Swimmer in the Secret Sea Author:William Kotzwinkle This novella tells the simple story of Johnny and Diane Laski, a sculptor and his wife, and their attempt to bring a new life into the world, set against the backdrop of a cold Maine winter, deep in the country. In the language of a poet, William Kotzwinkle tell the story of the couple's quiet night drive to the hospital, their long labor, and t... more »heir, ultimately, unsuccessful breech birth. Unafraid of his subject, Kotzwinkle destroys any sentimental illusions about the "beauty" of childbirth to the distance of birth from death; he remind us of how closely the two are intertwined, of the frightening power of the life force, and of the unpredictability and uncanniness of death. And yet, his small book is not without hope: "It's just us again," Johnny remarks to his wife as they are returning home from the hospital, yet in them the potential for beginning is still alive the beginning, which, as Plato wrote, "is like a god which as long as it dwells among men saves all things."« less