"Anita Brookner works a spell on the reader; being under it is both an education and a delight." — Washington Post Book World"Brookner [is] a writer of great skill and precision. Passages of brilliant writing abound, hard-won insights that startle us with Brookner’s clarity and succinct intelligence." — Michael Dorris, Los Angeles Times Book Review
"Compelling…Brookner’s vision of human behavior is scrupulously honest, without ever being cruel… a gem of revelation."
— Hilma Wolitzer, Chicago Tribune
"Accomplished…compassionate, meditative and intelligent. Empathy informs all of Anita Brookner’s novels, [and] Brief Lives is yet another instance of her large and knowing heart."
— The New York Times Book Review
