Don’t Tell Anyone (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: Frederick Busch
- First Published: 2000
- Type of Work: Novella and short fiction
- Time of Work: Present
- Setting: Upstate New York and Maine
- Principal Characters: Willie Bernstein, Miriam Delnegro, Etienne, Tanya Felver, Serge, Jeff
- Genres: Short fiction
- Subjects: New York, Twentieth century, Betrayal, Pregnancy, Rape, Intelligence service, Maine
- Locales: New York, Maine
Frederick Busch has written nineteen books of fiction, and in the process developed a style which, in the sixteen stories and one novella which constitute Don’t Tell Anyone, relies on a kind of witty politeness to express the problems his characters have with each other and themselves. The theme, in tandem with this style and with the conflicts it presents, is secrets.
“Heads,” the first story in the book, shows a woman who has no secrets, while her mother, who is the narrator, does. Alec has been raped by her lover, has stabbed him in the face for it, and has been...
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