“In high school and college, Uma Shastri was good at math and economics because she studied hard. But with a field hockey stick or a tennis racquet in her hand, her body slid to all the right places without conscious thought.”
FICTION | NONFICTION | POETRY |
TRANSLATION
SUBMIT STORE DONATE OPPORTUNITIES INTERVIEWS WRITERS WE PUBLISH
All tagged fiction
“In high school and college, Uma Shastri was good at math and economics because she studied hard. But with a field hockey stick or a tennis racquet in her hand, her body slid to all the right places without conscious thought.”
"My stories often start with some image or moment that stays with me... It could be something I experienced, or a conversation I overheard, or the way someone looked at someone else… I will usually just start writing toward that image or moment and build from there."
“When friends come over, I tell them the house shakes because it’s on a fault line. I don’t tell them the house is upset. I don’t tell them the trees tap the windows at night and the wind only blows at dinner time and the floor tilts upstairs, so Sis and I have to lean against the wall to get to our rooms. I don’t tell them Mom and Dad walk with their hands out like acrobats to get to their room.”
“There is often a bleakness that permeates Hebrew fiction, and certainly a much darker sense of humor, a lot of sarcasm and irony, as well as self-deprecation. These are less prevalent in most English writing…”
“With O.J. there was an abyss of recklessness I was willing to dive into, a waxing appetite for danger I was unsure I could swallow.”
“She is either the trickster god of the desert or a divine messenger. Neither option is welcome, especially now.”
“In the spring of 2020, when the lockdown began, Liz still owned the ax that broke down her childhood front door…”
“Even if it’s just a small piece of me, it’s good practice for the trillions of years yet to pass in which I will not exist.”
“The balloon continued to expand until it was big enough for me to crawl inside and curl up like an embryo in a green rubber womb.”
“She watched him trot to the bathroom naked and thought of how strange his body looked. His four hairy legs were twice the size of her arms.”
“She wonders what curse this is, to swing from life to life, grief to grief, with no control.”
“He said he made the cranes in order to make a wish, though he didn’t tell you what it was, only that it didn’t come true.”
“Shit. I feel like I’m whispering all of this when I should really be shouting.”
“‘This land isn’t empty, it’s full of ghosts, you just can’t see them.' She says it flat, matter of fact, no judgement at all.”
“When I open the door, I face the drooping sun. The light in my face is bright, not warm.”
“…it seemed the farther they traveled from home, the closer they were to those stars.”