Review by Lara Lillibridge Daddy is an exploration of relationships and self. By turns heartbreaking and humorous, Montlack’s writing is accessible without being superficial. The 56 poems, most one page long, are arranged into three sections: Daddy, Mother, and Father, with the first poem, “How to Mother Like a Man” set apart as an introduction. In looking at that first poem, an echo of the book cover which depicts a seahorse tattoo on flexed male biceps, it frames our mindset for how to view the poems that follow: men are nurturing, but still protective and strong. Plus, there’s a subtle…
Author: Mom Egg Review
Review by Sarah W. Bartlett Diane Elayne Dees is a political and sports blogger who has published creative nonfiction, political essays and short fiction in many journals and anthologies. In addition to “Coronary Truth,” she has two forthcoming chapbooks: “I Can’t Recall Exactly When I Died” and “The Last Time I Saw You.”. She also publishes Women Who Serve, a blog that delivers news and commentary on women’s professional tennis throughout the world. Her author blog is Diane Elayne Dees: Poet and Writer-at-Large. It is refreshing to pick up a book of poems that is accessible in both form and content.…
Review by Emily Webber Karin Cecile Davidson’s debut, Sybelia Drive, turns to a small town in Florida during the Vietnam war, presenting many alternating viewpoints throughout the novel. Davidson’s focus is on family relationships and the far-reaching impact of war. Sybelia Drive stays compelling, and even with so many voices presented, Davidson produces memorable characters. Right from the first chapter, the sharp voice of Davidson’s characters and the time and place are evident. Rainey paraded down on use that year my daddy left. It was the year when Daddy traded in our family car for the red-and-white VW bus,…
Review by Celia Jeffries It’s always a pleasure when a poet turns to prose—language is bound to surprise and sparkle when a such a writer distills thoughts onto the page—and that is exactly what happens in Elaine Terranova’s memoir The Diamond Cutter’s Daughter. “My name is Esther. It isn’t, though it was meant to be.” (3) The opening line pulls us into a conundrum, into the prism of Terranova’s world. Esther was the adored cousin who died before the narrator “was floundering around in my mother’s belly, finally ‘tearing her open,’ as she liked to describe it, waiting for…
Calls for Submissions – MER VOX Call for Poetry Submissions / Mom Egg Review Ekphrastic Challenge for June, 2021, VOX Folio Co-curated by Jennifer Martelli and Cindy Veach For this folio we are asking writers to respond to Keisha-Gaye Anderson’s evocative piece titled “Escape.” We’re looking for work that responds to Anderson’s piece by entering it and engaging emotionally, visually, and viscerally through a lens that considers mothers/motherhood. We encourage and invite voices from marginalized communities. If you’ve been in a recent or upcoming issue of MER VOX (online) or MER (print issue 19), please wait until the next call…
Mom Egg Review 19 Reading Mother’s Day Video Premiere Sunday, May 9, 2021 at 12 NOON Eastern View: YouTube https://youtu.be/16RlfnidQ3E FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/momeggreview Get the print issue Get the pdf issue MCs Marjorie Tesser, Jennifer Martelli, Cindy Veach Featured Readers (In order of appearance).
M.A.M.A. 46: Christina Kolaiti and Melisa Cahnmann-Taylor The Procreate Project, the Museum of Motherhood and the Mom Egg Review, partners for an on-line publication platform featuring art, academic and creative writing with the aim to promote women internationally and generate cultural exchanges and opportunities. Poetry by Melisa Cahnmann-Taylor Home Isolation, Day 42 I open my son’s door. It smells of boy funk, dog, and morning breath. When I ask: Do you need any help? I mean tornados, fractions, conjugations but I also mean interrogations of the gentler kind: How are you doing? What do you miss? How can I…
Interview with Katie Manning on her Poetry Chapbook 28,065 Nights by Eric Van Gorden and Makenzie McGee In a previous visit with us, you said that “Your Death Explained in Birds” was originally placed at the end of the collection instead of “28,065 Nights.” What gave you the confidence to open your chapbook with such an intense, intimate prose poem that focuses so clearly on the frustration we feel watching our loved ones suffer? KM: When I first gathered these poems together and started to organize them, I placed this poem last and the title poem first. My colleague…
By Sarah W. Bartlett MER contributor and book reviewer Sarah W. Bartlett shares the step-by-step process for creating and publishing Life Lines, a book of writings by incarcerated women. BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE BOOK Vermont’s incarcerated women tell their first-person accounts of addiction and mental illness within the prison setting, highlighting the challenges these women face in moving forward with their lives. Paired with discussion guides to encourage community involvement in understanding and acting upon issues raised, the book serves a dual educational and advocacy role. The intended impact is to provide: unedited words of women on the inside…
Review by Michele Sharpe Cleave is a poetry collection of magnitude and fascination, spanning continents, history, and personal obsessions. I started reading it one evening after dinner and stayed up late with it, still reading. As poet Gabrielle Calvocoressi notes on the publisher’s page, “With breathtaking lyric beauty and formidable formal range, Nobile details the intimate effects of the international adoption industrial complex on children and parents caught up in a system’s unrelenting hunger. This is a book of remarkable compassion and real horror. Its stories will be news to many and all too familiar to others.” Most, perhaps all,…