Hotel Khadijah

Powerful little story with a killer end line. Believable, too, very.
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A remarkable piece. No waste. Good writing.

Gosh. Thank you Susan and Sam.

"I was twice her age so, for the sake of propriety, we said I was Daddy's wife. I would sit in the corridor, in a burqua, in a chair outside the room while they fucked."

Wonderful piece Sally.

Thank you, Roberto.

Bravo. If a test for a story this short is pleasurable rereadings (to see inside), then this one passes. *

Thank you,Ann. Very much appreciated.

What makes this so effective is that each of its four sentences is periodic. Thus the four words that end each of its lines demarcate the inhabited narrative. Any kind of reorganization saps their strength. Powerfully sparse.
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Wow, Bill. Thanks for the close attention. Very much appreciated. In the spirit of Ferdinand and Miranda, I will mention that Khadijah was Mohammed's first and much older wife. Her wealth, connections, prestige, guidance, and (sigh) love made his subsequent career possible. So, in a sense, anything that happens in the world of Islam happens in 'the house of Khadijah.' But I didn't really want to pick on Islamists exclusively. Rahab was the Old Testament 'prostitute' who snuck Joshua into Jericho, hid, fed, (and presumably fucked) him.

Read it three times and enjoyed each reading a bit more than the last although the first was excellent. Well done piece--so many details to set one's imagination wandering in so truncated a form is pretty masterful. Your explanation of the allusions makes it even more interesting.*

Thanks, JP. My hope was that a touch of the exotic would serve to send it back to the familiar and recognizable without losing the sense of 'wtf?'The only thing nicer than hearing that someone whose work you admire has read your work is hearing that she read it more than once (you too, Ann!)

Sally, the brevity is what makes this so powerful, each word adds so much weight. It is so "realistic" and fantastic. Amazing work!

Fave.

Aw shucks, Robert. Thank you so much.

How intense is this? Holy shit! Your commentary only makes it more poignant. *

Thank you so much, Michael. Very much appreciated.

One of the most potent micros I have read in a long time. And so effed up. You tell it like it is. Thank you, and peace*

Thank you, Linda. Much appreciated.

Not blinking. This left me eyes-wide-open.

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Lots of complexity in this.

Thank you Matthew and Christopher.

Great piece—I also enjoyed the author's note. So condensed, takes my breath away but when I'll exhale again I might come back and say what I thought when I felt this flash.

Thanks for this, Marcus and please do come back. We will always keep a light on for you at the Hotel Khadijah!

Wonderful."for the sake of propriety" oh yeah*

Thanks, Jane. Yeah, the crux of the matter.

Well, my jaw dropped and I think I whooped as well. So you Sally, but also so different from a lot of your writing too. I loved this, so pithy and pointed and the kernel of so many things. Brava!

Wow, thanks Matt. Very much appreciated.

Wow! Perfect micro, Sally. One emotional punch after another until the knock out. *