A small but important element of Russia’s attempt to rob Ukraine of its sovereignty is the theft of Ukrainian art. Earlier this year, the New York Times reported on the coordinated Russian looting of thousands...
Four Poems by Ellen June Wright
Angola Angela, from the African region known as Angola, grower of figs, keeper of pigs, recorded as Angelo. Watched over by angels for whom she was named, survived the crossing in a ship’s bowels, survived pirates and...
Ned Rorem (1923-2022)
“Do not go, Gentile, into that good night,” I murmured, reading of Ned Rorem’s recent death. It’s hard to imagine what a shock, in 1966, when religion, ethnicity, and sexual orientation were still taboo, the self...
Four Poems by Denise Duhamel
MY MOTHER’S COVER-UP I bought one for her at Walgreens—teal blue with sparkles. She was so hunched over and short by then, it flowed almost to her ankles. I kept it here in Florida so that when she visited it was one...
Protagonist Syndrome
my girlfriend’s best friend is convinced she has covid. I’ve heard all her stories – I admit, there’s a good chance she has. but last week, when her housemate was sick with a fever, she had said it was...
from The Lisa Sequence
from The Lisa Sequence Smile The obedient child will smile for any picture, will wait for the camera in the school’s cafeteria on that singular day, lined up with the rest, steadying herself, brushed that morning and...
ON THE WAY TO PARADISE
Jessie O’Neal is touring again. The Tribune printed another clever Jessie story. I’m sure she called the reporter. She knows them all by now. Maybe she needed to sell more tickets. The lady knows how to create interest...
from The Hyakunin Isshu: A Hundred Poems by A Hundred Poets
42. Chigiriki na Katami no sode wo Shibori tsutsu Sue-no-matsu yama Nami kosaiji to wa —Kiyowara no Motosuke We promised— Holding onto each other; While twisting each other’s sleeves, Waves would never surge over...
Ultima Multis
The polishing rag folded inside a bespoke vest I purchased on impulse has a name sewn on by hand: Ultima Multis. And when I’m shining my mouth harps after a solitary session of practice, I ask the piece of flag if she...
The Desert
Translated from Kurdish by Basir Borhani Hashoush’s younger sister rushed inside and spat out briskly, “Mom…! Mom, the Kurds will be moved again tomorrow.” At that moment, Hashoush and I were sitting opposite each...
Real Names in Real Clothing
Translated from Farsi by S. Ganjbakhsh 1 In 1850, during a religious civil conflict, a sixteen-year-old girl called Zaynab who was skilled in martial arts had to cut her hair and fight in men’s clothing. She was even...
Girl Versus Gun: What I Learned from Dating a Responsible Gun Owner
He slept with a teddy bear until he got a gun. Then he slept with his gun. That is not what Machiavelli meant when he wrote, “There can be no proper relation between one who is armed and one who is not.” We met online...