Blood Feather
As Marcia does the dishes, she hears her daughter call from upstairs. “Mom, Mo-o-o-m . . . ” She races up but Ruthie isn’t in her room or even… More
Tiresias Tries to Talk Sense to Liriope About Young Narcissus
"Ille per Aonias fama celeberrimus urbesinreprehensa dabat populo responsa petentiprima fide vocisque ratae temptamina sumpsitcaerula Liriope, quam quondam flumine curvoinplicuit clausaeque suis Cephisos in undisvim tulit: enixa est utero… More
The Language Barrier
About a year after my father was transferred from the American Consulate in Montreal to the Consulate in Salonika, Greece, my brothers and I began to speak to our… More
November & Persephone
A golden shredding of light, slow unfolding, the airy geometry of trees revealed in a day by day transfiguration of tough vegetable matter into clearer and clearer frames of radiance, until you scarcely know… More
The Holy Ghost’s Life of Writing
The Holy Ghost's Life of WritingI think the Holy Ghost has writtennot only the Bible but all books.—George Bernard ShawNo staring out the windows, no sharpening pencils,no torn-up pages,… More
WiPC Case List: January to June 2004
The Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN was set up in 1960 as a result of mounting concern about attempts to silence critical voices around the world… More
Sube a Nacer Conmigo
Buenas noches. Thirty years ago, when Pablo Neruda was buried in Santiago’s Cementerio General, I was living just a few miles away from where his body was being lowered… More
We Are All Torturers Now
At least since Watergate, Americans have come to take for granted a certain story line of scandal, in which revelation is followed by investigation, adjudication and expiation. Together, Congress… More
The Torturer General
It seems surreal: The president's nominee for the highest legal position in the land is a proponent of torture. In his notorious Jan. 25, 2002, memorandum to Bush, Alberto… More
We’re in the Process of Losing Our Country
Was the Wednesday August 4 PEN Club meeting, during which several writers read texts, a demonstration against George Bush or a position-taking in favor of John Kerry?The PEN Club… More