Long Distance: Stories

Acclaimed author of The Anthropologists and master of the short story form Aysegul Savas' acute and tender first collection about the distances we keep, and those we try to close, in the age of connectivity.

"An exceptionally elegant, intelligent, and original writer."--Sigrid Nunez
"She is an author who simply, and astoundingly, knows."--Bryan Washington
"The rigor of Didion and the tenderness of Sebald."--Catherine Lacey
"One of my favorite writers."--Katie Kitamura

A researcher abroad in Rome eagerly awaits a visit from her long distance lover, only to find he is not the same man she remembers. An expat meets a childhood friend on a layover and is dismayed by her unexpected contentment. A newly pregnant woman considers the American taboo of sharing the news too soon, but can't resist when an opportunity comes to patch up a damaged friendship.

Long Distance showcases Savas's devastating talent for the short story. Her shrewd encapsulations of contemporary life often center on characters displaced more by choice than circumstance, characters both determined to install themselves in new lives and preoccupied with the people they've left behind.