Abuelita says people who stare at the sky all the time are obsessed with God. I don’t know what I’m obsessed with, but I do know I want out.
POEM OF THE WEEK
How to Read a Poem
By Madeline Miele
Slant light, girdle of dark clouds not nearing the center. Everything becomes. The thing about the body—it ends. Takes no time at all.
FALL STORY CONTEST
We’re looking for short stories, essays, memoirs, photo essays, graphic stories, and excerpts from long fiction and nonfiction.
Please see the Guidelines.
FROM THE LIBRARY
Fame
By Arthur Miller
Meyer wondered again at all the airplanes, kitchen tables, dentists’ offices, and trains where people would be staring at his face on the cover.
NARRATIVE PRIZE WINNER
FICTION
NARRATIVE PRIZE WINNER
October Phone Call and Other Poems
By Madeleine Cravens
My loneliness is not less because I understand it more, or because I have condoned it. Mist and roads in all directions.
FICTION
Any Good Child
By Tryphena L. Yeboah
I’m convinced that Ma wants me to see, needs me to step into her world and learn its songs but never actually dance to its tune until it’s time.
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Rounds, a poem
By Rhoni Blankenhorn Introduced by Paisley Rekdal
I knew about the guns Dad kept beneath the bed. Brassy bullets fell against the floral comforter like little candies.
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Pa’ la Calle, a story
By Lily Philpott Introduced by Morgan Talty
I knew in the dream that I was a condor in the shape of a girl, and I drank in the thin mountain air until my human lungs ached with it.
NARRATIVE 10
NARRATIVE OUTLOUD
NARRATIVE 10
Narrative 10
By Matthew Zapruder
I actually remember writing in a green diary I had when I was thirteen: “When you get older, don’t forget how bad it feels when adults don’t listen to kids.”
NARRATIVE OUTLOUD
The Transit of Venus
By Shirley Hazzard
An exclusive excerpt of actor Juliet Stevenson reading Shirley Hazzard’s The Transit of Venus with an introduction from our own Carol Edgarian.
CARTOONS
CARTOONS
CARTOONS
Cartoon Art Volume 2024-09
By Various Artists
New laughs with an uncertain generation, an unexpected promotion, a revelation at the pearly gates, and more.
CARTOONS
Cartoon Art Volume 2024-08
By Various Artists
New laughs with a fishily amorous reflection, the persistence an old habit, an impressively singular bookshelf, and more.
POETRY
POETRY
POETRY
Anniversary of You
By Mark Kyungsoo Bias
I’ve taken in the highway and the see-through reflection of my own face. It’s funny watching the people pass through it.
POETRY
That
By Chris Dombrowski
That we have tea to drink. That late-winter sunlight streams through the living room windows. That the dog has a bed to sleep on or a couch if he prefers.
POETRY
POETRY
POETRY
Hunan Wishes
By Daniel Halpern
With the moon half in shadow we spin these inner moons of the earth on the sprigs of fire focused under the tempered carbon steel of the wok.
POETRY
The Free Tower
By Ted Kooser
Behind her I slowly climbed, passing through a life’s history of all her odors, those years now happening all over again as I climbed through them.
POETRY
POETRY
POETRY
Brothel
By Edward Salem
I walked to the olive grove and stood among the trees, trying to memorize my awe. I stood among them as if in a brothel and inhaled the wind.
POETRY
Still Life with a Seashell and Dr. Caligari
By Alex Tretbar
Say I were to say, “Say something.” Or, “It’s blue, the shape of the air unable to escape.”
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