Category: Side A

Side A Poem: “A Fierce Menagerie” by Janet McAdams

A Fierce Menagerie On October 17, 2011, Terry Thompson released his menagerieof 56 exotic animals from his Zanesville, Ohio, farm.While a handful of animals were recovered,the majority were shot by local law enforcement. 1.The Next-to-Last Zanesville Tiger How many ways to enter the tiger’s body. This one bred downthe generations and so prized for its…
New Side A Poem by Annalisa Hansford: “Last Night, I Had a Nightmare That My Elementary School, Along with My Childhood Memories, Caught on Fire”

Last Night, I Had a Nightmare That My Elementary School, Along with My ChildhoodMemories, Caught on Fire Golden Shovel of “Televangelism” by K-Ming Chang A few hours ago, I dreamt of my childhood burning in prayers. When noone was looking, grief lit a match behind my elementary school. Oneghost licked the place until it smoked…
Side A: Kristina Andersson Bicher Reads Poems from Marie Lundquist’s I walk around gathering up my garden for the night

Situating Marie Lundquist Lundquist’s taut, image-driven, aphoristic poems speak in a contemporary voice but nonetheless offer clarity and stillness in a frenetic world. With a gimlet eye, Lundquist considers the essential mysteries of memory, childhood, love, longing, and existence. While the emotional terrain explored is intense, devastating even, Lundquist’s tone remains at arms-length. The voice…
Side A List Poem: “Palm Oil by Any Other Name …” by Kyle Heger

Acetylated monoglyceridesAlkylamidopropyl betaineAlkyl alcoholAlkyl betaineAlkyl ether sulfate Alkyl polyglucoside aluminium myristateAluminium palmitateAluminium stearateAluminum dimyristateAluminum isostearatesAmmonium laureth sulphateAmmonium lauryl sulphateAnionic and non-anionic surfactantsArachamide meaAscorbyl palmitateAscorbyl stearateAzelaic acidBehentrimonium methosulphateBeta caroteneBrassica alcoholBTMSButyl myristateButyl stearateButyl stearate IPMCalcium lactylateCalcium oleyl lactylateCalcium stearateCalcium stearoyl lactylateCAPBCapric triglycerideCaprylic acidCaprylic triglycerideCapryloyl glycineCaprylyl glycolCarboxylic acid soapCaroteneCeteareth mbsfl laurethulanate Ceteareth mbhe laurethulanateCetearyl alcoholCetearyl ethylhexanoteCetearyl glucosideCetearyl isononanoateCeteth-20Ceteth-24Cetostearyl alcoholCetrimonium…
Side A Original Short Fiction: “Transients” by Maggie Nerz Iribarne

Transients I tossed garbage bags full of last items into my Honda. Wire hangers, rolls of wrapping paper, a comforter. The orange tabby cat appeared, jumped into the back. “Damn you!” I shouted. The cat arched and skittered to the ground, running behind the (no longer) rented bungalow. I expedited to the driver’s seat, my…
Side A Short Story: “Cynthia Forgiveness Swimmer” by Myles Zavelo

Everyone’s getting wasted at the lake tonight. The train tracks cross over the lake. The moon is making the lake really shiny. Cynthia doesn’t want to be my friend anymore. I’m a little beyond the border of the party. I’m standing with the shadowy bushes. I feel like some freaky creep. I catch Cynthia as…
New Flash Fiction for Side A: “Neighbor Girls” by Niles Baldwin

Neighbor Girls The mother before there were her babies was a child. Before she brought the world her daughter and son, she could remember being born. The first memory after being born was seeing a woman with a person in her belly. She remembered that belly person born too. They grew up together, neighbor girls.…
Flash Fiction for Side A: “The Short History of the Long Road” by Harsimran Kaur

The Short History of the Long Road Some called you golden. Golden as in Kintsugi. Kintsugi as in America. America as in Dear America, what else could you give us? Giving as in holding hands at Thanksgiving and singing a prayer in praise of all the thank yous you’ve garnered over all the seconds in…
“Talk Show Host,” a new hybrid piece for Side A by Chris McCreary

Talk Show Host bombs his monologue. Checks his notes, blinks meaningfully into camera two. Talk Show Host throws his desk out the window. It hits the trampoline, bounces back onto his lap. Talk Show Host puts on his therapist’s cap, but the guests have removed their mics their mouths faces & eyes they’ve receded behind…