Summary

The heading of this story notes that the following is a transcript of the end of a marriage from 1956. Following the header, the remainder of the story is entirely dialogue between the two divorcing parents, with no identification of which speaker is talking at a given time. In the dialogue, the parents agree to get divorced, with one parent immediately claiming the "doublewide," and the other parent claiming "the truck" (211). Only then do the parents debate who will retain custody of their son -- "the boy" (211) -- and decide to flip a coin for it.

Analysis

The heading describes that the parents squabbling here are the parents of "Mr. Walter D. ("Walt") DeLasandro Jr." (211). Walter D. DeLasandro Jr. previously appeared in another story in this collection: in "The Depressed Person," as the professional arbiter who...