Issue of August 31, 2026

Mr. Brunelle Explains It All by Robert Waldo Brunelle, Jr. — Comic

Caligula 101

Best Friends Forever by Frances Gaudiano — Cover story fiction

Frances Gaudiano currently resides in Cornwall, England. After earning a MA in Dramatic Literature, she went on to qualify as a veterinary nurse and divides her time between writing and caring for animals.

Bar Mitzvah Boy by Harvey Silverman — Essay memoir

And I'd bet he didn't know where the next ten years would take him...

A One Eyed Hooker by Rishi Kunal — Poem

Rishi Kunal is a practitioner of law with a passion for writing poetry. His work traverses the austere corridors of urban existence and the moral intricacies embedded within it. Drawing upon his training as an attorney, he renders with precision the textures of routine, the weight of ethical ambiguity and the quiet hypocrisies that underwrite modern survival.

Sealed by Ajanta Paul — Poem

"...with the insignia of the impresario out of reach..."

Grandson Limericks by Snigdha Agrawal — Poem limerick

"...The sweetest and cutest young fellow..."

Another Death in the Neighborhood by Jeffrey Zable — Poem unrhymed

"I didn’t really know the guy on the next block..."

Christmas that I Left in School by Pranab Ghosh — Poem unrhymed

"...Fog dims lights in the compound..."

It's A Game of Projection, Protection and Prioritisation by Ndaba Sibanda — Poem unrhymed

"...Who gets to rank wars?..."

Regeneration by Gopal Lahiri — Poem unrhymed

"The earth trembles every day, every night..."

Star Searchers by Stephen Jarrell Williams — Poem unrhymed

"...waiting for the stars to fall..."

Summer Night Insomnia by Claudia Kessel — Poem unrhymed

"...your face, a silken flower...

Swell by Robert Garnham — Speculative fiction

Why not choose harmony over profit?

The Maya by Cary Lowe — Travel

Cary Lowe is the author of the award-winning immigrant memoir Becoming American and the inspirational disabled-travel collection On Two Legs and Three Wheels. A retired land use lawyer, he has a law degree and Ph.D. from the University of Southern California, and taught at USC, UCLA, and UC San Diego.