On "The Relapse" by Leslie Jamison (7750 words) ***

This story reminds me a bit of Glatt's novel A Girl Becomes a Comma like That. I suppose it's the abortion and the rather careless life that the main character leads that ties the two works together for me in my head. Here, however, the focus is almost completely on the main character's drinking and on the pregnancy that that leads to, which should be rather obvious given the title. What I like about this piece is how Jamison starts it, with something shocking that makes us want to learn more--like, why would anyone do this to themselves or to someone they know? But that shock isn't the only one that will come. This piece is full of great first lines for a story--because it's got some really interesting family dynamics going on. And like most stories we think of as good, this piece suggests some kind of transformation is under way. Read the story here at L Magazine.