Tin House Magazine, Volume 16, Issue 1, fall 2014: #61 Tribes

Tin House #61

by Win McCormack (Editor), Rob Spillman (Editor), Holly MacArthur (Editor)

Tin House is an award-winning literary magazine that publishes new writers as well as more established voices; essays as well as fiction, poetry, and interviews.

220 pages, Magazine

First published September 9, 2014

About the author

Win McCormack is an American publisher and editor from Oregon.

He is editor-in-chief of Tin House magazine and Tin House Books, the former publisher of Oregon Magazine, and founder and treasurer of MediAmerica, Inc. He serves on the board of directors of the journal New Perspectives Quarterly. His political and social writings have appeared in Oregon Humanities, Tin House, The Nation, The Oregonian, and Oregon Magazine. McCormack's investigative coverage of the Rajneeshee movement was awarded a William Allen White Commendation from the University of Kansas and the City and Regional Magazine Association. His latest book, You Don’t Know Me: A Citizen's Guide to Republican Family Values, examines the sex scandals of Republican politicians who espouse "moral values."

As a political activist, McCormack served as Chair of the Oregon Steering Committee for Gary Hart's 1984 presidential campaign. He is chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon's President's Council and a member of the Obama for President Oregon Finance Committee. McCormack was also chosen as Alternate Delegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. He currently serves on the Oregon Council for the Humanities and the Oregon Tourism Commission. Additionally, McCormack sits on the Board of Overseers for Emerson College, and is a co-founder of the Los Angeles-based Liberty Hill Foundation

Reviews

[A-ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess they can't all be winners. This issue featured some good essays and stories, but for the most part nothing really popped for me. "Mr. Voice" by Jess Walter about growing up with the man behind the voice in radio advertisements(among other things), was a clear standout. I enjoyed the concept and surreal quality of Julia Elliot's "Caveman Diet". Stacy D'Erasmo's short essay about a special dance club was beautifully written. "Place Names 501 Filomeno" used a unique structure to tell of his struggling marriage. Robert Anthony Siegel's essay, "Gourmets", had all the elements, but barely missed out on being a great essay. I'm not a big fan of poetry, but Tony Hoagland always makes me happy.

There was nothing bad in this issue, I just felt it fell a little short compared to Tin House's normally high standards.

[gillianmarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent issue... i loved everything with the exception of one story. highlights included:

Mr. Voice - Jess Walter
Place Names of 501 Filomeno - Mike Smith
Gourmets - Robert Anthony Siegel

I really couldn't get into "Mothers Lock Up Your Daughters Because They Are Terrifying, but that might be more because I just can't deal with 1st person plural rather than a problem with the actual story.

Otherwise, a perfect issue... and I loved the cover.

[Zack Quaintance]

Favorite stories:

"Mr. Voice" by Jess Walter (so good).

"The Insincere House" by Alexander Chee

[Susanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first three pieces kinda blew my mind. The rest was fine, with the exception of Alexander Chee, which was extra-fine.

[Lauryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three-plus years later and I finally finished this literary magazine! Unsurprisingly, the short stories were my favorites, and Alice Sola Kim's was just out of this world. Mr. Voice seemed kinda rushed at the end, but I still enjoyed it. Some of the poetry I enjoyed, but not all of it. A couple of the nonfiction pieces were pretty good too, and Gay's piece made me want to pick up Hunger immediately.

[Karen Kao · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hard not to love Tin House or, if you're a writer like me, long to appear in their pages. My favorite piece this time was an essay by Mike Smith called "Place Names of 501 Filomeno" that catalogues a home Smith once lived in while his marriage disintegrated. But don't worry, there are happy stories too like "Mr. Voice" by Jess Walter or fun facts about Mardi Gras in "Glitter and Glue Gun" by Sara Roahen.

Ann DeWitt reviewed an epic poem by the Deep South poet Frank Stanford. Here is an excerpt from his "the battlefield where the moon says I love you":

I got a zero on a test a big F with a red circle around it the question was
what do you know about current events I put down
I know Elvis Presley lives up the street ten houses
I know my sister's godmother is Louise Fazenda
I know my mother stayed in Hollywood with her and Hal Willis a long time ago
I know that she is secretly an actress
I know she went to the Rose Bowl with Clark Gable and Carole Lombard.
I know they played oh johnny oh johnny how can you run.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a decent issue, though the first half is stronger than the second. The pieces by Alice Sola Kim and Mike Smith were the standouts, and I enjoyed Jess Walter's story pretty well. As for the poetry, Tony Hoagland and Eavan Boland were my favorites. The "Members Only" pieces did little for me, and I continue to be baffled at all the praise David Shields receives. The "interview" between siblings Annie Baker and Benjamin Nugent was a good idea in concept, but comes off poorly, as I found much of their chatting to be of little substance.

[Jennifer Hanford · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 and a half stars for the issue, 5 stars for the cover.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good stuff. The stories by Jess Walter and Alice Sola Kim stand out as the strongest, but they are all great.

[Nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars for the cover and the short story by Alice Sola Kim called "Mothers, Lock Up Your Daughters Because They Are Terrifying." Ms. Kim, please write a novel sometime soon. Thank you.

[Zach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jess Walter, as always, is the highlight.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very solid edition. "Lock up your Daughters . . .", "Mr Voice", "Place Names. . ." and "The Plot" are all standouts. ". . .Everything is Terrible" is quite amusing.