“There is no possibility on earth that I can go to Italy,” the author begins, and from there unrolls an unusual travel narrative. Perhaps no other modern tourist has traveled so reluctantly, yet written so affectionately. That... Read More

“If the union workers were not battling a tire or rubber company at the bargaining table or on the picket lines, they were fighting with each other,” writes the author in this sixty-year history of the Akron, Ohio-based United Rubber... Read More

“The evening dashed recklessly forward, and around me the room filled with snippets of conversation and the fireworks of laughter,” says author Varnell. This excitement could only be expected, since he and Bourassa had become the... Read More

Twelve-year-old Nunzio Paradiso is sprawled beneath a wrecked 1973 Pontiac Bonneville, hooking it up for towing, when he hears someone speak in Italian. “Dio,” the voice says. A moment later it comes again. “Dio.” The explanation... Read More

Having read this book, acclaimed poet and university lecturer David R. Slavitt calls the author “one of the best dozen or so poets writing in America. Here, she not only maintains but even surpasses her previous high level of... Read More

Form in poetry can be very powerful. This book will either introduce readers to the Haibun form of poetry or remind readers of its power. The author has selected a Japanese prose-haiku combination to echo her own interior journey. On... Read More

In ancient times, Jews counted up days from Passover to Shavuot by measuring out an “omer” of grain. When they had forty-nine omers, they knew Shavuot had arrived. The seven weeks between the holidays is still referred to as counting... Read More

Michael Smith works at the Kincaid Clinic, a hospital for the mentally ill that provides the setting for much of this novel. One of his patients explains that a riddle drove him insane: “What can go up a chimney down but not down a... Read More