Issue 15. August 2011 : JENNIFER HAIGH Bent

Jennifer Haigh's short story "Bent" takes place in Cape Cod's Provincetown (02657), where Kip's family has vacationed every summer he can remember, renting the same house by the shore. He's always brought along his neighborhood friend Fanelli, but this year, he's added his college buddy Jean-Luc, a Frenchman whose exoticism and way with girls Kip envies. "Bent" portrays the subtle dance of allegiance and rivalry between these young men, as it studies Kip's first true experience of regret.