A review by cristi_cirdei
A River in Egypt by David Means

5.0

"Woe to the man whose child is on the verge of a diagnosis"

The man in question is Cavanaugh. A father, standing with his son in a hospital room -- the sweat chamber as the nurse called it. As little Gunner is tested for cystic fibrosis, his father tries to distract him, minute by minute, until he breaks into "a true breaker on the scream scale" and Cavanaugh sees himself forced to cup his hand over the boy's mouth.

This is the scene unfolding as the nurse enters the room, leading to a beautifully penned act of contemplation and introspection by a man "suspended between two sides of life".

The few pages of this short story were enough to convince me of its value. I want more of what this story offered.