One Million Project issue 1 | страница 12

“ Slice of Life”
Review

Slice of Life opens when the reader meets Enid

We follow the characters while they interact with oth-

Henshaw, an 87-year-old widow. She is looking

ers in the next scene. Each character’s life intertwines

forward to her regular visit from Ross Blair, a so-

with another new character in the story and through

cial worker. Ross stops by on Friday after work to

their interactions, we see how fear and disappoint-

see several elderly residents in the area, chatting

ment has created lasting effects on multiple genera-

with them and making sure they are doing well.

tions and the community as a whole. Violence, intol-

He doesn’t keep the fact that he is gay from his

erance, hypocrisy and bigotry touch each character’s

co-workers or the people he visits.

life in some way during the story.

Enid congratulates herself on her “new found

The book’s characters act out their roles in this small
community like actors on a stage. Is young John a
tough lothario?

liberal graciousness” in accepting a gay visitor.
Enid is a woman dissatisfied with life and very
critical of her family and their life choices. She
complains about being alone and then gets irritated when visitors come to see her. Her daughter, Noreen, brings her a fruit and cream pie on
each of her visits, but Enid focuses only on her
displeasure with the type of dessert and doesn’t
take the time to notice the physical abuse inflicted upon Noreen.

7
Copyright © 2016 by OMP Magazine Publishing