Rating: 
Summary: The debut of an exciting new voice
Review: Each of the stories in Daniel Stolar's debut collection has the feel of a novel. Their unfolding is luxuriously slow, with the scope of each reaching beyond a single moment in a character's life and instead encompassing the meaning of decades. The first story "Jack Landers Is My Friend," is thirty-four pages long; it explores the complex friendship between Jack and Kara that began in high school and continues when they are both in their thirties. Issues of class, adolescence, loyalty, unrequited love, and the attitude of privilege infuse this story with conflict and life. "Crossing Over" deals with the artificial nature of fraternity friendship and racial identification as the white Jewish narrator pledges at an all-black fraternity because that's where he feels most comfortable. "Mourning" examines the roles inherent in a friendship as popular, privileged Tim brings Matthew out of mourning for his mother during their senior year at Harvard. The relationship that ensues becomes both Matthew's need and his disillusionment. "Second Son" is told through the voice of a seventy year old man who has a sixteen year old "second son" after a previous marriage. When his wife Lillian asks that he teach his son how to drive, he discovers that fatherhood does not need to be the same from child to child.Most of the stories are set in St. Louis and Boston, with recurrent themes of black/white relations, the upper class's sense of entitlement and the difficulty of breaking into their clique, the imbalance of friendships and love, and liberalism v. pragmatism. Stolar's protagonists are outsiders living on the fringes of their social/family group. The inner circle, while often coveted, always seems beyond their grasp. Even in the case of "Second Son," a story that deals with more domestic issues, the narrator is never sure that he can step into the role expected of him. These characters' sense of inadequacy in the context of their longing gives these stories emotional power. The confidence of the writing in THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT is astonishing. Stolar writes like a veteran, with a voice that never wavers and insights that surface from deep within the stories. Most of the eight stories in this collection are substantial, both in length and in ambition. They are traditionally told, with a narrative progression that often is, more or less, linear. Readers of short stories should find much to admire in this new author's collection. I highly recommend it especially for readers seeking new voices in fiction.
Rating:
Summary: The debut of an exciting new voice
Review: Each of the stories in Daniel Stolar's debut collection has the feel of a novel. Their unfolding is luxuriously slow, with the scope of each reaching beyond a single moment in a character's life and instead encompassing the meaning of decades. The first story "Jack Landers Is My Friend," is thirty-four pages long; it explores the complex friendship between Jack and Kara that began in high school and continues when they are both in their thirties. Issues of class, adolescence, loyalty, unrequited love, and the attitude of privilege infuse this story with conflict and life. "Crossing Over" deals with the artificial nature of fraternity friendship and racial identification as the white Jewish narrator pledges at an all-black fraternity because that's where he feels most comfortable. "Mourning" examines the roles inherent in a friendship as popular, privileged Tim brings Matthew out of mourning for his mother during their senior year at Harvard. The relationship that ensues becomes both Matthew's need and his disillusionment. "Second Son" is told through the voice of a seventy year old man who has a sixteen year old "second son" after a previous marriage. When his wife Lillian asks that he teach his son how to drive, he discovers that fatherhood does not need to be the same from child to child. Most of the stories are set in St. Louis and Boston, with recurrent themes of black/white relations, the upper class's sense of entitlement and the difficulty of breaking into their clique, the imbalance of friendships and love, and liberalism v. pragmatism. Stolar's protagonists are outsiders living on the fringes of their social/family group. The inner circle, while often coveted, always seems beyond their grasp. Even in the case of "Second Son," a story that deals with more domestic issues, the narrator is never sure that he can step into the role expected of him. These characters' sense of inadequacy in the context of their longing gives these stories emotional power. The confidence of the writing in THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT is astonishing. Stolar writes like a veteran, with a voice that never wavers and insights that surface from deep within the stories. Most of the eight stories in this collection are substantial, both in length and in ambition. They are traditionally told, with a narrative progression that often is, more or less, linear. Readers of short stories should find much to admire in this new author's collection. I highly recommend it especially for readers seeking new voices in fiction.
Rating:
Summary: an powerful debut collection
Review: I have never been a huge fan of short stories. I prefer the novel length format so I can spend more time with the characters that I have come to know and short stories tend to cut me off just when I want to learn more about a character or a situation. But, this collection came highly recommended to me and there is a blurb on the back cover from Alison McGhee (Rainlight) comparing Daniel Stolar's stories to those of Jhumpa Lahiri (Pulitzer Prize winning author of "The Interpreter of Maladies"). With the recommendation and a blurb from an author I admire, I was willing to give this collection a chance and I'm glad that I did. This is Daniel Stolar's debut collection and it is superb. There are eight stories, and they share common themes and characteristics. Almost all of them are set in the St. Louis area (or the characters are from St. Louis), and they deal with the themes of loss, friendship, trying to fit in, and love. There is not a weak story in the collection, but there are some that I found to be more memorable than the others. The first is the first story of the collection "Jack Landers is My Friend", which deals with Jack returning to his high school reunion and reconnecting with his friend, the beautiful Kara. As Stolar tells the story, we are shown glimpses of the past, enough to show us exactly how Jack came to be at this place in his life. Actually, that is another common thread that runs through these stories: the past and present are weaved together so well that the story is stronger and you can't imagine it being told without the flashback. Another standout story is "Crossing Over" which has a white college student pledging to a black fraternity. I didn't expect to like this one because of the topic, but it ended up being a highlight of the collection. This is a collection that I very much wanted to like, but my expectations and my hopes were far exceeded by just how good these stories are. I don't know if Mr. Stolar is at work on another collection, or even on a novel, but I am already looking forward to whatever he publishes next. One thing that I should mention about this collection is that these are not upbeat or cheerful stories. Even though I liked each of the stories, I needed to take a break in between stories, there was that much emotional power contained here. But every time I took a break, I was looking forward to starting the next story. That's the mark of a good storyteller: one who leaves you wanting more.
Rating:
Summary: Real life rendered with wit and compassion
Review: I read this volume of stories on the recommendation of someone who is familiar with the book, and I'm glad I did. The eight stories in The Middle of the Night are written in clean, unobtrusive prose and constructed with a sure hand. Each is memorable and all take us deep into the heart of contemporary experience and teach us something of what it means to be human. A common theme here is loss--of a loved one, of a relationship, of a chosen career path. Stolar's protagonists, who are mostly male, regularly come face to face with their personal failings and weaknesses, and are forced to acknowledge the pain they have caused others. With few exceptions the narrators of these stories are also young and beginning to find their way through a world that is proving somewhat less welcoming and more perplexing than they had hoped. Stolar is a member of the school of contemporary realists and his work stands comparison with the stories of the American Christopher Tilghman and the Canadian Richard Cumyn. His writing is full of subtle wisdom. Thankfully, there are no flashy pyrotechnics, no obvious attempts to be fashionable. Anyone who is interested in contemporary American writing will find the reading experience offered by Daniel Stolar in his first book to be a rewarding one.
Rating:
Summary: IT'S IN THE DETAILS...AND IN THE SOUL
Review: In this debut collection, Daniel Stolar lets the reader know that he is a writer to watch. His stories are a pleasure to read, drawing the reader in gently but firmly - and his characters live and breathe, offering up many reasons to care about them. His prose is as detailed as a sharp-focused photograph - but it has the soul of a painting, giving the reader insights that lie beneath the image seen on the surface. Through his dialogue and narration - all but two of these pieces are told in the first person - he exposes his characters one layer at a time, naturally and easily, allowing us the privilege of getting to know them slowly, at a carefully measured pace. Utilizing this method as a firm foundation, Stolar builds his stories up as carefully as a stonemason creates a wall - their gravity holds them together far better than any unnatural glue. These stories are like little windows into the lives of the individuals and families they depict - but he never makes the reader feel like a voyeur. It's rather like being an unspeaking witness to the proceedings, and that's a rare treat indeed. His tales focus on the characters at various times in their lives - there are coming-of-age stories here, as well as glimpses into the lives of seniors. Stolar takes his characters into his heart and projects them onto the page faithfully, with great skill and respect - and while there are moments of pathos, as in life, there are plenty of instances where the humor shines through softly as well. This is a writer whose work I will definitely seek out in the future. Highly recommended
Rating: 
Summary: Real
Review: Many works of fiction today contain banal descriptions of love, loss, and friendship. However, this collection of stories is not one of them. "The Middle of the Night" is raw and powerful and intriguingly real without being overtly emotional. In one story, a young boy comes to terms with his self, while in another story, an aging father must deal with his own self-awareness. Thus, illustrating Daniel Stolar's ability to tell a story as it is, timeless and true.
Rating:
Summary: The emotional states that keep us awake at night
Review: Smartly written and deviously understated, "The Middle of the Night" presents eight stories so refreshingly idiosyncratic that one is hard-pressed to compare Daniel Stolar to another writer. Most of the stories share a similar framework--an introductory section followed by an extended flashback (to childhood, to high school, to college, to a previous marriage), concluding in the present with the story's resolution. And most feature a character going through some type of midlife crisis or interpersonal conflict--between generations, between sexes, between classes, between races. Yet, in spite of their similar themes and structures and their calm, melancholy tone, each is remarkably distinctive and--most of all--the characters are instantly familiar. Stolar has a knack for sketching a person or a situation in a few simple sentences, and any reader will admire his ability to write from different points of view (a male college student, a 70-year-old retiree, a young married woman). While all eight stories are memorable in their own way, everyone is sure to have his or her favorites. Mine are: "Second Son," about a 70-year-old man whose closeness to his son from a second marriage atones for his remoteness to and impatience with an older son; "Fundamentals," portraying a young father who calculatedly raises his son with the forbearance his own father denied him; and "Mourning," concerning a college student who, following his mother's death, is rescued from emotional collapse by a benevolent classmate rendered aloof and indecipherable by an upper-class (read: WASP) upbringing. "Crossing Over," about a Jewish college student who pledges a black fraternity, seems to have received the most attention; it is a fine story, but reading it is uncomfortable--not so much because of the subject matter but because the many black characters in the story are nearly indistinguishable stage props for the protagonist's self-induced drama. Although Stolar has written a story sharing the book's title (it was published last year in Bomb Magazine), it was omitted from this debut volume. In an interview with a reporter, he said that "[My editor and I] kept the title because it just seemed to fit. There's a point in each story where somebody is awake in the middle of the night." Indeed, it's a perfect title for this collection: these stories are about the emotional crises that make insomniacs of all of us.
Rating:
Summary: Stolar is Stellar!
Review: The opening story ("Jack Landers is My Friend") in Dan Stolar's debut collection of fiction In the Middle of the Night is a sophisticated comedy of manners wherein a thirty-something married Jewish man searches for acceptance from a group of friends he's not even sure that he likes. The story is emotionally provocative and recalls such masters of the form as Cynthia Ozick, Alice Munro, and Raymond Carver. In the humorous and heartrending story "Home in New Hampshire" a paraplegic woman watches the twenty-year-long disintegration of her marriage to an adulterous husband while her children leave home for college. It is pitch-perfect and emotionally profound. It's a rare treat, indeed, to discover such a singular talent and voice as Daniel Stolar's. He renders the familiar new and the new familiar. He says what we all have felt but were incapable of saying. And he says it with a clarity and emotional resonance unlike any other short story writer in America. One can not help but cheer for the future of the short story form when it is in the hands of such a capable master as Daniel Stolar. Bravura, stunning, profound. In the Middle of the Night will make you want to stand up and cheer. Stacey Cochran
Rating:
Summary: Stolar is Stellar!
Review: The opening story ("Jack Landers is My Friend") in Dan Stolar's debut collection of fiction In the Middle of the Night is a sophisticated comedy of manners wherein a thirty-something married Jewish man searches for acceptance from a group of friends he's not even sure that he likes. The story is emotionally provocative and recalls such masters of the form as Cynthia Ozick, Alice Munro, and Raymond Carver. In the humorous and heartrending story "Home in New Hampshire" a paraplegic woman watches the twenty-year-long disintegration of her marriage to an adulterous husband while her children leave home for college. It is pitch-perfect and emotionally profound. It's a rare treat, indeed, to discover such a singular talent and voice as Daniel Stolar's. He renders the familiar new and the new familiar. He says what we all have felt but were incapable of saying. And he says it with a clarity and emotional resonance unlike any other short story writer in America. One can not help but cheer for the future of the short story form when it is in the hands of such a capable master as Daniel Stolar. Bravura, stunning, profound. In the Middle of the Night will make you want to stand up and cheer. Stacey Cochran
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Collection of Short Stories
Review: This is an outstanding collection of short stories and I would suspect be up for many major literary awards. Nearly all the stories are bittersweet and bring into clear focus how we are all truly solitary creatures and nobody ever really knows another person-regardless of how intimate they are. Nearly all the stories are written from the point of view of a secular Jewish protagonist, which is the cultural backdrop of the entire book. What Solar does a particularly good job with is writing from various lifestages-from young, to middle-age with children, to older and retired but with a young wife and teenage son. The stories also touch on a variety of issues from infidelity and the rending of a marriage, parenting, growing old, friendship, and interacting with people of other cultures. Overall, this is a very impressive collection.
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