Jay Kauffmann’s story collection, The Mexican Messiah, transports readers from the North Pole to Tokyo, Paris, the Sahara, and beyond. Kauffmann, a former international model, earned an MFA from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. He chairs the English Dept. at the Miller School of Albemarle. The Mexican Messiah, runner-up in the Leapfrog Global Fiction Prize, was […]
“How Simi Got Her Groom Back” by Sonali Dev
March 2, 2026 by Leave a Comment
How much do you owe the older sister who raised you and protected you from a harsh, unforgiving childhood? That question lies at the heart of Sonali Dev’s charming romantic comedy How Simi Got Her Groom Back (Lake Union 2026). Most of us would agree we owe such a sister a great deal—but would we offer her […]
“Lost in the Forest of Mechanical Birds” by Christian Moody
February 18, 2026 by 1 Comment
Winner of the 2023 Dzanc Short Story Collection, Christian Moody’s Lost in the Forest of Mechanical Birds is an imaginative collection comprised of four short stories and a novella. Moody’s eccentric characters find themselves in altered realities involving comical situations. His wonder tales question the peripheries of one’s imagination versus reality. And though the author’s […]
“The Other Revival” by Salaam Green
February 18, 2026 by Leave a Comment
Reviewed by Tina Mozelle Braziel and James Braziel Walt Whitman contains multitudes, and so does Salaam Green’s debut collection The Other Revival: Poems & Reckonings (Pulley Press 2025). A certified listening poet, Green put her vast skills to work at the Wallace House in Harpersville, AL as a poet-in-residence, interviewing descendants of the enslaved and […]
James and Tina Mozelle Braziel
February 16, 2026 by Leave a Comment
James and Tina Mozelle Braziel are a husband-and-wife writing team. They have received fellowships from Hot Springs National Park and Alabama State Council on the Arts. James Braziel’s book, This Ditch-Walking Love (Livingston Press), winner of the Tartt Fiction Award, tells the stories of people living on Alabama’s Cumberland Plateau. His novels Birmingham, 35 Miles (Bantam) and Snakeskin Road (Bantam) […]
“Fatulous” by Heather Ream
February 15, 2026 by Leave a Comment
Fatulous by Heather Ream is the sequel to her first memoir, Lunch Ladies Bought My Prom Dress. In this book, we are introduced to Heather when she is a freshman in college, and we follow her through her experiences for several years until she finally graduates. If you were a victim of, or want to […]