While the rest of us mumble, look away, and generally avoid matters of consequence, poets seek no such cover. Indeed, Heather Altfeld and others of her inquisitive ilk lead the interrogation of a mad world. Winner of the Pablo Neruda... Read More
Will Johnson’s novel "If or When I Call" is a contemporary tale of addiction, love, and family, set in rural Missouri. Parker and Melinda fall in love one Christmas; seven years later, their son, Ben, is born. After becoming a father,... Read More
Told through the voices of strong, albeit fractured, women across generations, "The Seed Keeper" is a novel about legacies, generational trauma, and the inescapable call of one’s roots. Rosalie’s mother died when she was four. She... Read More
Beth Kephart’s multifaceted memoir "Wife | Daughter | Self" is about the relationships that shaped who she is and how she sees herself. In these exploratory essays, Kephart writes about her marriage, her husband, her aging father, her... Read More
"To Calais, In Ordinary Time" is a brilliant novel set in medieval times. In it, a group of travelers races against the Black Death on a journey that leads each to an unexpected destination. In 1348, as the Black Death sweeps into... Read More
Interesting to note exactly who picks up the poetry pen. What life experience, what event, led to the decision? And did the poet even have a choice, or was poetry the last, best way to express what they knew hadn’t been expressed... Read More
Kathleen Williams Renk’s novel "Vindicated" reimagines Mary Shelley’s life through diary entries. At fourteen, Mary misses her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, who died while giving birth to her. So she adopts the mantle of a free... Read More
With its themes of family, loss, sexuality, and self-discovery, Erin Moynihan’s "Laurel Everywhere" is a touching and quirky coming-of-age story. Laurel was named after the laurel bush, a nondescript plant that is found everywhere... Read More