Bringing together 2 cultural forms of good luck exemplifies some of the more fun poems in the collection. Various puns and cross-stitchings of image and implication make the collection surprisingly wide-ranging.
An interview with Holden Sheppard
The author of Invisible Boys talks about his debut novel and how the book came about, characters and themes, on writing earnest depictions of guys, the bisection of the personal journey and healing with the creation of art, how things have changed, and how they haven’t, the power of music and its role in the book (and his life), excellent advice for writers, and lots more.
A review of Asylum Garden: after Van Gogh by Alan Catlin
As Catlin himself notes, Asylum Garden “is a book about seeing: what we see and how we see it.” Like his previous volumes, Wild Beauty and American Odyssey, Catlin’s poems here are inspired by artists and photographers. Blue Velvet and Hollyweird, two other recent collections, similarly find inspiration in grade B movies.
A review of Nina’s Memento Mori by Mathias Freese
Nina Wingard Freese was a retired special education teacher of autistic students who died as a result of ALS – Lou Gehrig’s disease. Contemplative and enhanced with photographs, the book presents Nina as a little girl and again several more times as she is growing up and as a young mother and then as a handsome, mature woman.
A review of The Land of Last Chances by Joan Cohen
It is fascinating to watch Jeanne’s character transformation. Early in the novel, she is businesslike, professional, and analytical. She wishes to get things done quickly so she can get back to work. But slowly, cracks in that façade emerge, and she learns human emotions are not business transactions or “deals” to be made.
A review of Howard Zinn & Lois Mottonen Fistfight in the Equality State by Rodger McDaniel
Having lived in Wyoming for the past four years, reading it was verification for what I see, experience, and find problems with, constantly. I have often thought that Wyoming’s undeserving motto is a farce in comparison with its laws, policies, priorities, and politicians. And here was a Wyoming woman who lived, captured, and published the cruel reality of being a minority in this state with so much detail, accuracy, and innocence.
A review of Food or War by Julian Cribb
Though the topic of Food or War is inherently uncomfortable, the book is beautifully written, wide-reaching in its scope, intelligently presented with detailed and careful evidence. Cribb writes eloquently about complex, and in many cases poorly understood, topics.
An interview with Nan Sanders Pokerwinski
The author of Mango Rash: Coming of Age in the Land of Frangipani and Fanta talks about her book, her broad interests, her background, on writing about potholes, on the link between photography and writing, on Michigan, her work in progress and more.
A review of Bone Chalk by Jim Reese
Whether serious or silly, Reese’s prose reads like poetry. He says more in a paragraph than most authors achieve over several pages. The final chapters are the shortest and most personal vignettes featuring his wife, daughters and co-workers. Reese finds the profound in everyday, parochial life in Bone Chalk.
A review of Who’s Minding the Farm by Patrice Newell
We cannot currently survive in this world without agriculture–our food needs are dependent on farmers, but we all know that our food system must change quickly, if humans (and other creatures) are to survive as a race. As both scientist and farmer, Patrice Newell understands this conundrum all too well.