darcie friesen hossack

Poetry by Sharmila Pokharel

Up Until Then I hated my mother for being unwise, Uneducated, and under his thumb I compared her with my father Disliked more for not knowing Anything about my grades My mother said she was by herself In one corner of a dark room When she gave birth to me No midwife, no sterile knifeContinue reading “Poetry by Sharmila Pokharel”

Coat Hangers and Knitting Needles. By D-L Nelson

Coat Hangers and Knitting Needles from Darcie Friesen Hossack, Managing Editor, WordCity Monthly: On my desk is a copy of D-L Nelson’s coat hangers & knitting needles, Tragedies of Abortion in America Before Roe v. Wade. The book is heavy for its size—not for the weight of its bindings—and has been accompanying me from roomContinue reading “Coat Hangers and Knitting Needles. By D-L Nelson”

Poetry by Norman Cristofoli

I Am Afrika I am the deep abyss of the dark continent the loneliness of the shifting Saharan sands the birth of the Nile and the pounding rhythm of the jungle I am the quiet heart of the elephant’s graveyard and the desperate thunder of vast grasslands I am the goldenContinue reading “Poetry by Norman Cristofoli”

Poetry by Mansour Noorbakhsh

Trapped or Glowing (After execution of Navid Afkari another human rights activist in Iran) I saw dew drops on a spiderweb glowing, in this beautiful morning. Are they trapped, or it’s a place for them to glow? First thing as you woke up in the spiderweb of social media, was that another young braveContinue reading “Poetry by Mansour Noorbakhsh”

Poetry by Masudul Hoq

Hunting knife While getting on the boat at Shangu river, The glaring of the olive dressed people toward us… At the opposite of a tempered sun Our shadow gets shaken, Then our hunting knives get sweated What if we got on the hand of spy After crossing the colorful Stone kingdom, We get stop atContinue reading “Poetry by Masudul Hoq”

A Wake for the Dreamland, by Laurel Deedrick Mayne. A review by Darcie Friesen Hossack

A note from the editor: Laurel Deedrick-Mayne’s novel won first place in the Whistler Independent Book Awards in 2018, a year I was a judge. We’re pleased to bring you the short review that accompanied the announcement, along with a new poem that is a tribute to one of the characters, drawn from real life,Continue reading “A Wake for the Dreamland, by Laurel Deedrick Mayne. A review by Darcie Friesen Hossack”

Poetry by Jordan Lide

In Your Office You were my comfort, the warm arms I trusted, and willingly, I followed you into your trap. You held me close and breathed down my neck. Your hands travelled places forbidden to go. I ignored the red flags that went off in my mind. I craved your attention so, I sat thereContinue reading “Poetry by Jordan Lide”

Poetry by Melissa Begely

Secrets She never knew she was beautiful. As a toddler and through adulthood her sister was cruel to her. She was bullied, humiliated, laughed at, and was told she was ugly and nasty. Her sister recruited others for the purpose of sniggering at and taunting her little sister. She became a quiet child, perchance thisContinue reading “Poetry by Melissa Begely”

Poetry by Nancy Ndeke

FOR RUTH( A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE) AND ALL THE ‘RUTHERANS’. The swan sung, a quietude so plaintive, Oceans picked it up and whipped it to shores afar, Details of humility of a guarantee soldier, Robed in tons of tones of resilience, From ages of flower tribes peripheral tirades, Being seen and unheard, Toys for boysContinue reading “Poetry by Nancy Ndeke”

Poetry by Jane SpokenWord

OK I give up … here’s … My f*cking virus poem in the city of the undead 6 ft apart your cough I dread your breath where’s your mask get the fuck away from me I’m busy not touching groceries locked down in my room as the hero’s work through doom and gloom in theContinue reading “Poetry by Jane SpokenWord”