I am tired of blurbs with their inflated claims of greatness. “Not since so and so have we seen such amazing thus and such” etc. Yet, in turning to the daunting task of reviewing Bill Lavender’s City of God (MadHat Press, 2026), his book, which, let me get it said sooner rather than later (in […]
Read of the Month: “Art Work: On the Creative Life “by Sally Mann
April 1, 2026 by Leave a Comment
Almost without exception, seeing a book with the subtitle “On the Creative Life” I’d take a pass. But who can resist a book like Sally Mann’s Art Work Art Work: On the Creative Life (New York: Abrams Press, 2025), that begins with “This is a book about how to get shit done” ? Sally Mann, […]
“Letters to Little Rock” by Jennifer Horne
November 19, 2025 by 1 Comment
Jennifer Horne’s Letters to Little Rock (Kelsay Books 2024) is a superb book for quite a few reasons, not the least of which is her supple use of demanding and seemingly constraining poetic forms. But the book’s greatest strength lies in a series of implicit questions: how can we remember and honor a beloved parent […]