APS TOGETHER
Day 6
Pages 75-89 (through "She should have lashed her elbows and knees, like Aletus.")
July 28, 2020 by Elizabeth McCracken
And now we step back in time, & in Maytree’s own head hear of his love for Deary, to whom he’s bound, & his regret. Dillard’s subject is love: she knows how often human beings screw it up. —Elizabeth
Every writer has at least one part of the human anatomy they’re partial to. Dillard’s is ears. —Elizabeth
“Her ears were soft as Petie’s, flat to the head.”
The passage where Dillard leaps ahead to Lou’s old age & death is my favorite. I think of Dillard saying she took out everything that wasn’t necessary, & the fact of the ashes on the pilot’s bookshelf. Yes: necessary. —Elizabeth
Just putting this here: Jane Cairo is not sure she wants to get used to Henry James, who Maytree has “put her on.” —Elizabeth
“—You’ll get used to James, he told her. —Not sure I want to.”
Lou listing possible last things would be beautiful if we hadn’t just read about the last time she was seen, and her death; knowing her end, it’s both wrenching & full of light. —Elizabeth
