These are both short story collections, and although they share nothing in style, they share a lot in theme, and in quality - both are brilliant. They are both, in a way, state-of-the-nation collections, regarding contemporary America with a very acute eye. They also both use the family in various forms to explore modern domestic and suburban life in America. In tone, however, they differ significantly. Moore's characters are often slightly adrift, slightly undecided, at a turning point in their life which they can't quite grasp the significance of; the reader realises that a lot more will happen off the page than on it. Banks's characters are equally lost, but usually the events are beyond their control. There is darkness, violence and tragedy here; terrible things happen to people in these stories. They will not cheer you up. You will need a stiff drink. His writing reminded me of Richard Ford, it is plain and spare, but the outcomes are darker than Ford's, much darker than Moore's. I think it's fair to say that Bark is more enjoyable than A Permanent Member of the Family, although, it too, is sad, but I'd hesitate to say that one is better than the other.