews, but after reading anything by Evenson, I lose the ability to speak and write with any sense for a few days.
In other news, I bought a kitten last month. He's also called Brian. Not that he answers to it. And he's not a very good author either. But he does have cute baked beans for toes, so there's that.
I normally write a little more for reviews, but after reading anything by Evenson, I lose the ability to speak and write with any sense for a few days.
In other news, I bought a kitten last month. He's also called Brian. Not that he answers to it. And he's not a very good author either. But he does have cute baked beans for toes, so there's that.
October 30, 2020
Black Bark is a story within a story, and it might just be the first of that style I've read within the horror genre (more because I've only recently started delving into it). It was interesting, with intentional obfuscation to be found, though it feels like it started and stopped in the middle.
May 7, 2024
The writing style was great. It was intensely creepy and filled me with a sense of dread. All this being said, however, I really wish it had been longer. I enjoy myself a good cliffhanger that's never satisfied, but this was just confusing. I legitimately said out loud, "wait...what?" when it was done.
The audio book is the best way to absorb this story, in my opinion. The sound effects are top notch.
The audio book is the best way to absorb this story, in my opinion. The sound effects are top notch.
January 13, 2024
another stellar collection from evenson!! this one is quite short - comprised of only 6 stories - but still takes a while to read, as each story is packed with layers of worldbuilding, historical reference, and sheer unease that requires your full attention to properly enjoy. i especially enjoyed that each of the selected stories was at least historically-adjacent and often had an old west/cormac mccarthy style feel to it. of course, as you would expect from any evenson collection, you are dropped directly into the story and then right as you feel like you're about to figure out what's happening, you're pulled out again - one of my favorite hallmarks of his writing. if you're looking for a clear plot and neat resolution, you'll want to pass on this one, but if you're ready to be haunted for months by a story, look no further! 10/10, an absolute goldmine. (and again huge huge thank you to s.penkevich for gifting this collection to me - 100% the best birthday gift ever)
individual ratings:
'black bark' - 4/5
"and don't you try to puzzle it out none and think that it means something other than what i said. every time you think you have the world figured, trust me, that's just when the world's got you figured and is about to spring and break your back."
'the cabin' - 3.5/5
"i gave you the chance to tell the story. you could have told it all night if you wanted. you could have told it until morning. but you chose to forfeit that chance. now it's my turn."
'grottor' - 5/5
- "how can a body be nothing?"
- "when it no longer holds a person. then it's nothing."
'the dismal mirror' - 3.5/5
"just listen. just because a story is told the same way over and over doesn't mean that's the way it happened."
'contagion' - 5/5 (my personal favorite from the collection, and a standout in evenson's entire body of work. post-apocalyptic/scifi take on the old west where the main focus of the story is barbed wire - and if you read it, google the character's names after. evenson threw in some really fun easter eggs here)
"the contagion only latterly gives up its traits and there is no means to foresee it. one has it or one does not, and once one knows one has it, one is already dead. are we already dead?"
'malcher in the dark' - 4/5
"that's why i whisper, too," said the voice. "because of the slash.
"how long has it been dripping?" malcher managed.
"would it make you feel better if i told you?"
malcher said nothing.
"rhetorical question," said the voice. "we both know it wouldn't."
individual ratings:
'black bark' - 4/5
"and don't you try to puzzle it out none and think that it means something other than what i said. every time you think you have the world figured, trust me, that's just when the world's got you figured and is about to spring and break your back."
'the cabin' - 3.5/5
"i gave you the chance to tell the story. you could have told it all night if you wanted. you could have told it until morning. but you chose to forfeit that chance. now it's my turn."
'grottor' - 5/5
- "how can a body be nothing?"
- "when it no longer holds a person. then it's nothing."
'the dismal mirror' - 3.5/5
"just listen. just because a story is told the same way over and over doesn't mean that's the way it happened."
'contagion' - 5/5 (my personal favorite from the collection, and a standout in evenson's entire body of work. post-apocalyptic/scifi take on the old west where the main focus of the story is barbed wire - and if you read it, google the character's names after. evenson threw in some really fun easter eggs here)
"the contagion only latterly gives up its traits and there is no means to foresee it. one has it or one does not, and once one knows one has it, one is already dead. are we already dead?"
'malcher in the dark' - 4/5
"that's why i whisper, too," said the voice. "because of the slash.
"how long has it been dripping?" malcher managed.
"would it make you feel better if i told you?"
malcher said nothing.
"rhetorical question," said the voice. "we both know it wouldn't."
December 26, 2025
Evenson is a late descendant of Beckett, but a Beckett who has stared too long in America, living in a small town where the only source of employment is a slaughterhouse. Even if you don't work there, the presence of the slaughterhouse seeps in.
This is a small "micro-collection" of five stories Evenson published in different iterations and available in other collections, but I'm starting to feel like I am going to become a Evenson completist so why stop here even as I've already read a few of these stories in other iterations?
The title story was collected in "A Collapse of Horses" and almost reads like a scene out of BLOOD MERIDIAN - two outlaws running from the law and looking for shelter and a place to hide out before finding a cave with some, uhhh, powers? The narrative is a razor-sharp exercise in epistemological dread, a story that devours its own tail.
The power of Black Bark is its refusal of the metaphorical; the horror is resolutely, terrifyingly literal. It is a small, perfect mechanism of unease, proving that the American Gothic has not died, but has merely gone insane in the pressure cooker of late capitalism.
If you are not reading Evenson, what are you even doing?
This is a small "micro-collection" of five stories Evenson published in different iterations and available in other collections, but I'm starting to feel like I am going to become a Evenson completist so why stop here even as I've already read a few of these stories in other iterations?
The title story was collected in "A Collapse of Horses" and almost reads like a scene out of BLOOD MERIDIAN - two outlaws running from the law and looking for shelter and a place to hide out before finding a cave with some, uhhh, powers? The narrative is a razor-sharp exercise in epistemological dread, a story that devours its own tail.
The power of Black Bark is its refusal of the metaphorical; the horror is resolutely, terrifyingly literal. It is a small, perfect mechanism of unease, proving that the American Gothic has not died, but has merely gone insane in the pressure cooker of late capitalism.
If you are not reading Evenson, what are you even doing?
May 4, 2020
I gave the first Evenson story in this collection a high rating but lengthen the story and you start seeing the problems with Evenson's writing. Black Bark is a story of two cowboys on the run. It uses the story within story technique but the second story means nothing. It is imaginative and disquieting and works on the same level as the short story (by Evenson) that opens this anthology but married to this larger story with cowboys and a chase it begs context and seems thrown in to confuse more than unsettle. The ending makes this tactic even more obvious. I strongly believe that most short fiction should attempt to mean something, even if the meaning isn't apparent. Evenson seems to try and confuse and makes use of the universal confusion to pass his stories off as high art.
January 10, 2025
A concentrated dose of Evenson. Neat tidy volume of ghastly stories including a reprint of the title story to his old collection Contagion. But it all works of a piece. These are all stories where the main character at some point, or throughout the story, finds himself (and they're all men) wandering through wilderness, not knowing what's coming. There is an abundance of caves—because what could be creepier? And in those caves is always some ambiguous horror. Love this book. Essential Evenson.
April 8, 2025
fantastic little collection in a gorgeous little book by black shuck.
I think most of these are collected from other works by Evenson, but they work wonderfully together. Bleak, dreamlike landscapes and dark gritty corners or strange worlds. I just adore Evenson's way of writing and crafting these stories, showing just enough to create a terrifying picture.
The title story black bark is the perfect presentation of this, short and simple, but truly horrifying.
lovely stuff
I think most of these are collected from other works by Evenson, but they work wonderfully together. Bleak, dreamlike landscapes and dark gritty corners or strange worlds. I just adore Evenson's way of writing and crafting these stories, showing just enough to create a terrifying picture.
The title story black bark is the perfect presentation of this, short and simple, but truly horrifying.
lovely stuff
November 9, 2020
I feel like the Knives Out meme: didn't make a lick of sense to me, but I still found it compelling.
I rather wanted either a longer version or a shorter one; it felt like I had too many threads to connect but not enough scaffolding.
One minor problem: as this is an audiobook, the constant "Skugg said" sucked. In written format, it probably wouldn't have bothered me.
I rather wanted either a longer version or a shorter one; it felt like I had too many threads to connect but not enough scaffolding.
One minor problem: as this is an audiobook, the constant "Skugg said" sucked. In written format, it probably wouldn't have bothered me.
October 23, 2025
Good as a little taster of Evenson but the fans will already have these stories in other collections (including 'The Cabin' now that his newest collection is out).
The small selection is good, but not having the sequel/second part to the Black Bark story is either a strange choice or a pretty big oversight.
The small selection is good, but not having the sequel/second part to the Black Bark story is either a strange choice or a pretty big oversight.
June 12, 2021
Two cowboys on horses, one bloody from injuries, trying to find a cabin. The story told by the injured cowboy while he lay dying was about a piece of black bark. I’d like to know more about that hunk of bark.
October 18, 2021
Was this really 28 minutes long? To get nowhere? Ok then.
I'd give it 1 star, except I want to know what the story of is. (Lol at hiding that "spoiler"... what does it spoil?!)
I'd give it 1 star, except I want to know what the story of is. (Lol at hiding that "spoiler"... what does it spoil?!)
March 2, 2022
1/5 estrellas.
Tres veces lo escuché para darle otra oportunidad. TRES. Y no, no vale la pena.
Tres veces lo escuché para darle otra oportunidad. TRES. Y no, no vale la pena.
December 23, 2023
“Let’s begin…”
An eerie short with a weird twist.
Big fan of Evenson’s work!
An eerie short with a weird twist.
Big fan of Evenson’s work!
September 8, 2024
Kinda boring
February 16, 2025
Vibe seems cool. Kept trying to read it, prose was not good enough.
April 23, 2025
4.25 stars
What I’ll remember most from this is the dark atmosphere. This 28 minute audiobook left me with more questions than answers.
What I’ll remember most from this is the dark atmosphere. This 28 minute audiobook left me with more questions than answers.
November 18, 2019
I like the story-within-a-story aspect, and the trials and tribulations of these two cowboys on the run, but the ending left me feeling like there was something missing, something that would tie things together better. The implications of the story-within-a-story were solid and had me hooked, but the final result had me going "Huh?"
April 3, 2023
To be honest, it fell flat for me. It was well written, just no story.
I appreciate a fellow reviewer that left a little explanation on another short story/book that helps this one make more sense\entertaining.
I wont read it personally...
I appreciate a fellow reviewer that left a little explanation on another short story/book that helps this one make more sense\entertaining.
I wont read it personally...
August 19, 2020
An Interesting short audible story
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