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  • The Paris Review

    Is There Anything Else I Can Help You with Today?

    by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Jan 28, 2019 6 minutes

    A telephone call between the author and a fictionalized Delta representative, in which their conversation ranges from the bureaucratic inanities of air travel to the ravages of global capitalism.

    Stock photo

    ALTED

    Thank you for calling Delta SkyMiles. My name is Alted. Do I have the pleasure of speaking to Ms. Adichie?

    ADICHIE

    Yes. How are you?

    ALTED

    I’m very good, thanks. How can I help you today?

    ADICHIE

    I’m calling about my parents’ ticket. They’re flying tomorrow from New York to Lagos. I bought their return ticket with my credit card. They were supposed to fly home last month but my father needed to undergo a medical procedure and so I changed their return date, and I paid a change fee. I know Delta requires you to come to a Delta desk with your credit card for all ticket purchases and changes. And I’m calling because I am sick, I have a terrible cold.

    ALTED

    Yes ma’am, I can hear it in your voice.

    ADICHIE

    [] Yes. So I’m wondering if, since I have already

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