Quarterly & Special Issues
July 14, 2025
Because I was fourteen, the icy cold Pacific Ocean warmed to bathwater within minutes of immersion. Beyond the official beaches, after scrambling down a wooded ravine now collapsed into itself, lost to time.
July 11, 2025
A charming, modern fairy tale, The Tinker and The Witch: A Cozy Fantasy Character Tale by G.J. Daily, takes me back to those juvenile fantasies like […]
July 10, 2025
Fated call to arms
to answer a distant king
dragged from island home
Dragged from island home
on ships full with tools of war
an unwilling pawn
July 5, 2025
Of course I judge a book by its cover. I know it’s wrong, but a pretty cover will lure me in. The Imagined Life by Andrew Porter possesses one of those magical covers that’s not merely beautiful, but reflects equally the gorgeous writing within.
July 3, 2025
July 2, 2025
The remake came as a surprise to some, but it was well-received, especially by those who hadn’t seen the original. They enjoyed the visuals and were excited to see a movie centered around dragons. For those of us who grew up with the original How to Train Your Dragon, the trailer alone brought back that same joy and nostalgia.
June 30, 2025
In We Are All the Same in the Dark by Julia Heaberlin, ten haunting years have passed since Trumanell Branson disappeared, leaving behind nothing but a smear of blood and a town suspended in yearning.
June 29, 2025
The confections you keep in a milk-glass bowl hold fast, freckled with dust and faded by sun. Think bolted bric-a-brac with colors leaking…
June 27, 2025
I first heard of Matcha when a friend’s friend from Singapore sent her a bag of the fine, green powder. Amazon was around by now, but things like this weren’t so readily available to Americans – nor did we seem to know to look for it.
When I married a man who’s intrigued with all things Japanese, Matcha returned to my awareness, especially when we wound up living across the highway from a Japanese market where Matcha could easily be purchased for a reasonable price.
June 21, 2025
Bold, thundering C-major chords seize the day with no room for doubt. It’s as if God is in the driving seat full of confidence and all is well. There are no obstructions on the straight and narrow, no one is being martyred, and though there are clouds in the sky, they look more like savory dumplings that might drop manna. The descending bass notes of the first three chords exude hope and a desire to get to the bottom of things. This is the hymn Bryn Myrddin; Welsh singing at its best.
June 20, 2025
The storm’s coming was awful enough. The cherries would be ripening in a few short days, and the last thing they needed in this moment was too much water. But I couldn’t do anything about it. It would pass and leave whatever wreckage it chose to leave and I’d clean up as best I could.
June 19, 2025
Trust me when I say, we do not wish anyone a moment of what we endure in these bodies. But like most things, you can’t know what this feels like mentally and emotionally, let alone physically, until/unless you walk a day in our chronically ill bodies – forget the shoes.
June 18, 2025
Miranda is a tall, beautiful oddball who doesn’t meet the magazine standards of physical beauty, elegance, or womanhood. This is harped on to an almost painful level throughout the show – and people who’ve always been “accepted” for their beauty probably won’t get what this is really about and why it matters so much. That’s okay.
June 18, 2025
And now, we’ve just completed the final season of The Fifteenth Doctor as depicted by the Rwandan-Scottish actor, Ncuti Gatwa, the most fabulous of them all!
June 17, 2025
Lively Bunnies, the animated kids show we'd worked on for the last six years, had its own kind of niche popularity with kids and their families; the ways in which it was part of everyday pop culture never ceased to amaze me.
June 16, 2025
can you see them on the air of summer? hint of wing, gentle glimmer a whisper, a suggestion on the wind…
June 12, 2025
One of my favorite genres is cozy mysteries. They’re great for a low-key read on an airplane or road trip or before turning out the light at night. But writing them can be a little tedious and challenging, because, well, let’s be honest — there are only so many kinds of mysteries to solve.
June 11, 2025
When it comes to Rooibos tea, I am exceptionally picky. I have drunk many cups and determined that they were “okay” but not “worthy” of purchasing again. This includes both bagged teas and loose leaf offerings. A couple of years back, I found a rival for my previous favorite Bos Rooibos in the form of my new favorite loose leaf option: U.S. Wellness Naturals Rooibos.
June 10, 2025
One evening, readers were challenged to sit back, shut up, and listen. We were led to ask the Lord to speak clearly and listen to Him and trust that what He spoke would encourage and uplift us. As most of us know, keeping back a flood of thoughts in a quiet room can be rather challenging. But I somehow managed to still myself and my own thoughts, and soon found my mind resting in the space quietly.
June 4, 2025
As a teenager, my happy place was always Jones Beach, NY. I would arrive early before the toll, just as dawn was breaking. The causeway was empty of other cars, all was quiet on the beach, parking spots were plentiful and you could choose any field you’d like.