即將年滿55歲的海佩爾是美國知名的短篇小說作傢，對她感到陌生的中國讀者，可以想一下雷濛·卡佛，兩人風格相近，被稱為短篇作傢中的“極簡主義者”。

自1985年齣版第一部短篇小說集《活著的理由》》（Reasons to Live）以來，漢普爾隻齣瞭三個薄薄的集子，其中包括她最廣為人知的一篇《在艾爾·喬爾森入葬的墓地裏》。最近的作品是2005年的《婚姻與狗》》（The Dog of the Marriage），《艾米·漢普爾小說集》收入瞭她所有的小說作品。漢普爾是一位慢工齣細活的故事敘述者，二十多年來，她隻寫齣瞭15000個句子，但字字珠璣，肌理細密，誠為寫作者和評論傢眼中的寵兒。

人類無可鏇避的抉擇、因為渴望和憂慮而産生的終極體驗、在命運麵前的束手無策，都是作者所要錶達的主題，作者以自己充滿激情、睿智和犀利的眼光，關注著美國生活中的婚姻、不幸的遭遇和心靈的啓示。

The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel gathers together the complete work of a writer whose voice is as singular and astonishing as any in American fiction. Hempel, fiercely admired by writers and reviewers, has a sterling reputation that is based on four very short collections of stories, roughly fifteen thousand stunning sentences, written over a period of nearly three decades. These are stories about people who make choices that seem inevitable, whose longings and misgivings evoke eternal human experience. With compassion, wit, and the acutest eye, Hempel observes the marriages, minor disasters, and moments of revelation in an uneasy America.

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When Reasons to Live, Hempel's first collection, was published in 1985, readers encountered a pitch-perfect voice in fiction and an unsettling assessment of the culture. That collection includes "San Francisco," which Alan Cheuse in The Chicago Tribune called "arguably the finest short story composed by any living writer." In At the Gates of the Animal Kingdom, her second collection, frequently compared to the work of Raymond Carver, Hempel refined and developed her unique grace and style and her unerring instinct for the moment that defines a character. Also included here, in their entirety, are the collections Tumble Home and The Dog of the Marriage. As Rick Moody says of the title novella in Tumble Home, "the leap in mastery, in seriousness, and sheer literary purpose was inspiring to behold.... And yet," he continues, "The Dog of the Marriage, the fourth collection, is even better than the other three...a triumph, in fact."

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The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel is the perfect opportunity for readers of contemporary American fiction to catch up to one of its masters. Moody's passionate and illuminating introduction celebrates both the appeal and the importance of Hempel's work.