Robert Klose

Robert Klose is a regular contributor of essays to The Christian Science Monitor. His work has also appeared in Newsweek, The Boston Globe, and various literary magazines. His books include “Adopting Alyosha — A Single Man Finds a Son in Russia,” “Small Worlds — Adopted Sons, Pet Piranhas and Other Mortal Concerns,” “The Three-Legged Woman & Other Excursions in Teaching,” “Legend of the River Pumpkins,”“Adopting Anton — A Single Man Seeks a Son in Ukraine,”which was a finalist in the Maine Literary Awards, and the novels, “Long Live Grover Cleveland,” which won a Ben Franklin Literary Award and a USA BookNews Award, and “Life on Mars,” which was a Finalist for a 2019 Best Book Award, International Book Award, and American Fiction Award. His latest novel, “Trigger Warning,” was a finalist for an American Fiction Award and a Best Book Award.

The Return

After working in civil aviation engineering for so long, Sam Kenney wondered how he would adapt to having his feet on the ground and no particular place to go. Maybe that’s when it started, the drifting apart, the discovery that he and Roxie actually had very little to talk about because there was suddenly so much space to be filled due to his continual presence. Except when it came to their son, grown now and living far afield.

The Conspiracy

I was not alone. Every resident I knew had toyed with giving up. Even though I was several years older than the others it was still, sometimes, simply too much: the workload, the hostile or uncooperative patients, the long hours, the smug attending physician who, even at this juncture of our education, conveyed the impression that if we so much as considered quitting, maybe we should.