Jennifer Acker's Blog, page 106
December 19, 2019
Portrait of a Lady on Fire: A Review
HANNAH GERSEN
Written and directed by French filmmaker Céline Sciamma, and with a nearly all-female cast, Portrait is both a romantic story of two people falling in love, and a sensitive depiction of a female painter’s life and artistic practice in the eighteenth century.
Written and directed by French filmmaker Céline Sciamma, and with a nearly all-female cast, Portrait is both a romantic story of two people falling in love, and a sensitive depiction of a female painter’s life and artistic practice in the eighteenth century.
December 18, 2019
Following My Daughter’s Fitting for a Prosthetic Eye
JONATHAN FINK
“I am fascinated by the beauty of sight, / but I never crave for it,” a blind actor says, / brushing his fingers across the petals of flowers / in a softly lit bazaar. The camera tracks / from his hand to his grey-tinged hair / as a market breeze circles his linen shirt
“I am fascinated by the beauty of sight, / but I never crave for it,” a blind actor says, / brushing his fingers across the petals of flowers / in a softly lit bazaar. The camera tracks / from his hand to his grey-tinged hair / as a market breeze circles his linen shirt
December 11, 2019
Immigrants in Years 2070, 2081, and 2097 Must Furnish the Following Documents
FISTON MWANZA MUJILA
certificate of death / sperm samples / fingerprints // date of birth / first name, last name, post-name, nicknames, aliases, sobriquets / spare first and last names just in case…
certificate of death / sperm samples / fingerprints // date of birth / first name, last name, post-name, nicknames, aliases, sobriquets / spare first and last names just in case…
December 5, 2019
The House on Altamount Road
DIANE MEHTA
There were nightmares after which I flew into her bed and sometimes she let me stay there. But because these times were rare, I took what my mother offered in lieu of affection: a critical eye. Without an opinion and a critical eye, she taught me, you were nothing; you had no grounding, no broad strokes, no intellectual view.
There were nightmares after which I flew into her bed and sometimes she let me stay there. But because these times were rare, I took what my mother offered in lieu of affection: a critical eye. Without an opinion and a critical eye, she taught me, you were nothing; you had no grounding, no broad strokes, no intellectual view.
December 4, 2019
The Common’s 2019 Pushcart Prize Nominations
It's that time of year again: below are The Common's nominations for the annual Pushcart Prize! The Pushcart Prize celebrates outstanding works of literature produced by small-press writers; each of our nominations are exceptional works of art that dare to take fresh and impactful perspectives on what it means to have a unique sense of place.
November 27, 2019
For the Experience
ELLY HONG
I’d get to meet people from all over the country and world, from all sorts of cultures and backgrounds. I could become the sort of Angeleno I was supposed to be. Dad would be proud.
I’d get to meet people from all over the country and world, from all sorts of cultures and backgrounds. I could become the sort of Angeleno I was supposed to be. Dad would be proud.
November 25, 2019
November 2019 Poetry Feature: Ron Welburn
RON WELBURN
Timucuans know tobacco smoke carries prayers to our Creator. Prayers of smoke. Teaching the how of smoking is external, lumbar, digital, objective. To convert us to Gospel, let’s swap for a while, talk it over. We’re teaching you how to smoke so you will learn how to pray.
Timucuans know tobacco smoke carries prayers to our Creator. Prayers of smoke. Teaching the how of smoking is external, lumbar, digital, objective. To convert us to Gospel, let’s swap for a while, talk it over. We’re teaching you how to smoke so you will learn how to pray.
November 22, 2019
Friday Reads: November 2019
Curated by: SARAH WHELAN Already done reading our latest Issue? Prolong the fun with these weekend reading recommendations from our Issue 18 contributors. Recommendations: The Weil Conjectures by Karen Olsson; Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk; 7th Cousins: An Automythography by Erin Brubacher and Christine Brubaker; How To Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy by Jenny
November 20, 2019
A Cabin and a Dog
SUSAN HARLAN
Millie likes to walk in the creek. I walk with her, and wet leaves wrap themselves around my boots. When the wind blows, it pulls the leaves off the trees, and they fall into the creek. In the branches above are large, black cocoon-like webs. Some fall to the ground, and I try not to step on them because they look important.
Millie likes to walk in the creek. I walk with her, and wet leaves wrap themselves around my boots. When the wind blows, it pulls the leaves off the trees, and they fall into the creek. In the branches above are large, black cocoon-like webs. Some fall to the ground, and I try not to step on them because they look important.
November 19, 2019
Review: Older Brother
Book by MAHIR GUVEN Translated from the French by TINA KOVER Reviewed by FEROZ RATHER The protagonist of Mahir Guven’s debut novel, Older Brother, is the son of a Syrian emigre taxi driver and a French mother who has died by the time the story begins. He is in his late twenties. An Uber driver
