Fiction | September 01, 1984
from Taking Leave
Janet Beeler Shaw
As much from compassion as from love, Will Brenner has married a desperately neurotic woman, Laura. After the suicide of Laura’s father, Will and Laura parented Laura’s much younger sister, Jo. In this excerpt Will plays squash with his medical partner, Jerry, and is forced to acknowledge both his anger at Laura for her self-destructive acts and his passionate and (for him) unthinkable love for the eighteen-year-old Jo.
Excerpt:
Jerry slammed shut the heavy door and adjusted the elastic that held his glasses. Will pulled his sweatband down to his eyebrows and swung his arms tentatively. His body ached, his head ached, and he hadn’t been able to eat any breakfast. After a dram of Jo, followed by nightmare of falling, he hadn’t gone back to sleep.
If you are a student, faculty member, or staff member at an institution whose library subscribes to Project Muse, you can read this piece and the full archives of the Missouri Review for free. Check this list to see if your library is a Project Muse subscriber.
Want to read more?
Subscribe TodaySEE THE ISSUE
SUGGESTED CONTENT
Fiction
Aug 19 2021
The Body Was There
The Body Was There Shakarean Hutchinson Six months later she was pregnant. The curves of her hips opened up; her breast grew heavy. The blue cotton dress, the dye fading… read more
Fiction
Aug 19 2021
The Burial
The Burial Samantha Xiao Cody In the days after Mr. Huang was arrested for killing his son, we began seeing the dog everywhere. The Huang house was swarmed with reporters… read more
Fiction
Aug 19 2021
Heart-Scalded
Heart-Scalded Daphne Kalotay for Jude Twilight’s hazy glow, the world covered in gray lint. Viv hailed a ride and set out toward the crumbling edge of town. Though it… read more