Book Review: Helen of Troy, 1993 by Maria Zoccola
by Allie Farrell Photograph by Morgan Lyttle Maria Zoccola, a queer Southern writer and educator from Memphis, Tennessee, brings the epic to the everyday in her debut collection, Helen of Troy, 1993 (Scribner, 2025). One of her “Helen” poems was previously featured...
read moreBook Review: Querida by Nathan Xavier Osorio
by LG Sebayan Nathan Xavier Osorio’s award-winning debut poetry collection, Querida, looks at the lives of a family of immigrant origin in the San Fernando area of Los Angeles. Chosen by Shara McCallum as the winner of the 2024 Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize,...
read moreBook Review: The Girl Who Became a Rabbit by Emilie Menzel
By: Allie Farrell (Note: lines are cited by section #, then page #. Example: [1.7] for section 1, page 7) Photo credit: Sean T. Bailey Emilie Menzel, a previous contributor to Cream City Review, debuted her first book of poetry through the Hub City Press in September....
read moreBook Review: Wager by Adele Elise Williams
By: Annaliese Kunst Wager is former Cream City Review contributor Adele Elise Williams’ debut poetry book—as well as the finalist for the 2024 Miller Williams Poetry Prize, in which the judge Patricia Smith described it as “crafted to upend the familiar.” This poetry...
read moreBook Review: Softie by Megan Howell
By: Emily Barnard Softie, written by Washington, D.C. author Megan Howell (pictured), is a thought-provoking book featuring a collection of short stories. These stories, while including contrasting characters, worlds, and genres, carry similar themes that ring true...
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