The stories here possess all the qualities that have built Peter Stamm’s reputation as one of the very finest European writers alive today – the undemonstrative prose, the deceptive simplicity of the storylines, and the calm, clear understanding of psychology and emotions. In ‘Expectations’, we meet a woman who becomes involved with her younger upstairs neighbour; in ‘The Result’, a man waiting for the outcome of medical tests; and in ‘Sweet Dreams’, a young couple learning to navigate the thrills and complications of cohabitation. A master of the short story, Stamm does not spare the reader’s feelings — and nor does he waste a word.