The Most by Jessica Anthony

August 23, 2024 7:38 AM

It’s November 3, 1957. As Sputnik 2 launches into space, carrying Laika, the doomed Soviet dog, a couple begin their day. Virgil Beckett, an insurance salesman, isn’t particularly happy in his job but he fulfills the role. Kathleen Beckett, once a promising tennis champion with a key shot up her sleeve, is now a mother and homemaker. On this unseasonably warm Sunday, Kathleen decides not to join her family at church. Instead, she unearths her old, red bathing suit and descends into the deserted swimming pool of their apartment complex in Newark, Delaware. And then she won’t come out. A riveting, single-sitting read set over the course of eight hours, The Most masterfully breaches the shimmering surface of a seemingly idyllic mid-century marriage, immersing us in the unspoken truth beneath. [Amazon blurb]
posted by chavenet (1 comment total)

I read this in essentially one sitting, it's really a long short story, not even a novella. But really entrancing in its way.
posted by chavenet at 7:40 AM on August 23