C. D. Albin is author of the award-winning story collection Hard Toward Home (Press 53) and the poetry collection Axe, Fire, Mule (Golden Antelope Press). He has contributed nonfiction to a number of publications, including American Book Review, Georgia Review, and Harvard Review. For many years he has taught writing and literature at Missouri State […]
May Read of the Month: “The Tender Grave,” by Sheri Reynolds
May 6, 2021 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Donna Meredith The Tender Grave, by Sheri Reynolds, not only offers interesting characters and strong imagery, but it also builds an unusual level of tension and suspense for a literary novel. Witness this early passage: She hadn’t been to bed, not all night, and though she’d brushed her teeth before she left, her […]
“The Favorite Daughter,” by Patti Callahan Henry
April 28, 2021 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Becca Spence Dobias The Favorite Daughter begins with a shocking inciting incident—one that immediately hooks readers. After laying this exciting groundwork, however, the writing begins to feel predictable. The main character, Colleen, feels like someone we’ve read before—the cynical New Yorker, burned by betrayal, commitment-phobic, and married to her work. When news of […]
April Read of the Month: “The Memory House,” by Rachel Hauck
April 1, 2021 by 1 Comment
Reviewed by Honey Rand Three years ago, while training for a half-marathon, I listened to zombie books. I know, blasphemy, right? Audio and zombies, how low could I go? Then there is the success of Fifty Shades of Gray and its sequels in print and the movies. I can’t tell you the times I’ve heard […]
March Read of the Month: “Call It Horses,” by Jessie Van Eerden
March 11, 2021 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Becca Spence Dobias Call it Horses is a difficult text in multiple ways, and as is often the case, its difficulty makes it an incredibly rewarding read. Perhaps most challenging is its subject matter, which includes domestic violence, pregnancy loss, cancer, death, and suicide, but its prose, too, is thick and intentional, each […]