Fiction
A large hand wiped the tears from Tom's small red eyes. "Don't worry, son," he smiled, "I swear we'll come back." Tom hoped so, with all of his eight-year-old heart. But it still hurt so much to watch his father and brother go off to war. Even though President Lincoln needed soldiers, Tom still puzzled [...]
Fiction
I remember the days before Ms. Brown. That was all before everything, with the snow, the stories, and the grove on Grady Hill. Those were the times when school was the hardest, and the days stretched on like counting down the minutes till New Year's. But as I flip through film reels reading things like [...]
Fiction
Mae Trillian has always lived a fairly simple life. Nothing brought her more pleasure than perfect, small simplicities—a tall glass of cold, crystalline water full of chinking ice cubes, the noise of a lead pencil as it scratched the surface of a crisp sheet of paper. The sound of the wind amongst a forest of [...]
Fiction
We were lying in a circle, curled up on a den of sleeping bags, pillows and blankets. Popcorn and candy wrappers were scattered all around, remnants of that night's feeding fest, while we had, oblivious to all else, watched our movie selection, comprised mostly of films featuring Orlando Bloom. But now the TV was silent, [...]
Fiction
“It's going to be cold," laughed Riley. "I'm warning you, when I took the swim test, I almost froze. They had to defrost me." "Thank you for sharing that wonderful piece of moral support with me," I snapped. Riley had been coming to Camp Walton's Grizzly Lodge for seven years now, since she was five. [...]
Fiction
Loud, excited barking came from the front yard. He must be home, I thought. I opened the front door and walked outside. I took in the group at a glance. "Where are Swiftfoot and Mak?" I asked, suddenly afraid. "It's no matter," he said dismissively, and continued to lead the dogs to their kennels around [...]
Fiction
oey looked sulkily into her bedroom mirror. She turned around, scrutinizing her nose from every angle, but whichever direction she faced her nose, slightly resembling a ski slope, looked the same to her. It wasn't that Roey actively disliked the way she looked; just her nose. When you got down to it, she was actually [...]
Fiction
They came one day, their green army trucks all in one winding line, rumbling down the nearby road. I'd heard the noise, running to the balcony to look across the familiar swaying fields of sugar cane in our family's plantation, palm fronds bowing gently to the humid breeze. Lazy mosquitoes flicked in and out of [...]
Poems
The first shaft of luminous light travels, its speed unthinkable Over the horizon, through the trees, And into my open eyes. Birds hop about, like people, Trying to find a good Perch, branch, position In life. Satisfied, they begin their Throaty chorusing, declaring only the best. Window open, the maple and oak Scent drifts like [...]
Poems
A winter walk— My dog barking by My side, Leafless trees Piled with snow, Rotten cornstalks Golden brown, Cows with frosted fur Chomping dead grass, Squirrels feast on Stored acorns, Frozen water under A rusted bridge, Snow piled in drifts, As I whistle Trucks pass.
Book Reviews
Mountain Solo, by Jeanette Ingold; Harcourt, Inc.: New York, 2003; $17 When I first read the back cover of the book, I was so thrilled. Since I began playing the cello seriously, I have been looking for a book that describes the life and feelings of an instrumental soloist. Jeanette Ingold's main character does not [...]
Book Reviews
The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight
The Princess, the Crone, and the Dung-Cart Knight, by Gerald Morris; Houghton Mifflin Company: New York, zo04; $16 Medieval times are full of knights in shining armor rescuing damsels in distress from gruesome fates and bringing them back to glorious kingdoms. Almost unheard of are medieval tales with women as saviors. However, Gerald Morris puts [...]
