One of the feature stories I looked at was “Never let go” by Kelley Benham in the Tampa Bay Times, St. Petersburg, Fla. Benham was a finalist for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize. The story was written in three pieces, “Lost and found,” “The zero zone” and “Baby’s breath.” It tells the story of Kelly, Tom and their daughter Juniper, who was born premature at 23 weeks and six days. She was in the hospital for 196 days and underwent a myriad of problems.
The tone of the story was quite impactful. It is rather even and straightforward, letting the facts speak for themselves. Benham did extensive research, and it shows. Every little detail is used for a reason. At the same time, however, it is highly personal. The story is written in the first person and lets the reader in on some of her lowest and most terrifying moments. She juxtaposes her own experiences with those of the people around her, such as doctors, nurses and other parents.
The story is very relatable, especially since Benham is very honest in asking the tough questions: Does in vitro fertilization mess with nature? Was it right to try so hard to get their daughter to survive? Should they have just let her go? Would the money have been better spent saving lives in Africa? What about people that do not have health care? When does life begin? Would she have disabilities? — What about quality of life? What role does God play in all this? Is there such a thing as miracles? She does not offer definitive answers to these questions, only insight from her experience. This allows the reader to enter into a very personal account of these tough ethical issues without an agenda hidden within the pages.
Benham used a number of tactics to make her story more compelling. She carries the story well by using photos to draw the reader along. The captions continue to tell the story, rather than just a basic description. At the top of the story is an image of Juniper’s footprints. They are tiny, actual size. At the end of the second part of the story, Benham includes a detailed visual of a premature baby, detailing how the child is kept alive. The baby in the visual is the size of Juniper at birth.
Benham relied heavily on descriptions of what happened, and she only used quotes from people when they would make an impact.
She also compared the bizarre circumstances they endured with relatable objects to help the reader grasp what was happening. For example, Juniper’s birth weight was 570 grams. Benham followed that saying, “I’ve eaten burritos at Chipotle that were bigger than that.” Later on, when Juniper began to breathe on her own, Benham said, "She sounded, at first, like a kitten.”
Exact times and dates were used rarely throughout the story. This certainly relates how time must have felt to them, blurred and unrecognizable. It also made a starker impact when they were used.
The story was long, nearly 20,000 words in total, but well worth the read.
Poignant Title
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