[close] In essays, stories, plays, poetry, art, recipes, emails, notes, and photos, 33 contributors share what happened to them.

“The working title for this anthology was The Bush Years, intended to refer to a time period rather than a subject matter. I wanted to know how events of the last several years affected your lives, changed the way you talked to your friends or family, depressed you, aggravated you, displaced you, bankrupted you, broke your heart, rendered you speechless and numb. Did the Patriot Act touch you? Did someone tap your wire? Was your house washed away? Were you laid off? Was your child left behind? What happened to you?” — Editor David Barringer, from the Introduction

Contributors: Joshua Gross, Claudia Smith, Catherine Price, Maggie Smith, Nick Cottrell, Spencer Dew, Grant Perry, Ghazaleh Etezal, Alison Morse, Maggie Shearon, Jennifer Prado, Faruk Ulay, Kristina Moriconi, Deron Bauman, Jim McInvale, Steve Himmer, Tony R. Rodriguez, Diane Gifford-Gonzalez, Patricia Cumbie, Jaime Campbell, James A. Reeves, Lee Klein, Heather Kelley, Sheryl St. Germain, Mike Ingram, Josh Olsen, John H. Matthews, Dave Morrison, Kevin R. Free, Dave Housley, Shari Goldhagen, Carla Hagen, Paul A. Toth [close]