Sunday, January 10, 2010

Egan short story in New Yorker shines

Jennifer Egan has a captivating short story in the January 11 issue of The New Yorker. The story, Safari, is about a music producer, his two children and girlfriend who are on safari in Africa. Egan does a wonderful job of making us care about the girlfriend and children.

Near the story's end, when she begins to summarize what happens to these characters later in life, it gives you a kick in the stomach. Yet, like a bystander at an auto accident who looks on in morbid fascination, you read on; wishing, hoping, that Egan plans to turns this story into a novel. Safari has a sly humorous ending. All in all it is one of the more readable short stories published in The New Yorker in months.

Egan is the author of Look At Me, which was short-listed for the 2001 National Book Award.

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