A masterful and deeply heartful look into the lives of a diverse set of emotionally complicated characters in this short story collection set in Texas.
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All articles filed in Reviews
“Bet” on Red Clay Suzie, a Novel Rooted in Truth
In this debut, Lofton’s irresistible protagonist is both endearingly naive and surprisingly sophisticated.
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A Protest Artist, a Klansman, and a Reckoning with Race
A review of “Those We Thought We Knew” by David Joy.
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Racism and Deadly Reparations in Stephen Kearse’s “Liquid Snakes”
“Reparations was not murder, Kenny told his dying friend. And Kenny was crazed, not crazy. Aggrieved, not grieving. There was a compelling argument that he was fucking stupid, but what he felt was fucking determined. ‘Important distinctions,’ Kenny said.”
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Beat the Heat with the Hilarity that is “Swamp Story”
Dave Barry’s latest comedic tale is a wild romp through the Florida Everglades.
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“Down Here We Come Up”: A Tale of Growth, Reconnection and Late-Blooming Coming-of-Age
Author Sara Johnson Allen shines a spotlight on the racial, political and social power dynamics along the U.S.-Mexico Border, and throughout the U.S., in this story of motherhood and strained familial love impacted by systems imposed upon them.
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Oceanic Transformations in Emily Habeck’s “Shark Heart”
Ultimately, Emily Habeck’s “Shark Heart” is a novel about acceptance, grief, and letting go. It is structurally and lyrically daring, so much so that its pages quickly envelop readers in its emotional challenges and magic.
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Everything Falls into Place in “The Geography of First Kisses”
A review of Karin Cecile Davidson’s story collection, “The Geography of First Kisses.”
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Homecoming and Reckoning “Inside” Amy Rowland’s Second Novel
Witches, wolves, and ghosts are at play in the latest from the author of “The Transcriptionist.”
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Not a Monolith, but a Multiplicity
A review of “Southern Storytellers,” a documentary series on contemporary Southern artists on PBS.
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Southern Review of Books 