Gristle and Bone

Gristle and Bone

How I failed

banned books, custard, and Chicago

Karin Lynn Carlson's avatar
Karin Lynn Carlson
Oct 11, 2025
∙ Paid
Symbola Aurea Mensae Duodecim Nationum (1617).

I have a memory of my mother putting her face in her hands and wailing that she’d failed. She was referring to me.

I believe I was ten, twelve at the most. I stood in the kitchen. My maternal grandmother was standing beside me and my mom sat at the counter. If I remember this right (which I probably don’t) I…

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