Fiction

Dorothy AllisonSEVEN TIMES SEVEN
“Rolling dough is a thing I do better than anyone. Flour, sugar, butter, and salt—these I understand.”

Steve AlmondNO ONE HERE BUT US CHICKENS .
“Oss did not especially like to be naked. But he was naked now.”

Rhoda HuffeyFEVER
“There were no police. A real Alaskan bartender must control the crowd with the force of her personality.”

Sharon MayTHE WIZARD OF KHAO-I-DANG
“The people stuck in Khao-I-Dang camp want to get out to America or Australia—or any country that will accept them.”

New Voice Fiction

Annie McFadyenBLEEDERS
“He gently scrubs those few blood clots free with the special brush, touches what her naked heart has touched.”

Jolie LewisTHE COLD JUST DOES THINGS TO YOU
“What happened that night between me and my girlfriend, Bethie, was the end of a hard day of work. Not that the cop was any help.”

Ezra TitusTHE RAT SPRAYER
“I think my boss’s hatred for me was compounded by the fact that I had long, shining hair.”

Poetry

Billy Collins
RECUMBENT
REAPER

Monica Youn
THE WEDDING OF IGNATZ
IGNATZ IN FURS

Jason Zuzga
MAKING BUTTER

Thomas Sayers Ellis
WAYS TO BE BLACK IN A POEM

Michael Hainey
BIG DEREK

New Voice Poetry

Krista J.H. Leahy
PEARSAP

Features

Lisa JonesMEN’S WORK
A reservation medicine man gentles people and animals—but a day’s task of gelding a horse goes awry.

William T. Vollmann“THE MASK IS MOST IMPORTANT ALWAYS”
Master Noh actor Umewaka Roruko explains what’s behind the masks in the ancient Japanese theater tradition.

Tom GrimesBRING OUT YOUR DEAD
Night shift in the mortuary.

Bret Anthony JohnstonTRICK TIP
Become a professional—but not famous—skateboarder in twelve simple steps!

Padgett PowellTHE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED AT WORK
Orthodontic molds, roofing, and Willie Ebert Brown.

Lou MathewsTHE END OF THE LINE
Two kinds of hamburger buns converge into a special kind of hell.

T.E. HoltDELIRIUM TREMENS
On laughing when you’re not supposed to laugh.

Chris OffuttOUT WEST
Young lovers Brie and Hiram follow the jobs.

Lost and Found

Lee MontgomeryMY BRILLIANT CAREER
The author forsakes literary publishing for Heidi Fleiss, O.J. jurors, and Robert Evans in white silk pajamas.    

Readable Feast

Matthew BattTHE PATH OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
Sourdough and Nancy Silverton take over one man’s life.

The Last Word

Ron Carlson
LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION