Angels, however crude, fear a few places, according to E. M. Foster, but the same cannot be said of poets. Boundlessly curious, no subject is off limits for bards like Suzanne Cleary to tread. New Yorker Cleary earned her Pushcart Prize... Read More

All anthologists should be so lucky: “Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to gather the best erotic work by top female poets.” Off Enid Shomer went, wherever the trail led—to poems by Denise Levertov, Sharon Olds,... Read More

Luisa Muradyan comes to America from Ukraine as a child. She grows up to study poetry at the doctorate level; meanwhile, her poems are published in Paris-American, Blackbird, Los Angeles Review, and Poetry International, among other... Read More

In the Iraq edition of wartime for American soldiers, fear of being blown to pieces by hidden explosives frequently loses out to the wiliest enemy of all—boredom. This is the wartime footing—six years in an M1A1 Abrams tank—that... Read More

With carefully planned havoc, Rae Armantrout takes a page from the jesters of old—mocking the universe’s solidity without fear of retribution. Her talent will protect her. Recently longlisted for the National Book Award, she is the... Read More

Ah, footnotes. Nothing endearing or sexy about them—unless you’re such a geek of letters, language, history, and research that you’ve developed a fetish for their unique supporting role. But the humble footnote also knows how to... Read More

Heavy monsoon rains keep a young girl stuck indoors when she would much rather be out playing soccer. Though the weather is dismal, Mina is a ray of sunshine in a bright shalwar kameez, anklets tinkling and henna decorating her hands as... Read More

Funny Miss Pinkeltink hauls her oversized bag around town, handing out treasures to folks she meets before settling down to sleep outside in the park. With her patchwork dress, messy gray bun, and reading glasses, Miss Pinkeltink... Read More