Amanda Barusch 2/22/21 Amanda Barusch 2/22/21

For Work / For TV by Fee Griffin

After a long and proud history as a “nucleaus of literary arts and experimentation in Amsterdam” and the completion of twelve gorgeous issues of their print journal, Versal is moving into books.

Amanda Barusch 1/20/21 Amanda Barusch 1/20/21

Automotive by Ceridwen Hall

Ceridwen Hall loves turning experience into poems. She likes to take things slowly, registering the details that reveal what's underneath.

Amanda Barusch 1/10/21 Amanda Barusch 1/10/21

The Gubernator's Message

The Guardian calls him our "moral gubernator," but Schwartzneger's 7-minute speech is deeply moving.

Amanda Barusch 11/12/20 Amanda Barusch 11/12/20

Now in Color, by Jackie Balderrama

Jackie's voice is so inviting! She engages social justice issues (race, language, family, immigration) with deep awareness and empathy and yet the book twirls with joy at every turn.

Amanda Barusch 10/17/20 Amanda Barusch 10/17/20

A dose of gorgeosity for those of us getting on in years

A poem by Louise Glück.

Amanda Barusch 8/12/20 Amanda Barusch 8/12/20

Ready for a Nuclear Thriller?

Nuclear Option is Dorothy Van Soest’s fourth novel and from page one, I knew I was in good hands. The work explores the tension between passion and restraint in crisp, resonant prose.

Amanda Barusch 7/1/20 Amanda Barusch 7/1/20

A Paean to My Red Heaven, by Lance Olsen

So many "ah ha" moments as we spot familiar figures in these pages. There's Hitler before he was Hitler and Billy Wilder before he wrote Some Like it Hot.

Amanda Barusch 4/16/20 Amanda Barusch 4/16/20

The Great Blueberry Muffin Battle

The mid 1980s saw heated debate in the De Gustibus column of the New York times. Who made the best blueberry muffins in Boston?

Amanda Barusch 4/5/20 Amanda Barusch 4/5/20

Baking Up a Resistance

Anyone who wonders why people are baking for comfort these days has never come home to the olfactory bliss of fresh chocolate chip cookies.

Amanda Barusch 3/17/20 Amanda Barusch 3/17/20

Nectar and Small

These pages sing in a voice that is nuanced and authentic. Contemplating the sandhill crane's millions of years on earth Balderrama asks, "Will we ever be allowed this kind of being?"

Amanda Barusch 1/21/20 Amanda Barusch 1/21/20

Hungry Ghost Theater by Sarah Stone (WTAW Press)

Hungry Ghost Theater takes us from Zanzibar to Santa Cruz through the trials and adventures of a truly complicated three-generation family.

Amanda Barusch 12/4/19 Amanda Barusch 12/4/19

Another Wild Old Lady!

"All were veteran activists," she said, and "all had energy to spare."

Amanda Barusch 6/1/18 Amanda Barusch 6/1/18

The Virgin and the Whale (a delightful read!)

Carl Nixon writes with a deft touch and he blends post-modern and archaic elements in a mix that would land with a clunk if rendered by a less dextrous hand.

Amanda Barusch 1/30/18 Amanda Barusch 1/30/18

Making the most of the least I can do, by Bob Hicok

Sometimes a poem tosses me off balance in just the right way and I have to share it with you.

Amanda Barusch 12/8/17 Amanda Barusch 12/8/17

Creating Social Change Through Creativity

Moshoula and Karen have published their amazing interdisciplinary collection on anti-oppressive research methodologies. It includes my chapter, "Conversations with Suzanna.”