Take Half, Leave Half by Thomas McGuane, 2022
The magic trick:
Perfectly worded descriptions
Thomas McGuane is one heck of a writer. This is not an original opinion.
But I thought it would be fun – given the quality of his writing – to ignore story structure today and instead just focus on a couple of excellent passages in this 2022 gem.
In “Take Half, Leave Half” we get at least a half-dozen descriptions of relationships or histories that are just so good, you stop reading for a second to marvel.
A couple to note:
- Girls still liked Rufus. He was careless and good-looking, and, since he’d learned so few behavior rules at home, he communicated a feral signal that told them they had no idea what would happen—often quite a lot—once they went riding in his truck.
- “Susanna, married sixty years. If she left a room, I’d kill time until she was back.”
You don’t just marvel at this writing as you read the story. If you’re like me, these descriptions work their way into your head and stay there like a pleasant melody or perfectly worded joke.
And that’s quite a trick on McGuane’s part.
The selection:
Beneath the steer was a portrait of a woman, a handsome weathered face, and Mr. Blake reached his cane to it. “Susanna, married sixty years. If she left a room, I’d kill time until she was back. She was an educated woman and took me to Van Cliburn concerts in Fort Worth, the same woman who helped me hand-dig a well, shovel to shovel. I don’t know why I hang around.” Grant thought, That must mean she’s dead.
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