📖 Overview
Laura van den Berg is an American fiction writer known for her short story collections and novels that often explore themes of loss, identity, and psychological complexity. Her work has earned significant recognition, including nominations for the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award and the Young Lions Fiction Award, as well as a Guggenheim Fellowship and the Strauss Livings Award from the American Academy of Arts & Letters.
Born in Florida in 1983, van den Berg has published five major works of fiction, including three short story collections: "What the World Will Look Like When All the Water Leaves Us" (2009), "The Isle of Youth" (2013), and "I Hold a Wolf by the Ears" (2020). Her stories have appeared in prestigious literary publications such as The Paris Review, McSweeney's, and BOMB.
Her novels "Find Me" (2015) and "The Third Hotel" (2018) have further established her presence in contemporary American literature. The latter was notably selected as a finalist for the Young Lions Fiction Award.
Van den Berg serves as a senior lecturer at Harvard University's English Department and resides in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She holds a BA from Rollins College and an MFA from Emerson College.
👀 Reviews
Readers consistently note van den Berg's precise, unsettling prose and her ability to create psychological tension. Many praise her short stories for capturing complex emotions in stark, memorable scenes.
What readers liked:
- Sharp, atmospheric writing style
- Complex female characters dealing with grief and isolation
- Subtle building of suspense
- Blend of realism and surreal elements
What readers disliked:
- Open-ended or ambiguous endings
- Slow pacing in novels compared to short stories
- Characters sometimes feel emotionally distant
- Some plots described as "too experimental"
Ratings across platforms:
Goodreads:
- "The Third Hotel": 3.5/5 (4,500+ ratings)
- "Find Me": 3.2/5 (3,000+ ratings)
- "I Hold a Wolf by the Ears": 3.8/5 (2,000+ ratings)
Amazon:
- Average 4/5 across all books
- Higher ratings for short story collections than novels
Common reader comment: "Beautiful writing but requires patience and attention to detail to fully appreciate."
📚 Books by Laura van den Berg
What the World Will Look Like When All the Water Leaves Us (2009)
A collection of stories featuring characters confronting unusual circumstances, from a researcher studying moths in Madagascar to a young woman searching for Bigfoot in Michigan.
The Isle of Youth (2013) Seven stories following women grappling with deception and identity, including tales of teenage sisters performing surveillance work and a woman impersonating her twin in Patagonia.
Find Me (2015) A novel about a young woman who becomes immune to a mysterious epidemic sweeping the country and finds herself in a hospital where she searches for clues about her past.
The Third Hotel (2018) A novel following a widow who travels to Havana for a film festival and believes she sees her dead husband standing in a museum.
I Hold a Wolf by the Ears (2020) A collection of stories examining women on the edge, featuring narratives about grief, relationships, and the uncanny in contemporary life.
The Isle of Youth (2013) Seven stories following women grappling with deception and identity, including tales of teenage sisters performing surveillance work and a woman impersonating her twin in Patagonia.
Find Me (2015) A novel about a young woman who becomes immune to a mysterious epidemic sweeping the country and finds herself in a hospital where she searches for clues about her past.
The Third Hotel (2018) A novel following a widow who travels to Havana for a film festival and believes she sees her dead husband standing in a museum.
I Hold a Wolf by the Ears (2020) A collection of stories examining women on the edge, featuring narratives about grief, relationships, and the uncanny in contemporary life.
👥 Similar authors
Kelly Link writes short stories that blend elements of the fantastic with everyday reality, exploring similar psychological terrain as van den Berg. Her work deals with themes of loss and identity while maintaining a careful balance between the strange and familiar.
Carmen Maria Machado crafts stories that examine psychological complexity and female experience through innovative narrative structures. Her work shares van den Berg's focus on haunting atmospheres and exploration of identity.
Karen Russell creates fiction set in unusual landscapes that combine realistic settings with surreal elements. Her stories and novels investigate themes of family relationships and loss while maintaining a strong sense of place.
Samantha Hunt writes novels and stories that blur the lines between reality and the supernatural. Her work explores similar themes of grief and isolation while incorporating elements of psychological suspense.
Catherine Lacey produces fiction that focuses on identity and alienation through experimental narrative approaches. Her novels and stories examine psychological states and human relationships with a similar attention to complex emotional terrain.
Carmen Maria Machado crafts stories that examine psychological complexity and female experience through innovative narrative structures. Her work shares van den Berg's focus on haunting atmospheres and exploration of identity.
Karen Russell creates fiction set in unusual landscapes that combine realistic settings with surreal elements. Her stories and novels investigate themes of family relationships and loss while maintaining a strong sense of place.
Samantha Hunt writes novels and stories that blur the lines between reality and the supernatural. Her work explores similar themes of grief and isolation while incorporating elements of psychological suspense.
Catherine Lacey produces fiction that focuses on identity and alienation through experimental narrative approaches. Her novels and stories examine psychological states and human relationships with a similar attention to complex emotional terrain.