16 comments to “Issue Eighteen”
16 comments to “Issue Eighteen”
  1. Having read nothing before of Gary F. Iorio’s work, and now having read “Bimbos and Floozies,” I want to read more.

  2. Really enjoyed the story “Gangplank Watch”, I can visualize the story in my head as it unravels. Hope to see more by this writer.

  3. Boy Meets Girl, Boy Loses Girl, Boy Regains Paradise Lost. An arc so old it’s holy — all that religious imagery — and still enthralls in this contemporary and imaginative retelling. Packs a lot in those 6 printed pages. The golden cross at the beginning becomes golden rods of sunlight on the woman’s hair. Nice. The sacred and profane all the way though. Best line: “I stand and take my poem from my pants.” What writer, what poet, what artist does not know what that means? The very act of creation, literally and figuratively, comes from the same place inside us. Oh sure, he distracts us with screaming orgasms; in between, Mr. Iorio is leading us to the resolution in the singing, swaying conga line of ordinary life.

  4. Magical realism, father-son relationships, love and art all packed into less than a page. Leo the Poet is lovely! It evoked an unexpected, sweet sense of nostalgia in me. Looking forward to reading more of Zachary Solomon’s work.

  5. I really enjoyed reading Mr. Iorio’s “Bimbos & Floozies”, it left me wanting more and more! Fast paced and spicy. Will there be a sequel? If so looking forward to it.

  6. I liked Let It Rest, I liked that rests that came at the end of each line, the pacing, the breathing. But I had to keep going back to Corpse Race, wow. Who thinks of anything active connected with corpses? The words challenged me to imagine what they looked like, decomposing. And what made them corpses, made them race to the final oblivion of total decomposition out there in the open? Natural disaster? War? Murder? You realize they are unknowable as once-living people, we only know them this way. The fate of all mankind.

  7. Loved Gary Iorio’s Bimbos and Floozies. Hil-fucking-arious. What energy, what liveliness! And Jesus — who doesn’t know those feelings? Terrific bits: taking the poem out of his pants, then recycling it for his book report. The Other Man reaching paradise by getting a 500-word critical note published. Especially, “Vinnie, the nun who tied you, her name was Sister Anne.” Wow! I’ve heard that line so many times when I was fucking the love of my life. Haven’t you?

  8. Bimbos and Floozies was a creative tale about young Vinnie’s adventurous and at times humorously tormented adolescence as he makes his way through Catholic school,holding an unfulfilled crush on Christina . The story has lots of creative one liners and double takes.. You’ll find yourself reading some lines twice, asking, “Did that just say what I thought it said?” .. Good entertainment.

  9. Joshua S. approach is fresh, he gives the reader many avenues for the imagination. Gangway Watch is FANTASTIC!

  10. Zach Solomon’s short story is a gem. It is romantic, lyrical, and expands the imagination. I look forward to reading more of Solomon’s work!

  11. Great issue! I was especially impressed with Leo the Poet–Zachary Solomon has a beautiful tone and his story is so satisfying in its carefully crafted simplicity. I believe he will go far as a writer!

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