title: The Catalog of Broken Things
author: A. Molotkov
description: Born in Russia, A. Molotkov moved to the US in 1990 and switched to writing in English in 1993. Published by <em>Kenyon Review, Iowa Review, Cincinnati Review, Tampa Review, Raleigh Review, Cider Press Review, Pif, 2 River</em>, and elsewhere, Molotkov is the winner of several short fiction and poetry contests and a 2015 Oregon Literary Fellowship. He co-edits <em>The Inflectionist Review</em>. Molotkov's translation of a Chekhov story was included by Knopf in their Everyman Series. He plays the Armenian duduk and is better at tennis than most other Portland writers. Please visit him at AMolotkov.com
zlib_text: # ALSO BY  
  FABIO BARTOLOMEI
  
  
  _[Alfa Romeo 1300 and Other
  Miracles](https://www.europaeditions.co.uk/book/9781609450830/alfa-
  romeo-1300-and-other-miracles)_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # **WE ARE FAMILY**
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  For Monica, who invented all the games I know
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Children know something that most people have forgotten.  
  —KEITH HARING
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # PART ONE
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ## 1.
  
  
  This year here is 1971, and it’s called that because everything in the world
  has a name, except for the years, which have numbers instead. In the year
  called 1971 a whole bunch of things are breaking. A piece of Pakistan called
  Bangladesh broke off, a friend of Papà called Jim Morrison got broken, and
  also I hear that a valve broke on the spaceship Soyuz 11. Mamma always says
  that when one thing breaks, then other things break in a chain reaction,
  that’s what she said just last week when the blender, the washing machine, and
  the record player broke. So now that the flames are breaking this plastic
  wastebasket, I blame the washing