Gibson has found himself drawn to capturing the hearts of the people that work and are patients in the hospital he is in. He finds ways to entertain, whether it be to make them laugh or to provide some form of introspection. This has become his life as he ends his day trapped in bed. When a young man moves into the bed next to him, Gibson seeks to reach him. I liked that this extremely short story provides a heartfelt and resonant picture of the connection that people make with others in the most small ways and how these small actions can move people. There are vast differences where both characters are in life, however it is in the differences that you find the similarities as well. I found this to be a good story and such a great reminder of the gift we offer to others. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

Great read. The author wrote a story that was interesting and moved at a pace that kept me engaged. The characters were easy to invest in.

The Man in the Next Bed is a fascinating short story and the first 'foray into fiction' for a brilliant author. Gibson is used to being in the hospital and he has found ways to keep his mind away from what he's lost. His new neighbour, however, the eponymous man in the next bed, is not quite as good at it. Divided by only a thin curtain, Gibson witnesses the young man's struggles and worries. Despite only being around 20 pages long, Shipler packs a lot into his story. His characters seems drawn from life and GIbson's need for human contact feels achingly real. I definitely can't wait to read more fiction by Shipler.

Extremely touching short story about a hospitalized man trying to connect with a newly admitted patient in the bed next to him. Separated by the privacy curtain, he tries to make sense of the noises and conversation he hears combined with watching the comings and goings on the ‘stage’ of space at the foot of the bed—hoping for a chat and a touch of humanity in the glumness of the hospital.

I found this story to be a beautiful take on the idea that we never know quite what’s going on with the strangers around us. Relatable and absolutely worth the short read!

I was really touched by this story. I felt that it gave a beautiful commentary on our everyday interactions, the fact that you dont know what's going on with the person next to you - be it in a hospital bed, in a restaurant, on the bus or even at your own office or home. There's so much that we're not privy to, usually being behind a proverbial curtain (or in this case literal). Also, reaching a bit into spoiler territory (warning: do not read further if you havent read the story), but the ending left me wondering if Tommy was in some way a vision of Gibson past. Maybe an examination of his young adulthood, his relationship with a superficial mother, a distant father and a supportive spouse. After all, Gibson had no one in his life, so maybe this was his reckoning with the ghosts of his past, and as they all exited the picture, so did Gibson.

A remarkably powerful short story about a man in hospital suffering from a brain tumour who tries to put a cheerful face on his plight, and whose existence is enlivened by the arrival of another patient on the ward. The author manages to pack an awful lot into just a few pages, and the story achieves what so many short stories never quite manage to do – to create a memorable world and memorable characters that live on after the story ends. I tend to forget most of the short stories I read – but I don’t think I’ll be forgetting this one.

Grab this story!

What a little gem! Two guys in a hospital, separated by a curtain. I just love this setup. It’s better than two strangers having a phone call—here, the people get glimpses of visitors, get to hear conversations with family. Eavesdropping at its finest! And as readers, we get to eavesdrop not only on all the conversations, but on the thoughts in the main character’s head.

I can’t stop raving about this story! In the few 20 pages or so, we get a vivid picture of the two characters’ states of mind. The author reeled me into their lives immediately; my curiosity was piqued. I rooted for them and felt for them. Any story this short that can stir up that much emotion is way worth the price of admission. The tone is scrumptious, and the language flawless. The ending is powerful. (So many short stories let the story meander off into nothing-land; not the case here.)

Here are some great lines I pulled. I ended up highlighting many sentences; had to force myself to just pick a few (trying not to make this review longer than the story!):

“’What are ya in for?’ Gibson asked, the way prisoners ask new inmates. No answer from beyond the curtain.”

“…he had written a little sign on a piece of paper and had a nurse tape it to the door: “If I’m asleep, please wake me up. I’d like to talk.”

“Daylight frome the window meandered through the paisley curtain, as if searching for his deteriorating body.”

“He could not escape from the imprisonment of his silence.”

My only complaint: this story is too short. I wanted at least a few more days with these guys in their hospital beds.

The author has published only non-fiction books; this is his first fiction. Even though I usually stick with fiction (real life is too depressing), I’m curious to check his books out. I would love it if the author kept the stories coming.

Right now the story costs only $.99 on Kindle. It would be $.99 well spent, I guarantee you.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

The Man in the Next Bed
by David K. Shipler
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Vintage
General Fiction (Adult)
David K. Shipler won the Pulitzer and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for nonfiction. This, however, a foray into fiction, claimed to be his first, is an impressive assault. It probably falls somewhere between a short story and novelette.



Gibson has been diagnosed with cancer. He jokes with the nurses and doctors, some of whom laugh, others either don't get it or ignore it. He gets a roommate added to the room. The roomie has been bleeding from the anus and the doctors and nurses are concerned, but he doesn't do needles, he says. Meanwhile the young man who feels obligated to tell his mother, and instantly regrets it.



This is the story of how two men process illness differently. It's a good story with an ending that's perhaps more ambiguous than the author intended. Nonetheless, it's a moving work. There's also an attention to detail, to reality that makes the story feel this could be us in the hospital, which possibly explains Shipler's awards.



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This is not a story that lends itself to spoiling since it is the whole experience. I do want to talk about the ending in the vaguest sense. Still maybe read the story first before reading further critique/analysis.



For those who have read the story, here's a top-secret link that only cool people like yourself has access to.



We readers are meant to think that both patients have taken similar news differently--perhaps one being more dire--or not. We can't know. However, due to the point-of-view, things cannot have turned out so dire so quickly. In part because it doesn't feel like the patient is that near death due to behavior--if that's how we're to read the ending. It seems like we need a little more: a new angle, a different or more visible narrator, and/or more development in the past, present or future. It feels like it's almost there but not quite. Still, Shipler knows how to move his characters through emotional events and how to get us talking about his story.

I am not usually a big fan of short stories - it takes an amazing writer to create a complete picture in a small space. Fortunately, David K Shipler is such a writer. Admittedly, I knew him only from his non-fiction writing but he showed a level of compassion that I thought (hoped) would translate to fiction and it definitely did. In The Man in the Next Bed, he tells the story of Gibson, an engineer, in hospital with cancer. Despite his condition, Gibson maintains a great sense of humour as well as curiousity about the people around him. When a young man is put in the next bed with unexplained bleeding, Gibson is determined to communicate with him even though a curtain blocks his view. Although they never get a glimpse of each other, they develop a brief but deep connection as he listens to the man's struggles and his pain.

This story is only 20 pages long and, on the surface, it seems a fairly simple tale of the human condition. Yet, despite the brevity, the story is full of humour, empathy, and insight The characters are fully formed and sympathetic making it easy for the reader to care about the outcome. It made me think long after I had finished and what more can you ask from a 'simple' short story.

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Knoph Doubleday Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review</i>

It’s a nice reflection on appreciating life but may be tricky for readers sensitive to topics like cancer, death or sexual abuse (colonoscopy hallucination?).

I received this ARC free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley!

The blurb caught my attention, and I'm so glad I took the time to read this book! It's a short story, but it definitely leaves you thinking long after you finish reading it.

Absolutely loved it! So much character and depth packed in such a short story. The Man in the Next Bed is a very quick read but it makes you think much longer after it's finished. Would recommend this to anyone who has a few moments to spare.

A very readable short story concerning a man in a cancer unit making a loose connection with the new inmate that is the title character of the piece, whom he can hear through the hospitable curtains but not see. It would have been pretty good but for one theme late on that really spoilt things, and had no place in such a piece.

This was a fun book! Short but sassy. Liked how it came together at the end.

Thanks to author,publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free,it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

The Man in the Next Bed
Book Review | 📚📚📚📚📚 5/5
David K. Shipler (author) | Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group (Vintage Short)

From Pulitzer Prize winning author, David K. Shipler, comes his first work of fiction, The Man in the Next Bed. From curiosity to connection, relatability to empathy, fear to courage, there is a lot packed into this miniature.

Why I was interested in this book:
I was intrigued by the layered mysterious nature of this story. What or who lays on the other side of the thinly veiled curtain.

My assessment:
The Man in the Next Bed, by David K. Shipler, is a story about a story within a story. And all three stories are very much about the human condition. The first story is about Gibson, an engineer who loves to figure things out. The second story is about the man in the next bed and Gibson trying to figure out that person’s story. The third story is the story of the reader, being led on this journey, trying to put all of the pieces together and understand the mysteries that are being shared. With nothing to do, Gibson has all the time he needs to figure this puzzle out. Or does he? There is something invigorating about a sensational short story. Sometimes a second reading, more reflection and introspection can turn a “good face-value story” worth 3 stars into a clever and thoughtful 5-star gem that lingers heavily afterward.

Stories of the human condition:
With humor and insight, author, David K. Shipler addresses empathy, compassion and human nature to address the stories of Gibson and the man in the next bed. Only 24 pages long, this short really made me think. I had not heard of Shipler before, but based on the depth he gave these characters, this short bite could be an allegory for the greater world and wondering about the stories of all of the men, women and children in the next beds. I’m now curious to read his non-fiction and any further works of fiction that he writes. Knowing the subject matter of his non-fiction, it is evident that Shipler writes intently and intensely about the human condition. Kudos.

While researching Shipler for this review, I also discovered his blog, The Shipler Report (http://shiplerreport.blogspot.com/), and share it here, too. It looks like it is filled with topical political and social journalism and perspectives that continue to make the reader think in a much greater and global context.

Full disclosure: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I am not sure if I would have discovered Shipler, or The Man in the Next Bed , without it being made available on NetGalley. For that, and the thought-provoking time it provided me while reading it and afterward, I am appreciative.

Read more of my reviews at Tuggle Grass Reviews (https://tugglegrassblues.wordpress.com/).

TAGS:
#TheManInTheNextBed #review-book #book review #NetGalley #VintageShorts #DavidKShipler #shortstory #compassion #TuggleGrassBlues #Tuggle Grass Reviews #TuggleGrassReviews

I don’t often read stand alone short stories, preferring collections where the stories are connected in some way by characters or theme or place. When I read my friend Esil’s review of this, I kept thinking of how she said it packs a punch and I was intrigued enough to read it. Hospital rooms are close quarters and even though separated by a curtain, it’s impossible not to learn at least a little bit about the medical condition or something about the life of the person on the other side and impossible to know how much that stranger might impact you. I was sad when I finished this story, and not entirely sure I knew what exactly happened in the end, but I can say is that it’s thought provoking and as Esil said, it packs a punch. That’s a lot for a very short story to do.

I received a copy of this story from Alfred Knopf through NetGalley.

This is a very short story but it packs a punch. Two men side by side in hospital beds separated by a curtain. Gibson is a retired engineer with a brain tumor, who tries to start up a conversation with Tommy, who is a young man just admitted with unexplained bleeding. Clever and moving. I’m not familiar with David Shipler, but I will look for his other writings. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy.

Super quirky, super short story about a day in the hospital, that really had me wishing this had been a collection! Gibson is in hospital with a tumor, wondering about the guy in the next bed, and contemplating events of his own life. From light and chuckle-inducing, to downright shocking; I'll look for more Shipler in future.

This is a short story about a man who's in the hospital and a new patient is brought in to share his room for a brief period. It's a mixture of the conversation the two have across the curtain and all the things we overhear about others' private moments during this type of experience. It's short but poignant. It captured those small, ephemeral moments of human connection caused by circumstance that then stay with you and shift your life/memory in subtle ways. Sad but touching little story.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A simple yet heartbreaking story, short and poignant that's righfully been desrcibed as a "miniature masterpiece".