I will probably always think of Roxane Gay’s description of the kind of short story she doesn’t want to read: “white people in sad marriages.” This is one of those stories, even to the point of including a white character with an inheritance. Aside from being one of those stories, I found it enjoyable, but I did notice that this is the second short story this year set in Montana. Could the New York City-based editors be longing for wide open spaces?
A girl suffering from agoraphobia. Her neighbor, a boy with schizophrenia. It would be a nice setup for a Romeo and Juliet-style story, and the two do come together. But star-crossed love doesn’t bring them together. A dragon does.
This is the second One Teen Story issue with an author named after a particular flower. Is there Lily/Lilly bias going on at One Story, or was their a run on that name in the early 2000s?
I love that Roxanne Gay quote/comment. Classic! Yay for those One Teen Story cover art! Quite nice.