Category: Side A

Poetry for Side A: “Mantle of Bread” by Tina Cane

On the front Napoleon refused to eat Russian bread dark and heavy as a mantle it was du pain pour Nicole he said before feeding it to his horse this story is of course too delightful to be true but I do confess I like keeping it alive in the telling tonight trees are bowing…
Side A Short Story: “The Foster” by Tom Busillo

We were having dinner, and she said, “I signed us up for a foster.” I thought she was kidding, but everything had already been arranged. His name was Lollie. The next morning, he was in the kitchen making toast. He wore a cardigan and kept his shoes on inside. He had dietary needs, emotional needs, and…
New Poetry for Side A: “My Curriculum Vide, eh!” by Éamonn Ó Laocha

My Curriculum Vide, eh! Dear Sir/Madam To whomever you are and in regard to Whatever it is You are offering I am very excited to apply It is that which I’ve long sought And to which My whole purpose and being Has been heretofore directed To this amazing opportunity Oh, what joyful chance That on…
Side A Poetry: “buzzing my lips into” by daniel joseph

buzzing my lips into i put plastic grocery bags over my ripped shoes, bending myself, hitched up on the eroding edge of the front stoop, breathing more than i should, feeling the pain of bending and tuggingnear the empty loops of my sagging pants, but i feel joy today, for muddy spring is here. hallelujah, so be it. the…
Fiction for Side A: “Pearl Ring” by Ivy Grimes

Pearl Ring He and his betrothed moved into a cream-colored apartment in the outer ring of the concentric circles that made up the apartment complex. At the center of the complex was a swimming pool. He first noticed her pearl ring on their first trip to the apartment’s swimming pool when she took off her…
Side A Short Story: “Light ’Em Up” by Elizabeth Rosen

I spotted the guy as he came around the corner where the protest was happening outside the library on the plaza. Kind of scummy-looking, and not in a hipster way. White guy, wearing a plain Hanes T-shirt frayed at the collar and scuffed aviator sunglasses pushed up into unwashed hair. He was carrying a homemade…
Side A Poetry: “Dream Lover” by Paul Ilechko

Dream Lover The people you love the most are the ones who come to mind when you wake up in the darkness unsure of where you are and how you got to be thereit’s as stygian as the movie theater downtown in that brief period before the titles start an interval that feels almost dreamlike…
Poetry for Side A: “And Then It Died” by Heather Pegas

And Then It Died The presentation of the thing was … Spongy Friable Feathered, and Cold. (It had not been looking great for some time.) When we tried to pick it up, it was seen to … Cower, Whimper Hiss, and Snarl. (It gazed upon us in sad disbelief.) For the longest time, we had…
Side A Fiction: “Whirlpool” by Mark Wagstaff

Whirlpool The seaside painter paints what he sees. For tourists who scour the old town shops for authentic memories of their happy days at the beach. Who pay extra for signed and framed, to support artisan crafts. For friends, to settle small debts, though everyone knew these pictures never gained value. As presents, a quaint…