Blog - The MockingOwl Roost

May 16, 2026

Square image in deep red-purple. One 1/4 of the image (far left) has mixed colors in paper textures. The image features the cover of the Wide, Wild World magazine issue of the MockingOwl Roost. TEXT: Quarterly Issue, Volume 6, Issue 2: Wide, Wild World. MockingOwl Roost contributors and staff

Published by The MockingOwls at May 16, 2026

Categories

Quarterly Issue

Wide, Wild World

Come play with the saiga, mustangs, and bobcats in the latest issue of the MockingOwl Roost: Wide, Wild World. Every story, every poem, every essay wanders the world with curiosity with wildlife encounters, stunning scenery, and invigorating delight...

June 27, 2026

The Messy Years book laying on a wood table next to a cup of coffee. The Messy Years Text: The Messy Years, Zina Mona, Book Review

Published by Zina Mona at June 27, 2026

Categories

Book Reviews - Fiction

The Messy Years, a Contemporary Fiction Review

The Messy Years by Alexandra Slater is about three best friends — Maeve, Lizzie, and Hadley — navigating their thirties, the “messy” years of adulthood. A friendship formed in college, the trio each live different lives, but remain close, sharing every secret and struggle with one another.

June 27, 2026

Published by Paula Frew at June 27, 2026

Categories

In War and In Peace

In war, our soldiers fight, and they die while we pray, and we cry…

June 26, 2026

An open door floats in the middle of a swirling, colorful cosmos, revealing a bright sky with clouds beyond, its reflection rippling in water below. witty aphorism Text: Epigraphs and Epigrams, and Others, RJ Clarken, Poetry.

Published by RJ Clarken at June 26, 2026

Categories

Poetry

Epigraphs and Epigrams

I like that epigram’s a short or witty aphorism sort, that’s meant to make a reader laugh. It’s not a thing with epigraph.

June 25, 2026

A pale purple butterfly sipping nectar from a purple flower. TEXT: Dancing Butterflies, Tulip Chowdhury, Nature Essay

Published by Tulip Chowdhury at June 25, 2026

Categories

Nature

Dancing Butterflies

A few minutes into my walk, something caught my eye, and I stopped. Just ahead, two or three feet away, three butterflies hovered over the path…

June 24, 2026

Picture of Japanese monkeys in a natural steam bath on someone's solo trip to Japan. TEXT: Of Shoes, Snow, and Monkeys in a Hot Tub - Travel Reflections - C. Alokita

Published by C. Alokita at June 24, 2026

Categories

Travel

Of Shoes, Snow, and Monkeys in a Hot Tub

I was on my first solo trip in Japan. I had arrived in the country as a researcher, full of ambition, and had spent several months being systematically humbled by both the language and the experiments. Nagano felt like a necessary exhale; somewhere to exist without obligation…

June 23, 2026

Cover for book Tell Me How You Eat in pink with a green apple on it. Author Amber Husain. TEXT: A Book Review, Zina Mona

Published by Zina Mona at June 23, 2026

Categories

Book Reviews - Nonfiction

Tell Me How You Eat: Food, Power, and the Will to Live – A Nonfiction Book Review

The intellectual examination of food and eating captivated me, and more so as it coupled with relatable and intimate moments from Husain’s life.

June 22, 2026

A bright white full moon glows in a deep blue night sky, framed by soft clouds drifting along the bottom of the scene. dark time Text: White Moon, Lynn White, Poetry.

Published by Lynn White at June 22, 2026

Categories

Poetry

White Moon

Perhaps the dark time was passing even before the moon scoffed

June 21, 2026

A red and white spotted mushroom grows from a patch of bright green moss on the forest floor. shortest night Text: Fading Light Shuns the Dream's Embrace, Necia Campbell, Summer Solstice Poetry.

Published by Necia Campbell at June 21, 2026

Categories

Fading Light Shuns the Dream’s Embrace

Enchantment swirls on this, the shortest night as moon glow’s humid breath among the trees —

June 21, 2026

A father and child walking down the sidewalk, while the child is sitting on the father's shoulders. Older Text: A good day to be me, Ken Gosse, Poetry

Published by Ken Gosse at June 21, 2026

Categories

A Good Day to Be Me (Father’s Day)

Father’s Day. Another way to older get — and yet, I bet we feel younger with a hunger thinking of the ones we love...

June 21, 2026

Two people fish along the shoreline at sunset, their silhouettes set against a glowing orange sky and calm water. rods and reels Text: Catch and Release, Paula Frew, Poetry.

Published by Paula Frew at June 21, 2026

Categories

Catch and Release

Get up before dawn with bright beams, hunting worms. Gather rods and reels. Bobbers and hooks make the tackle complete.

June 21, 2026

Man standing in a circular cloud ring, implying a heavenly realm. TEXT: To My Father on Father's Day - Mary Derringer - Poetry

Published by Mary Derringer at June 21, 2026

Categories

To My Father on Father’s Day

A million times, I needed you. A million times, I cried. If love alone could have saved you, you never would have died.

June 20, 2026

Cover of the book A Dark and Secret Magic, with pumpkins and fall imagery on a black background - overall image has an autumnal green shade, with the text: Book Review, Nathalia Harris

Published by Nathalia Harris at June 20, 2026

Categories

Book Reviews - Fiction

Cozy Fantasy Review: A Dark and Secret Magic

A Dark and Secret Magic mixes cozy romance with small-town fantasy. This whimsical novel keeps you hooked with forbidden magic and a high-risk, slow-burn romance coming out of the woods.