Literature & Medicine: Short History of a Prince

The discussion will center around Jane Hamilton's Short History of a Prince.

The story tells of Walter McCloud and his ambition to become a great ballet dancer. But as Walter struggles with the limits of his own talent and faces the knowledge that Mitch and Susan, his more gifted friends, have already surpassed him, Daniel, his older brother, awakens one morning with a strange lump on his neck that leads to fearful consequences — and to Walter's realization that a happy family, and a son's place in it, can tragically change overnight.

The year that follows will in fact transform the lives not only of the McClouds but also of Susan, who becomes deeply involved with the sick Daniel, and Mitch, the handsome and supremely talented dancer with whom Walter is desperately in love. Into this absorbing narrative Hamilton weaves a place of almost mythical healing, the family's summer home at Lake Margaret, Wisconsin, where for generations the clan has gathered on both happy and unhappy occasions.

This discussion session is limited to Midwest Palliative & Hospice Care Center employees.

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