This is the writer's voice, new fiction from The New Yorker.

I'm Deputy Treaseman, fiction editor at The New Yorker.

On this episode of The writer's voice, we'll hear Claire Keegan read her story so late in the day,

from the February 28th, 2022 issue of the magazine.

Keegan is the author of four books, including the novella Foster,

which appeared in a bridged form in The New Yorker,

and most recently, the novel Small Things Like These,

which was published last year.

She's a winner of the William Trevor Prize

and the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature, among others.

Now here's Claire Keegan.

So late in the day.

On Friday, July 29th, Dublin got the weather that had been forecast.

All morning, a brazen sunshine down on Marion Square,

reaching on to Karl's desk, where he was stationed by the open window.

A taste of cut grass blue in, and every now and then a warm breeze played

with the ivy on the ledge.

When a shadow crossed, he looked out, a gulp of swallows,

skirmishing high up in camaraderie.

Down on the lawn some people were out sunbathing,

and there were children and beds plump with flowers.

So much of life carrying smoothly on,

...