Issue 57: Mend investigates what needs to be mended, who does the mending, and how we might mend. As Megan Merchant writes in her poem “Mammography,” “Not all things heal when left alone.” Featuring the Janet B. McCabe prizewinning poems by Laura Budofsky Wisniewski, Yvette Siegert, Hajjar Baban, and Betsy Sholl. Now at the Mag Stand.
NewPages Mag Stand: Plume
This issue’s featured selection includes an interview with Teri Ellen Cross Davis by Leeya Mehta, as well as work by the poet. John Wall Barger reviews That was Now, This Is Then by Vijay Seshadri. In nonfiction find A Frozen Present: D. Nurkse on the Language of Fascism and “The Land of Magic.” See a selection of this issue’s poets at the Mag Stand.
NewPages Mag Stand: Into the Void
Issue #18 is Into the Void‘s most packed issue ever, 10% bigger than previous issues. The eye-catching cover image “Sub Seb 2” by Chalice Mitchell would really spice up your bookshelf. Inside the cover: fiction by Anne Baldo, Nim Folb, Eloise Lindblom, Karl Plank, Ash Winters, and more; creative nonfiction by Grace Camille and Bill Capossere; and poetry by Annie Cigic, Daun Daemon, Roy Duffield, Rebecca Faulkner, Molly Fuller, Beth Gordon, Chana G. Miller, and others. See even more contributors at the Mag Stand.
NewPages Mag Stand: Hole in the Head Review
Hole in The Head Review begins their second year with this new issue now at the Mag Stand. Visit for new work by Tim Benjamin, Richard Jones, S. Stephanie, Connor Doyle, Ashley Mallick, Larkin Warren, Eva Goetz, Ron Riekki, Beth Copeland, Roger Camp, Heather Newman, Tom Barlow, Dennis Herrell, Lily Anna Erb, Dick Altman, Glen Armstrong, Erin Wilson, Yoni Hammer-Kossov, Matthew Moment, Cynthia Galaher, Lisa Zimmerman, Christy Sheffield, Tilly Woodward, and more.
NewPages Mag Stand: Cimarron Review
Issue 212 features poetry by Michael Marberry, Robert Bharda, Emily Grelle, Adam Day, Ellen Cantrell, Jennifer Met, Morgan Hamill, Ben Aguilar, Carolyn Adams, Kim Kent, Donna Reis, and more; fiction by Toby Donovan, Rachel Hall, Thomas H. McNeely, and Abby Frucht. See more contributors at the Mag Stand.
NewPages Mag Stand: Bennington Review
The “Fame and Obscurity” issue is at the Mag Stand with poetry by Emily Pettit, Maia Seigel, Elizabeth Hughey, Jacob Montgomery, Oni Buchanan, Kathleen Ossip, Anne Marie Rooney, Jose Hernandez Diaz, jayy dodd, Catherine Pierce, Rob Schlegel, Ed Skoog, TR Brady, Ryo Yamaguchi, and more; fiction by Cynthia Cruz, Stuart Nadler, Lucy Corin, Bonnie Chau, and others; and nonfiction by Elisa Albert, Kelle Groom, Craig Morgan Teicher, Kirsten Kaschock, and more.
Ekphrastic Poetry in Concho River Review
In the Fall/Winter 2020 issue of Concho River Review, two ekphrastic poems can be found one after the other. First is “Abraham Preparing to Sacrifice His Son” by David Denny about Marc Chagall’s “Abraham Preparing to Sacrifice his Son, According to God’s Command,” and the second is “Telephone in a Dish with Three Grilled Sardines at the end of September” by Paul Dickey about Salvador Dali’s painting which the poem is titled after.
Denny’s poem describes Chagall’s piece and then slides the focus out of frame, to those not pictured. The speaker states, “[ . . . ] while the men / play out their little dramas of heaven and earth, / it’s those left out of the official portrait that make / the real sacrifices.” Denny then paints a picture of Sarah, Abraham’s wife, imaging the heartbreaking grief one would feel seeing her husband “tie her beloved boy to the saddle, / tuck his best knife into his belt.” I enjoyed this focus on the emotion the portrait fails to include.
Dickey’s poem questions the meaning of Dali’s painting again and again, walking us through the detail as his attention slips from one to the next. While Denny focuses on what’s not in the portrait, Dickey becomes focused on discovering what is presented to us and what it means.
These two poems work as great companion pieces for one another, well-placed within the pages of this issue.
Perfect Your Poem
Do you have a problem poem that’s not cooperating with you? Check out Into the Void‘s new poetry and editing development service. Poetry Editor Andrew Rihn aims to be critical but encouraging with his feedback and promises: “I’ll highlight what’s working (because there is good stuff in every draft!) while pointing out places where you can develop and invigorate your writing. I’ll prompt you to consider the poem from new angles. I’ll ask a lot of questions.”
Find out more about Rihn’s rates and what else you can expect with the editing and development of your poem at Into the Void‘s submission manager.
Poetic Lessons on Love & Gratitude
Guest Post by Padmaja Reddy.
A beautiful collection of poems, How to Love the World is a true pleasure to read.
The poems seem to be written by the hearts that view the world through the lens of kindness. Poems that reflect on “Joy of Presence,” “Small Victories,” “Pieces of Heaven” and other modes of positive outlooks.
The love of a father and his desire to see his kid painted so vividly in such a short poem (“Bus Stop”). Another father appears “taking care [of his daughter] in full silence and secrecy.” He loves her even when she is lost in sleep. Such beautiful images of love and bonding.
Readers can see an optimistic parent believing in the goodness of the world in the words of January Gill O’Neil “and wonder who could mistake him for anything but good.” The speaker also fears “for his safety—the darkest child on our street in the empire of blocks.”
Rain sounds different and appears as remembered wisdom in “Praise of Darkness.” We imagine ourselves as immortal in bright summer nights and learn to love both ordinary and extra in “Perceptive Prayer.”
Poetic expressions like “Hope doesn’t know its destination”; “Tomorrow the world will begin again, another fresh start”; “A letting go of one thing, to fall into other”; “A girl of color is a light house”; “A day that began like a gift”; and “the decades of side-by-side, our great good luck” fill hearts with warm joy and bliss.
“My Daughter’s Singing,” “Fifteen Years Later, I See How It Went,” “Kindergarten Studies the Human Heart,” “Held Open,” and “The Lesson of the Falling Leaves” are among some of my favorite poems.
To sum up aptly, “Glad to be in this place, this life and to read this book” as in the poem of “Astral Chorus.”
How to Love the World: Poems of Gratitude and Hope edited by James Crews. Storey Publishing, April 2021.
Reviewer bio: Padmaja Reddy, originally from India, lives in Connecticut. She received an MA in English Literature from SK University. Former journalist and she published poetry and book reviews in various publications like Yale Review of Books, NewPages.
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When the Magic Feels Real
Guest Post by Michael Wright.
It means something for there to be a book where red pea soup is cooked the right way, obeah is real and so are monsters, permed hair falls out, and you understand what it means to be a runner, or a ball player, to be marginalized and to be a person at the same time.
Inquisitive, sharp, and alluring, Morgan Christie’s These Bodies is a detailed look into the lives of those whose lives we have forgotten, or ignored, or a bit of both. Her stories touch the hidden corners of who we are, who we recognize in the magic and the everyday lives she examines. From Alfred, who wants to know what it means to be a parent—and his partner Win, who wants to know what it means to be in love (“Monkey Paws”). Or Jemma, who wonders how it would feel to not come second to her father’s alcoholism (“12 Steps”). Or like Lester, who wants, needs, and wishes to be seen as more than his skin (“The Abada”).
Christie’s stories take you on a journey of love and loss, but mostly on a journey towards better understanding that we are all more than just these bodies. A whole lot more.
These Bodies by Morgan Christie. Tolsun Books, 2020.
Reviewer bio: Michael Wright is a father, husband, banker, and drinker of fine beers. He reads articles that make him think and books that make him think more.
Buy this book from our affiliate Bookshop.org.
Floersch Hammers Home Her Lessons
Guest Post by Kevin Wiberg.
This is a little book with a big heart and a lot of common sense.
In the fast-paced, high-stress world of securing competitive funding, it can be easy to chase opportunities and lose sight of what matters most—the people and communities who rely on the success of your work. While chasing the dollars is often driven by the organizational imperative to survive, it is an ineffective and uninspired strategy to engage grantmakers.
As my career has moved from grantseeker to grantmaker, Barbara Floersch has identified critical themes and strategies that I continue to look for when evaluating proposals. Don’t assume a grantmaker knows who you are and what you do; but do assume that most grantmakers will be deeply grounded in the fields, populations, and issues that your organization addresses.
A critical part of your organization’s work is to demonstrate competency, document a solid grounding in data trends from national to local levels, promising and best practices, identify who else does similar work, and how your organization collaborates with others to produce efficient and impactful outcomes. These are just a few of the critical lessons Floersch has shared with thousands of grantseekers around the US and internationally. I credit Floersch’s teaching and mentorship over the years with my success in securing millions of public and private dollars and these lessons continues to inform my work as a grantmaker.
A real strength of Floersch’s new book is her engaging and authentic communications style. She practices what she preaches, and I’m so pleased she continues to share her knowledge with a genuine interest in your organization’s success in addressing critical and compelling social issues and needs.
You Have a Hammer: Building Grant Proposals for Social Change by Barbara Floersch, Rootstock Publishing, January 2021.
Reviewer bio: Kevin Wiberg lives in Vermont and is the Philanthropic Advisor for Community Engagement at The Vermont Community Foundation.