You Should Have Left

A short story sold as a widely spaced 111-page book by Daniel Kehlmann. A writer, his wife and daughter move into an Alpine rental. The writer is having trouble delivering on a deadline and keeping his wife happy. He pops into town for supplies and the locals do the “oh, you’re in that house” routine. A kindly old lady gives him the creepy “Get Out” advice, but to no avail. Next comes problems with lighting, angles and spatial relationships. Now there’s no cell phone reception. Now the cell phones gone missing. The wife’s cheating? Who cares? They try to leave but can’t. The wife and kid may be able to. Wait a minute, is this a haunted house, another dimension, or is the writer losing his mind? Again, who cares? Skip this one.