Skip to main content

What I'm Reading

 I think Katherine Heiny is a genius, but also, she is a genius who writes funny and suspenseful stories about couples with young children who live on the East Coast of the United States. So, she is like my dream writer.


This is how it began. At least, this is how it began for Lindy. Like so many other nights, with Lindy getting home from the station as Rob was leaving for acting class. They kissed quickly and then Lindy began unbuttoning her coat while Rob zipped his up. A couple dressing and undressing in reverse.

"The girls are in bed--waiting for stories," Rob said, his sentences jerky as he wound a red scarf around his neck. "Maud skipped her nap--lunches are packed for tomorrow--chili for dinner."

Lindy wondered if the scarf was new. It looked expensive. Sometimes Rob went through periods of buying himself luxuries--a cashmere scarf, a Muji turtleneck, a new watch strap--which they couldn't afford. But then it would be followed by a period of frugality, so maybe it worked out.

"Sorry I ran late," Lindy said. "This Sri Lanka story is a nightmare."

"No problem." Rob smiled. He was always happy when he went to class. "Fame can wait fifteen minutes. I'll be back late." 

Then he was gone, the zipper jingling, and Lindy shut the door quietly behind him....


On the surface, this is just an exchange of information. One child skipped a nap; storytime hasn't occurred yet. There's stress at work. Rob spits out the facts in a hurry, because he is just so eager to be done with his parenting shift. Form matches content: Rushed dad, choppy sentences.

The extraordinary feature is the attention to clothing. Lindy notices that there is "dressing and undressing, but in reverse." It's like someone inept is directing a porn film. Attention to clothing becomes attention to one particular scarf: It could be a gift from a woman, but this thought is intolerable. So it could be another case of Rob wasting money (which is another intolerable thought). Instead of bringing up her anger about the money situation, Lindy just feels guilty about her judgmental thoughts. So she finds a reason to apologize; it's easier to apologize for something than to begin a confrontation.

Heiny generally has many plates spinning at once, and she makes the work look easy. I'm excited every time she releases a new book.

P.S. I'm away next week! We're headed to Mexico. I'm not sure when I'll start writing again. It shouldn't be long.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Host a Baby

-You have assumed responsibility for a mewling, puking ball of life, a yellow-lab pup. He will spit his half-digested kibble all over your shoes, all over your hard-cover edition of Jennifer Haigh's novel  Faith . He will eat your tables, your chairs, your "I {Heart] Montessori" magnet, placed too low on the fridge. When you try to watch Bette Davis in  Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte , on your TV, your dog will bark through the murder-prologue, for no apparent reason. He will whimper through Lena Dunham's  Girls , such that you have to rewind several times to catch every nuance of Andrew Rannells's ad-libbing--and, still, you'll have a nagging suspicion you've missed something. Your dog will poop on the kitchen floor, in the hallway, between the tiny bars of his crate. He'll announce his wakefulness at 5 AM, 2 AM, or while you and another human are mid-coitus. All this, and you get outside, and it's: "Don't let him pee on my tulips!" When...
3 comments
Read more

The Death of Bergoglio

  It's frustrating for me to hear Bergoglio described as "the less awful pope"--because awful is still awful. I think I get fixated on ideas of purity, which can be juvenile, but putting that aside, here are some things that Bergoglio could have done and did not. (I'm quoting from a survivor of sexual abuse at the hands of the Church.) He could levy the harshest penalty, excommunication, against a dozen or more of the most egregious abuse enabling church officials. (He's done this to no enablers, or predators for that matter.) He could insist that every diocese and religious order turn over every record they have about suspected and known abusers to law enforcement. Francis could order every prelate on the planet to post on his diocesan website the names of every proven, admitted and credibly accused child molesting cleric. (Imagine how much safer children would be if police, prosecutors, parents and the public knew the identities of these potentially dangerous me...
1 comment
Read more

Raymond Carver: "What's in Alaska?"

Outside, Mary held Jack's arm and walked with her head down. They moved slowly on the sidewalk. He listened to the scuffing sounds her shoes made. He heard the sharp and separate sound of a dog barking and above that a murmuring of very distant traffic.  She raised her head. "When we get home, Jack, I want to be fucked, talked to, diverted. Divert me, Jack. I need to be diverted tonight." She tightened her hold on his arm. He could feel the dampness in that shoe. He unlocked the door and flipped the light. "Come to bed," she said. "I'm coming," he said. He went to the kitchen and drank two glasses of water. He turned off the living-room light and felt his way along the wall into the bedroom. "Jack!" she yelled. "Jack!" "Jesus Christ, it's me!" he said. "I'm trying to get the light on." He found the lamp, and she sat up in bed. Her eyes were bright. He pulled the stem on the alarm and b...
1 comment
Read more