Jan 2, 2010

A Small, Good Thing | A Small, Good Thing

At a glance:

Author: Raymond Carver
First Published: 1983
Type of Plot: Realism
Time of Work: The late twentieth century
Setting: A town in the United States
Principal Characters: Howard Weiss,, Ann, Scotty, A baker,
Genres: Realism, Short fiction
Subjects: Parents and children, Accidents, Death or dying, Hospitals, Sympathy

The Story

Ann Weiss is not pleased with the baker from whom she orders her son Scotty's eighth birthday cake. Though the baker is of an age to have children, and even grandchildren, he takes no interest in her son's birthday and seems to have no time for small talk. The transaction is direct and impersonal, and Ann leaves the bakery vaguely disgruntled by the man's coldness.

Two days later, on his birthday, Scotty and a friend are walking to school when Scotty is hit by a car and knocked to the pavement. The driver of the car stops, but drives on when Scotty gets up,...

[The entire page is 1289 words long]

A Small, Good Thing | A Small, Good Thing

At a glance:

The Story

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