Murakami’s After Dark worked for me. I feared it going in, as I tend to get really angry at his short stories, as like his novels they are very outlandish, but with out the requirement of holding one’s attention for several hundred pages, I find the short stories too emphemeral. I can’t hold on to them even while reading, let alone after I put the book down.

After Dark, a novella for Murakami at less than two-hundred pages, did keep me (and really, him) linked to the story. But then the shortness of time (it takes place in a single night), and the lack of too much jumping between strange parallel universes (hey, it is still Murakami) kept things tied to reality. No really, it did.

(Oh also, really hate that cover. Wish I would have had the Vintage International paperback to match the rest of my Murakami collection)

McEwan, the oft-called master of macabre’s newest novella, On Chesil Beach, is a return to form, a short and dark novel centered around a young couple’s wedding night. While the action is well-framed and the characters are true to their setting, after a number of longer and intricate novels (like his recently film-adapted Atonement, and Saturday ), I was left seeking details that were never imagined, stories and subplots never written, for this novella. Or maybe that is the goal here, to keep me wanting more.

These two short novellas are an example of how a practiced writer can research and really capture the essence of a time period.

The first is an exploration of the early work that was started both in reaction and support of Darwin’s research, telling the story of a man who returning from his journeys where he lost everything is taken into the estate of a British family that then begins to absorb his life while he desires to return to the wild.

The second is another historical piece, this time capturing seances to communicate to the loved dead. The story centers around Emily Jesse, once betrothed to the brother of Alfred (Lord) Tennyson, but disowned by his family after her love, Arthur dies, and she decides years later to re-marry. Her efforts to communicate with Arthur while dealing with the people around her, the ghosts, and also the written legacy left by both Arthur and Alfred.

Note, these novellas are very dense and I believe many … current readers would find the entirely boring.