“The Lady of the Lake” is from Bernard Malamud‘s classic short story collection, The Magic Barrel (1958). In a number of the author’s fictions, men are smitten with women they should not pursue or they should pursue them but make poor choices along the way. “Lady” is an example of the latter.

The comely Isabella asks Henry, vacationing in Italy, if he is Jewish. Growing to love the girl, Henry lies and says no since he fears Isabella might reject a Jewish lover. But this is not the case. A piercing, carefully written item, the story shows us the complications surrounding identity—and has no resolution at the end. Worthy, this, and superior to such men-in-love Malamud works as Dubin’s Lives and even “In Retirement.”