Here's what Brit Marschalk of
Tangent Online has to say about "The Sympathy of Five."
In "The Sympathy of Five" by Joy Marchand, a Russian immigrant mourning for his younger brother decides to get a tattoo of the boy's face on his body. The artist he seeks out, a fellow immigrant, is haunted by his own tragedies—which he shares with the already bereaved protagonist.
The prose has a lyrical quality, and though this piece is not a poem, it is more a song than a story. Its strongest aspect, perhaps, is its vivid and heartbreaking characterization.
