Amy Leach received an M.F.A. in Creative Nonfiction from the University of Iowa. Her essays have been published in The Iowa Review, A Public Space, and The Wilson Quarterly. She is working on a collection of essays about Eta Carinae (a star), Love-Lies-Bleeding (a flower), the takahe (a bird), and Phobos (a moon), among other things. "When Trees Dream of Being Trees" was first published in Spring 2006 issue of The Iowa Review.

Debra L. Hutchison spent the first eighteen years of her life on a dairy farm outside of Hampton, Iowa. "Iowa has had a great deal of influence on my sensibilities as a poet," she says. She earned a MFA from Vermont College and currently teaches Introduction to Poetry and Critical Writing at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, NY.

Dianna Penny was born in St. Louis and grew up in downstate Illinois. She completed high school in Muscatine, Iowa, and earned a B.A. in art at the University of Iowa.

Amy White is a playwright from Mt. Vernon. Her play, "The Knitting Lesson," was produced by the Mt. Vernon/Lisbon Community Theatre in 2001. She performed a slightly longer version of "Blink" at Riverside Theatre, Iowa City, at their 2003 "Walking the Wire" monologue show.

William Ford lives in Iowa City and teaches distance learning writing courses for Kirkwood Community College. A designated "Iowa Poet," 2003, at the Des Moines National Poetry Festival, he has published one book, The Graveyard Picnic (Mid-America Press, 2002); a second, Past Present Imperfect, is due out from Wordtech (2006).

Carolyn S. Briggs grew up in Eldora, Iowa. She won New Letters' Heartland Short Fiction Prize in 1997 and published her memoir This Dark World: A Memoir of Salvation Found and Lost (Bloomsbury) in 2002. She is an assistant professor of English at Marshalltown Community College.

John McBride, Ph.D (English, Univ. of Illinois), MSW (Iowa), taught and held administrative posts at the Universities of Illinois, Michigan, and Iowa, has won awards from many state poetry societies, and is published in a variety of journals.

Elizabeth Duffy, PhD�also published as Beth Anne Duffy�lives in Solon and is a former professor of international cultural linguistics. Dr. Duffy is actively writing, enjoys reading Russian and Celtic poetry, has written poetry about African Maasai women, and has recited poetry in Germany.

Jim O'Loughlin is an Assistant Professor of English at the University of Northern Iowa. He runs the Final Thursday Reading Series in Cedar Falls and is the publisher of Final Thursday Press.

Poet Nan Lundeen, who grew up on a farm in Clinton County, Iowa, is a staff writer for The Greenville News in Greenville, South Carolina. Her poem "Crate" won best of issue in the South Carolina Writers Workshop 2002 Anthology. Her poetry has been published in small literary magazines.

Brian Chambers, of Eddyville, is a life-long Iowan who retired from the military with twenty years of service. He is currently attending Simpson College in Indianola, majoring in English with a history minor.

Nick Dowd grew up in western Iowa, graduated from Drake, and now lives in Nashville, Tennessee. Though he has not lived in his home state for many years, Iowa is still the object of his affection.

Curtis Bauer earned his B.A. from Central College, in Pella, IA, and London, England; and an MFA from Sarah Lawrence College, NY. After several years based alternately in Mexico, Spain, and Iowa City, he now teaches Creative Writing at Texas Tech University. This poem is from Bauer's collection Fence Line (BkMk Press, 2003), which won the 2003 John Ciardi Poetry Prize.

Mani Rao was born in 1965 in India, and moved to Hong Kong in 1993, where she has mostly lived since. She is the author of six poetry collections. A Fall 2005 participant in the UI's International Writing Program, Rao is back in Iowa as the 2006 UI International Programs Writer-in-Residence. This story is from the book H.K.I.D: Stories from the city's hidden writers (Hong Kong: Haven Books, 2005).

Terry Savoie's work has appeared in more than 130 literary journals, anthologies, and small press publications, including Poetry, Ploughshares, and Prairie Schooner. He lives in Davenport.

Bob Tremmel grew up in Sheldon, Iowa, graduated three times from the University of Iowa, and since 1989 has been teaching in the English Department at Iowa State University. Most semesters he has lunch once a week with his friend and colleague, Mary Swander, in Mary's luxurious office suite. Bob is the author of Zen and the Practice of Teaching English and a recent book of poems, Crossing Crocker Township.

Kristin Hall was recently married and lives with her husband and two cats in Iowa City where she enjoys gardening and fixing up her very old house.

Ina Loewenberg has lived in Iowa City for more than 36 years. In addition to her most recent career as a photographer, she has been an internal auditor at The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, a tax preparer for H & R Block, and a philosophy teacher at Coe College.

Dian M. Gottlob works in the University of Iowa's Center for Credit Programs, where she coordinates two extended learning undergraduate programs: the Bachelor of Liberal Studies and the Bachelor of Applied Studies. She also has an adjunct teaching appointment with the College of Public Health. She resides in Kalona where she writes both fiction and nonfiction.

John E. Archer is an Iowa native, born in Centerville, who lives in West Liberty, Iowa. He has authored technical articles while working for several industrial firms. His latest project is a first-person account of growing up in Muscatine and Davenport, Iowa, along the Mississippi.

Iowa native Mary Vermillion pens mystery novels and teaches English at Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids. Her first novel, Death by Discount�a finalist for two Lambda awards�portrays Wal-Mart's impact on small towns. Her second novel, Murder by Mascot, features Hawkeye basketball.

Tim Trenkle is a resident of Dubuque, Iowa, where he writes a column for the Telegraph Herald. "My people have all been farmers and meatpackers," he says. "I write human interest pieces about Iowa and the values of our world, seen from the banks of the Mississippi."

David Mitschelen's boyhood home was Madrid, Iowa. He earned a Master in Library and Information Science from the University of Iowa in 1993 and currently provides answers at Washington High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Claire Kean lives in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is twelve years old and a sixth grader at Harding Middle School. "I like reading just about any type of story, but I like to write non-fiction the best," she says.

Mary Iber is Consulting Librarian for the Sciences at Cornell College, and teaches in the School of Library and Information Science at the University of Iowa as an adjunct assistant professor. She has lived in Iowa for 23 years.

Kristy Parker was born and raised in Waterloo and is currently an Art Education major at the University of Northern Iowa. She has been writing poetry since she was 12 years old.

Walter Richard Knupfer received his B.A., M.F.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Iowa. His work has appeared in The Paris Review, The Antioch Review, Ploughshares, The Ohio Review, Turnstile, The Great Lakes Review, and elsewhere.

Sheena Maree Smitley was born in Des Moines, Iowa. She is 20 years old and a sophomore at Simpson College. An English major, she plans to teach high school after graduating.

Savanna lives in Cedar Rapids. She enjoys reading, riding her bike and hanging out with her mom and friends. Savanna dreams of becoming a president, judge, lawyer, writer and actress.

David Zollo is an Iowa City-based singer, songwriter, keyboardist, and the founder of the music label Trailer Records. His CDs include The Big Night, Uneasy Street, and The Morning is a Long Way from Home.

A Duluth, Minnesota native, Tom Snee now lives in Iowa City with his wife and son. His work has appeared in the Wapsipinicon Almanac, The Long Story, Elysian Fields Quarterly, and Exquisite Corpse. His story, "First Start," was recently included in Fenway Fiction, an anthology of stories about the Boston Red Sox. He works in the University News Service of the University of Iowa.

Chris Kilgore is an Iowa writer. He was born in Dubuque but has lived in Iowa City since 1997 (with a 10-month hiatus in Missoula, MT). He has a few stories posted on online journals, one of them published in an e-zine called Johnny America.

Aliona Hairetdinova, originally from the Republic of Moldova, is a sophomore at Drake University majoring in international business, finance, and English. "I write both prose and poetry in my spare time�usually both are in the abstract or lyrical form," she says.

Robert Dana is Poet Laureate of Iowa.

Kim Bridgford is a professor of English at Fairfield University, where she edits Dogwood and Mezzo Cammin. Her third book of poetry, In the Extreme: Sonnets About World Records, recently won the Donald Justice Poetry Award and will be published by the West Chester University Poetry Center in spring 2007.

Jean Marie Hall is a feature story writer and columnist for the Clayton County Register in Elkader, Iowa. Her column is entitled "Flora, Fauna and Folks." She has worked for this weekly newspaper for nearly twenty years.

John Kies, his wife of fifteen years, Emerita, and their two children, Clarice and Luke, live in rural Jackson County.

Nicole Rae Hancock is 14 years old. She lives in Ames, Iowa, and goes to Ames Middle School, where English is her favorite subject. "I started writing when I was in sixth grade and haven't stopped since," she says.

Christine Dale is a nontraditional student currently pursuing her B.A. in English, with a minor in Creative Writing, at the University of Northern Iowa. For the last year she has been working at the North American Review. One of her poems, also about Iowa life, won third place, college division, in Lyrical Iowa 2005.

James C. Perley was born in Iowa and lives with his wife on their farm in Little Sioux. After serving in the Air Force, he earned an MA from the University of Iowa. "We raised two children. My wife teaches school. And I chase storms," he says.

Lidija Dimkovska participated in the 2005 International Writing Program residency at the University of Iowa. Born in 1971 in Skopje, she has lived in Bucharest, where she attained a doctoral degree in Romanian literature, and now lives and works in Ljubljana, Slovenia. "Nail Clippers" is from her first collection in English, Do Not Awaken Them With Hammers, which was published in 2006 by Ugly Duckling Presse.

In addition to working at the University of Iowa's Honors Program, Sarah Prineas is a writer whose stories have appeared in Realms of Fantasy, Paradox, and Cicada, and in the Hugo-nominated online magazine Strange Horizons. Three of her stories have been honorably mentioned in The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror edited by Ellen Datlow, Kelly Link, and Gavin Grant.

Floyd Sandford is a Coe College Professor emeritus of Biology. A former Peace Corps volunteer in Africa, he does marine biology research in the Caribbean, enjoys world travel and long-distance hiking, and works to encourage habitat preservation and increased biodiversity for wildlife and other entities with no voice on an acreage in Northeast Iowa.

Born in Council Bluffs in 1940, Robert Berner was a student in the Poetry Workshop in the 60s, working with Don Justice, Marvin Bell and George Starbuck. He currently lives in New Haven with Cecelia, his wife of 40 years, and publishes poems occasionally in literary magazines.

Margaret Horn works at the Center for Credit Programs at the University of Iowa and helps students register for Guided Independent Study, Saturday & Evening, and Distance Education courses. She has written a novel on domestic violence and lives in Iowa City.

Courtney Staudacher is in the eighth grade in Harding Middle School. She wrote her poem last year.

Ezzat Goushegir, a playwright, author and film critic, received her M.F.A from the Theatre Department of the University of Iowa. In 1990 she was a Fellow in the UI's International Writing Program. Currently she teaches at DePaul University. "Gang Lu Bought Two Guns," which Ms. Goushegir began writing in 1992, is based on the 1991 shootings of six UI faculty and staff members by a former UI graduate student.

Mike Chasar lives in Iowa City where he is a frequent contributor to "Poetic License," a Monday feature of the Iowa City Press-Citizen's op-ed page. More of his writing is available online at Poetry, Word for/Word, The Cortland Review, and The Iowa Review Web.

Susan Glaspell (1882-1848) was born in Davenport, Iowa, graduated from Drake University, and worked as a journalist at the Des Moines Daily News before moving to Cape Cod, MA, where she wrote drama and fiction.

Hamlin Garland (1860-1940) was born in Wisconsin and grew up in homesteads in Winneshiek County and Mitchell County, Iowa. "Under the Lion's Paw" appeared in his short story collection Main-Travelled Roads (1891).

Alice French (1850-1934), whose pen name was Octave Thanet, was born in Massachusetts but lived in Davenport, Iowa, from the age of five until her death. She wrote seven novels and seventeen short-story collections. "The Face of Failure" is from Stories of a Western Town (1893).

Bess Streeter Aldrich (1881-1954) was born in Cedar Falls, Iowa. She graduated from Iowa State Normal School (now the University of Northern Iowa) and moved to Nebraska where she raised a family and wrote fiction.

Vic Camillo teaches at the University of Iowa. "A Letter from Barbara" first appeared in The Iowa Review 36.2 (Spring 2006). More of his writing can be found at his web site.

Dana Sonnenschein graduated from the University of Iowa in 1983 but still comes back regularly to visit family. Currently, she teaches at Southern Connecticut State University. She has published two chapbooks, Corvus and No Angels But These; a full-length collection, Natural Forms, is forthcoming from Word Press in 2006.

Dan Maloney is the lead singer of the Iowa City indie/folk/pop band Death Ships, which will release a CD this year titled Seeds of Devastation.

Gail Ariel Brehio is originally from Southern California. After years in Seattle, she and her husband chose Iowa to move to, after researching ideal places to raise a family. "Three things that are not so ideal: snow, ice, and tornados!" she says.

Christopher Merrill directs the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. "Logbook" first appeared in The Iowa Review 35/1 (Spring 2005).

Shon Wignall is a twelve-year-old at Harding Junior High in Cedar Rapids. She is in seventh grade and is an honor student. She participates in extra-curricular activities at her school, likes to read, and also likes music.

Mario Duarte is an alumnus of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He has published poems in The American Poetry Review, Carolina Quarterly, and Sycamore Review, among others. Mario is an Academic Advisor in the Academic Advising Center at the University of Iowa.

Rejeanne Davis Ashley Hankins moved to Solon, Iowa, from Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, with her husband in 2005. She is an editor, writer, and communications consultant; she also enjoys painting, drawing, making bracelets, cooking, and gardening.

Kathryn Cushman Hall is a local writer and editor. She currently works at the University of Iowa.

Meridith Brand lives and works in Iowa City.

Yiyun Li grew up in Beijing and came to the United States in 1996. She earned MFA degrees in fiction and nonfiction writing at the University of Iowa and currently teaches at Mills College in Oakland, California. Her essay "The Ground Floor" was first published in The Iowa Review in Fall 2004.

Steven Patterson grew up on the California coast and lived for many years in the high desert of Idaho. He graduated from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he was a Teaching-Writing Fellow, and has since returned there as a visiting professor. He now lives with his wife in Iowa City, where the mountains are just memories. "Aground and Aloft" was first published in The Iowa Review's Spring 2004 issue.

Charlotte Wright is the managing editor of the University of Iowa Press. She has published poetry, stories, essays, reviews, and literary criticism.

Kim Bluth is an American writer currently living in The Netherlands. She attended the Iowa Summer Writing Festival last summer. "My writing became a true passion there and then," she says.

Joshua Kryah attended the Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa and is currently a Schaeffer Fellow in poetry at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His manuscript, Glean, will be published by Nightboat Books in 2007. "Neverbody" first appeared in The Iowa Review 36.1 (Spring 2006).

Verl Lekwa of Columbus Junction, Iowa, was raised in Cedar County, graduated from the University of Iowa, taught high school for 34 years, and retired. "Is this Heaven?....Then It's Not Iowa" appeared in the most recent issue (#11) of Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac.

J. Harley McIlrath manages the Grinnell College bookstore and writes powerful fiction. He and his family live in rural Grinnell. "'Possum Trot" appeared in the most recent issue (#11) of Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac.

Dennis Herrick received an M.A. in journalism at the University of Iowa. The former publisher of the Sun in Mount Vernon and Lisbon, he now teaches journalism at the University of New Mexico and writes fiction. He is the 2004 winner of the Tony Hillerman Mystery Contest. "Spirit Journey" appeared in the most recent issue (#11) of Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac.

Annice Frederick has a BA in Art from the University of Iowa. She has been published in Lyrical Iowa, See Magazine, and Moments in Time.

Carol Wilson Weller Lauriault, a third-generation Iowan, is a University of Iowa graduate. Born in Des Moines, she attended public schools there, as well as in Macedonia and Council Bluffs. She lives in Gainesville, FL, as do her two adult children, Alec and Clea.

Lindsay B. Wood will be a 2006 graduate of Simpson College, with a Bachelor's Degree in English. A native of Greenfield, Iowa, she has developed a recent love for both fiction writing and poetry, and hopes to write her own book one day.

Sabit Madaliev lives in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and participated in the 2004 International Writing Program. The Silence of the Sufi will be published in Russell Valentino's English translation by Autumn Hill Books in Fall 2006. Russell Valentino's essays and translations have been published by The Iowa Review, eXchanges, Two Lines, and 91st Meridian. He teaches at the University of Iowa. "Three Poems" was originally published in the Winter 2006 issue of eXchanges, the University of Iowa's literary e-journal devoted to translations both into and out of the English language.

Adrienne Ho received an MFA in literary translation at the University of Iowa in May 2006. Her work is forthcoming in Burnside Review, Circumference, Denver Quarterly, and Ninth Letter. Adrienne Ho writes that Sulpicia's poems are "the only extant female literary text from the Augustan period (1st century BCE) of ancient Rome." Several of Ms. Ho's Sulpicia translations were published in the Winter 2006 issue of 91st Meridian, the electronic journal of the University of Iowa's International Writing Program�an electronic forum to encourage the frank exchange of ideas.

Shimon Adaf is an Israeli poet, translator, essayist and guitarist. In 2003, he participated in the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. Becka Mara McKay was born in Clinton, Iowa. She is currently working on a PhD in comparative literature at the University of Iowa. "Icarus Remembers" first appeared in the premier issue (Fall 2003) of eXchanges, the University of Iowa's literary e-journal devoted to translations both into and out of the English language.

Jamie Richards holds an MFA in literary translation from the University of Iowa and is currently pursuing a doctorate in comparative literature at the University of Oregon. Her latest translation is Giacomo Papi's Booked: The Last 150 Years Told Through Mug Shots (Seven Stories Press). This and other excerpts from Giancarlo Pastore's Meduse were first published alongside the original Italian in the Spring 2005 issue of eXchanges.

Aaron McCollough's third book Little Ease is forthcoming in September from Ahsahta Press. He attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop and currently lives in Michigan. "This poem was written in the fossil gorge outside of Iowa City," he says. "It is a favorite place of mine, as is the state more generally. Having never really felt I 'belong' anywhere, it is amazing how much I feel at home in Iowa."

Cecile Goding is from South Carolina, where she directed neighborhood adult literacy programs for some years. Her essay "Six Degrees of Fluency," set in Charleston, won a GAMA award in 2000 A.D. She lives and works in Iowa City.

Chris Harrision grew up in Texas, hated it, attends the University of Iowa and loves it.

Warren Slesinger, a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, retired from the University of South Carolina Press where he was an editor. He lives on the coast and teaches part-time at the University of South Carolina-Beaufort. With Stephen Corey, he compiled and edited Spreading the Word: Editors on Poetry for The Bench Press which he founded twenty years ago.

Peter Balestrieri is a writer and musician. He has writing in Notre Dame Review, Mandorla, and Deluxe Rubber Chicken. His visual poetry appears in local and international exhibitions. As a musician, he's toured and recorded extensively, most notably with the rock group Violent Femmes. He lives in Iowa City.

Jamie Braxton Cooper is a 2004 graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He is currently a freelance writer living in Portland, OR. His poems have previously appeared in The Libertine.

Steve Sherman emigrated to Iowa from New Providence, New Jersey, in the year 2002. He is of average height, average build, and is capable of wonderful things. "Certificate" appeared originally in earthwords, the undergraduate literary review at the University of Iowa. The review's mission is to showcase the creative works of UI undergraduates in literature and the arts, while providing students with an educational experience with the production of a literary magazine.

Genevieve Kaplan is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and edits the Toad Press International Chapbook Series.

Chad Chmielowicz graduated from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 2003 and worked at the International Writing Program for 3 years. He lives in Chicago.

Vivienne Plumb writes poetry, prose, and drama, and is based in Wellington, New Zealand. She is presently writer in residence at Massey University in Palmerston North, N.Z., where she is working on a new poetry book. In November, 2006, a small N.Z. press will be publishing a small joint collection of poetry in English/Polish translation that will feature poems of Vivienne's and of Adam Wiedemann's, a Polish poet Vivienne met during the International Writing Program's Iowa residency in 2004.

Kurt Folch, Chilean poet and translator, participated in the 2004 International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. His poetry has received many awards, such as the Pablo Neruda Creative Writing Fellowship (1997) and the Jose Donoso Creative Writing Fellowship (1998). His 2002 translation of William Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor is in circulation across the Spanish-speaking world. He is currently working on Julius Caesar and a translation of a selection of George Oppen's poems to be published this winter.

Pieta Brown is an Iowa-based singer-songwriter. Her three albums are Pieta Brown (Trailer Records, 2002), I Never Told (T Records, 2003), and In the Cool (Valley Entertainment, 2005).

Peter Carter Wilson graduated from the University of Iowa in 1990 with a degree in political science. "I initially moved to Washington, DC to work in politics," he says. "In 2004 I relocated with my wife and cat to New Orleans, where I work as a paralegal and try to avoid hurricanes."

Meredith Glasson-Darling writes: "I grew up in West Branch, Iowa, out in the countryside between two cornfields and started writing to pass the time on road trips up to see my grandparents in Cherokee, Iowa. I currently am a sophmore at the University of Iowa majoring in Russian and International Studies."

Kelly Bartolotta writes: "I'm a 21-year-old student originally from the Chicago area, but deeply entrenched in the small-town, quiet and serene life in Mount Vernon, Iowa. The vastness of this state and the beauty of its nature have helped cultivate my work beyond what it ever was before." Her poem was inspired by a photgraph by Edmund Teske.

Judy L. Buddenbaum writes: "I was encouraged by Ms. Gertrude Hilmer and Mrs. Virginia Rumble, both high school English teachers at Tipton Consolidated School. I'm retired and now a resident of Iowa again. I have attended two weekends at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival and I have taken many writers' workshops. I'm a student-at-large."

Pierre-Damien Mvuyekure is the author of Lamentations on the Rwandan Genocide (Final Thursday Press), a collection that includes this poem. A professor of English at the University of Northern Iowa, he is also the editor of World Eras Volume 10: West African Kingdoms, 500-1590.

Nicole A. Zdeb is a poet and translator. Nicole spent four happy years living and working in Iowa City, where she met her fiancé, fellow-poet Jamie Cooper. She, Jamie, and their two spoiled cats now live in Portland, Oregon.

Steven Moore is a senior at Washington High School in Washington, Iowa, and will be attending the University of Iowa this fall to major in English while continuing to serve in the Iowa Army National Guard.

Joy Goswami is regarded as one of the finest poets in the "post-Jibananda Das era" of Bengali poetry. He is the author of twenty-five collections of poetry, ten novels (one of which is in verse), and a book of critical essays. In 2001 he participated in the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.

Prasenjit Gupta, a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, is the author of A Brown Man and Other Stories (Rupa, 2002). He lived in Iowa City and worked at the UI Press for twelve years, then joined the Foreign Service and is currently serving in Chennai, India.

The original poem appeared in the collection of poems paataar poshhaak, first published in 1997. The translation was first published on Parabaas.com, the leading web site devoted to Bengali literature in Bengali and translation.

Viktoria Fomina, an award-winning fiction writer, represents a new Russian generation in whose literary work the memory of the Soviet era is layered with images of a rapidly changing post-socialist urban scene. Fomina attended the 2000 International Writing Program and returned to Iowa City in 2004 as the Writer-in-Residence at the UI International Programs.

Anna Barker is Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Iowa's English Department. Her translations have appeared in 91st Meridian and in International Accents magazine.

"The School of Presentation" refers to an acting method developed by Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko, founders of the Moscow Art Theater. The author studied at the Moscow Art Theater School. "Opus #2" is the second of three pieces comprising "The School of Presentation."

Joe Blair graduated with an MFA from the nonfiction department at the U of I. He runs his own HVAC business in Iowa City. He has a wife and four kids.

Susan McCarty was born and raised in Iowa City and now works in New York City as a book editor. Her writing has appeared in Hunger Mountain, Northwest Review, and Boston's Weekly Dig. She was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2005.

Alecia Magner writes: "I am twelve years old and have lived in Iowa most of my life. I like to dance, write, sing, read Shel Silverstein's poetry, and dream that I am in my own little world."

Dan Rowray was a 29-0 State Champion wrestler in high school, attended the University of Iowa on a wrestling scholarship, and studied art. He has lived in Iowa City for 14 years.

Sherry Gordon is originally from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, and is a Christian, feminist, liberal, progressive woman. She attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in the early 1980s; in September 1990, she relocated to Iowa on a Greyhound bus. She transferred to the University of Iowa, where she is currently a Women's Studies and Sexuality Studies major.

Karen Pace was born in Ottumwa, Iowa, and ended up in Iowa City twelve years ago. She attends Nazarene Church. She has been writing song lyrics since high school and started writing poetry in July 2005, thanks to the Patient Voice Project. "Poem" is also published as a letterpress broadside by Spout Graphic Press and is available for purchase at Prairie Lights bookstore.

Kathy Kapitan's hometown is Yankton, SD, and she currently gardens in Storm Lake, IA. She teaches composition courses at Buena Vista University. An avid reader, undisciplined writer, and enthusiastic gardener, Kapitan loves the Midwest, all four seasons, and the horizon as well as her family, friends, dogs, ducks, and cats.

LeeAnn McCoy is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where she was an Iowa Arts Fellow. She lives in Iowa City with her husband and is working on her first novel.

Marvin Bell is the former Poet Laureate of Iowa.

Joanna Klink was born in Iowa City, Iowa. After leaving the state to attend college and graduate school, she returned to study poetry at the Iowa Writers' Workshop. The author of They Are Sleeping and Circadian (forthcoming from Penguin in 2007), she teaches at the University of Montana, Missoula.

William Elliott Whitmore is an Iowa-based singer and songwriter. His latest album is Song of the Blackbird.

Marcia A. Murphy is a writer and hospital volunteer. She has written extensively and published work on mental illness and recovery. She lives in Iowa City, IA.

Don E. Perkins has lived in Iowa all his life except for his time in the Navy during World War II. He earned a Masters in Education degree at the U of Iowa. Don is married, has three adult children, and two adult grandchildren. He lives in Des Moines.

Millie Frese lives in Marshalltown, Iowa.

Patricia Ballard Coffie writes and tells stories from home. Her family is Iowan for six generations, back to the 1840s. She has served as president of the Iowa Library Association and the Northlands Storytelling Network, a five-state organization. She has served on the Board of the National Storytelling Network.

Samuel Stewart writes: "I am fourteen years old and homeschooled. My parents graduated from the University of Iowa, and my grandmother lives in Sioux City. My inspiration for this essay came from my grandmother's backyard."

Linda Hime Newberry writes: "I am a 1986 graduate of the University of Iowa and an Iowa City native.  I earned my master's degree from the Harvard Extension School in 2002.  I travel widely lecturing and teaching quilting.  My husband and I live halfway between Boston and Cape Cod."

Amelia Colwell was raised in Waterloo, Iowa.  She studied  psychology and social work at the University of Iowa.  She now lives  and works in Minneapolis.

Etgar Keret was born in Tel-Aviv, Israel in 1967. His latest book, The Nimrod Flipout, was published in spring 2006 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. He participated in the 2001 International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.

"600 Words" appeared originally in 91st Meridian, the electronic journal of the University of Iowa's International Writing Program: �an electronic forum to encourage the frank exchange of ideas.

Alice Davison has lived in Iowa City and other parts of the Midwest for many years, after graduate study in linguistics at the University of Chicago. She currently teaches linguistics at the University of Iowa. In 2004-5 she underwent medical treatment at the Mayo Clinic and the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics.

The Patient Voice Project offers free creative writing classes for the chronically and mentally ill in the Iowa City community, taught by Master of Fine Arts students in the Writers' Workshop. The ambition of the program is to explore the therapeutic benefits of writing for those struggling with chronic, mental, and physical pain, to address what medical sociologist Arthur Frank calls the "narrative wreckage" caused by serious injury or illness.

Louis Prokop graduated from the University of Iowa in Spring 2006. He is originally from Saint Paul, Minnesota. "I find that growing up in the frozen North has influenced the tones and landscapes of my poems on the subconscious and physical levels." To date he has been published in online magazines such as Double Dare Press and the non-online independent Unarmed Journal.

"Fossil Hunting"� appeared originally in earthwords, the undergraduate literary review at the University of Iowa.  The review's mission is to showcase the creative works of UI undergraduates in literature and the arts, while providing students with an educational experience with the production of a literary magazine.

Iowa City resident and frequent visiting professor at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, Chris Offutt is the author of two books of stories, Kentucky Straight and Out of the Woods; one novel, The Good Brother; and two memoirs, The Same River Twice, and No Heroes. "Lucy's People"� originally appeared in the Summer 2005 issue of Fence.

Román Antopolsky, from Buenos Aires, Argentina, is a ground-breaking translator and an increasingly prominent figure in South American avant-garde poetry. He is participating in the 2006 International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.

Michelle Gil-Montero graduated from Brown University in 2002 and is now an MFA candidate in Poetry at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. She received an Academy of American Poets' Prize in 2006.

Poet, fiction writer, essayist, and screenwriter, Rafael Courtoisie is one of Uruguay’s leading writers. He is participating in the 2006 International Writing Program this fall.

Laksmi Pamuntjak is a columnist, translator, bookstore owner, and award-winning poet from Jakarta, Indonesia. She is participating in the 2006 International Writing Program.

Partaw Naderi has published five poetry collections and several prose books on modern Afghan literature. He heads the media division of the Afghan Civil Society Forum in Kabul. He is participating in the 2006 International Writing Program.

José Eugenio Sánchez, an award-winning poet from Monterrey, Mexico, is participating in the 2006 International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.

Elias Simpson grew up in Ames, Iowa, and recently finished his first year at the University of Iowa: "I hope to continue writing, although there is a great possibility of distraction." His majors are English and French.

Kodi Scheer, an Iowa native, received her B.A. in Literature, Science, and the Arts from the University of Iowa. She is currently a Colby fellow in the M.F.A. program at the University of Michigan. "Three Minutes" is based on her experiences as a research assistant in neurology at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Toby Dimmitt, who graduated from the University of Iowa in May 2006, writes, "Soy de Fairfield, IA . . . Soy muy curioso y me gusta encontrar y aprender nuevas cosas que me hacen crecer intelectual y espiritualmente.  Especialmente me gusta hacer ejercicio, leer, pasar tiempo con mi familia, los amigos y estar al aire libre.  Quiero en el futuro viajar y siempre estar contento conmigo mismo."

"El cisne negro" appeared originally in second volume of NOSOTROS, a chapbook of creative work in Spanish produced each semester by Roberto Ampuero's class Taller de Escritura Creativa (35:108).  Roberto Ampuero is a lecturer in the UI Department of Spanish and Portugeuse and the internationally published author of nine novels.

Grace Van Voorhis writes, "Soy un estudiante de Washington University en St. Louis, donde estudio relaciones internacionales.  Tomé la clase Taller de escritura creativa con el maravilloso Profesor Ampuero durante mi cuarto ano del colegio porque quería explorar mi imaginación escribiendo en español, una lengua que me ama mucho."

"Las palabras vacías" appeared originally in second volume of NOSOTROS, a chapbook of creative work in Spanish produced each semester by Roberto Ampuero's class Taller de Escritura Creativa (35:108).  Roberto Ampuero is a lecturer in the UI Department of Spanish and Portuguese and the internationally published author of nine novels.

Douglas Trevor is an Associate Professor of English at the University of Iowa. His fiction has been anthologized in The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2005 and The O. Henry Prize Stories 2006. "Fellowship of the Bereaved" is the final story in The Thin Tear of the Fabric of Space (University of Iowa Press, 2005).

Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a range of titles for general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated in part to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Kerry Egan grew up in Long Island, New York, and received her B.A. from Washington and Lee University and her master's of divinity from Harvard University Divinity School. A year after her father died, she walked through northern Spain on a medieval pilgrimage road called the Camino de Santiago. Fumbling is the journal of her experiences.

Margalea Warner is a writer of poetry and essays.  She has lived with mental illness since its onset in her early twenties, and themes of suffering, loss, recovery, faith, and joy run through her writings. She has had poems and essays published in small magazines.

The Patient Voice Project offers free creative writing classes for the chronically and mentally ill in the Iowa City community, taught by Master of Fine Arts students in the Writers' Workshop. The ambition of the program is to explore the therapeutic benefits of writing for those struggling with chronic, mental, and physical pain, to address what medical sociologist Arthur Frank calls the "narrative wreckage" caused by serious injury or illness.

Isaac Sullivan is a recent graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. His poems have appeared in GutCult, POOL: A Journal of Poetry, Georgetown Review, Mustachioed, Kulture Vulture, and elsewhere.

Zack Gauck is a southerner with no accent, from Cary, North Carolina. In high school he enrolled in Chinese for his foreign language and came to the conclusion that Chinese should be his major in college. He is 21 years old, still watches cartoons, and wishes that he knew ninjitsu.  Most of his furniture was found on the curbside.

"Never Closed" appeared originally in earthwords, the undergraduate literary review at the University of Iowa.  The review's mission is to showcase the creative works of UI undergraduates in literature and the arts, while providing students with an educational experience with the production of a literary magazine.

Matt Austin is a undergraduate at the University of Iowa. Of his process he says, "it is highly ritualistic, usually involving some sort of sacrifice similar to the one in the movie Dragnet with Tom Hanks and that other guy."  He currently lives in Iowa City.

"The So-Called Nazi at the Last Supper" appeared originally in earthwords, the undergraduate literary review at the University of Iowa.  The review's mission is to showcase the creative works of UI undergraduates in literature and the arts, while providing students with an educational experience with the production of a literary magazine.

Julie Claus had a vagabond childhood. The simple question, "Where are you from?" created panic in her soul because she attended eleven different elementary schools in seven states. Now the answer is clear. She's lived in Coralville, Iowa for twenty-two years. She wrote this poem at the Coralville pool.

Kelsey Huston is 12 years old and is a seventh grader at Wilson Middle School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is involved in volleyball, basketball, and tennis throughout the year. She also plays alto saxophone in band. She spends her free time writing poems or stories in her room.

Tad Richards has an MA from the Iowa Workshop (1963) and remains spiritually connected to those roots. His poem about Donald Justice was included in The Iowa Review's tribute issue.

Gerald Wickham writes, “I am an adoptee of the state of Iowa from Ireland, and I believe in Iowa wholeheartedly.” He is associate director of internships at the Pomerantz Career Center at the University of Iowa.

Claudine Harris has a lifelong interest in creative expression through language  and the arts. A retired technical writer from University of Iowa Hospitals and past president of NAMI-Iowa, she works in poetry, personal essays, and photography. Her work often reflects her early training in physics and love of nature. This piece was written following attendance at Armando Duarte's "Ten" a few years ago.

Katherine McLeod Searle received a BA in English in 1973 from the University of Iowa. She has been teaching Language Arts at JB Young Intermediate in Davenport for the past 24 years.

Katherine West is a native of Creston, Iowa and received her B.A. from University of Northern Iowa (’69). After moving to California with her husband Robert (University of Iowa, ’70), she earned M.A. degrees from California State - San Bernardino and California Lutheran University while teaching secondary English.

Sarah Shey writes, “A native of Algona, Iowa, I now live in Brooklyn, NY. I travel back often, though, especially because I want my three-year-old son to know the rural way of life. I have written two Iowa-based children's books, Sky All Around and Blue Lake Days.”

Andy Douglas is a graduate of the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa. He lives in Iowa City.

Ashley Capps received her MFA from the University of Iowa. Her first book, Mistaking the Sea for Green Fields, is forthcoming in October 2006. “Hymn for Two Choirs” first appeared in the Fall 2006 issue of The Iowa Review.

Spanish poet Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881–1958) received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1956. Michael Carey farms in southwest Iowa near the town of Farragut. He is the author of a teaching manual and five books of poetry. “The Little Green Girl” first appeared in the Fall 2006 issue of The Iowa Review.

Julie Hanson moved to Cedar Rapids in 1978, earned an M.A. and M.F.A. at the University of Iowa, and never moved away. She has poems in recent issues of Meridian and Great River Review, new work coming in Fulcrum and 32 Poems.

Dr. Adrienne Lamberti is a former farm kid and now the Professional and Technical Writing Program Coordinator at the University of Northern Iowa.

Jerry Harp's books of poems are Creature (Salt Publishing, 2003), Gatherings (Ashland Poetry Press, 2004), and Urban Flowers, Concrete Plains (Salt Publishing, 2006).  With Jan Weissmiller he co-edited A Poetry Criticism Reader (University of Iowa Press, 2006).  He received his PhD in Renaissance Literature from the University of Iowa in 2002.

Philip Mondragón is a graduate of Cornell College in Mount Vernon and has attended the University of Iowa summer writing program. He has lived in Japan, traveled through Spain extensively, and now resides in Mexico City. In his writing Philip seeks to weave together the geographies, cultures, and concerns of all people.

Marilyn Abildskov has an MFA from the University of Iowa, lives in Berkeley, California, and teaches at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga. The Men in My Country was published by the University of Iowa Press in 2004.

Established in 1938 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Carl Klaus, founding director of the University of Iowa’s Nonfiction Writing Program and professor emeritus of English at the University of Iowa, wrote  Letters to Kate: Life After Life (Iowa, 2006) during the first year after the death of his wife, Kate Franks Klaus.

Established in 1938 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Cole Swensen is on the faculty of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Her books of poetry include Goest, Such Rich Hour, and Try. “Of an Alphabet of Steppes” is from The Book of a Hundred Hands (University of Iowa Press, 2005).

Established in 1938 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Angela M. Balcita received her MFA from the University of Iowa’s Nonfiction Writing Program. She lives in Baltimore. “Moonface and Charlie” first appeared in the Winter 2005/06 issue of The Iowa Review.

April Newman is a MFA Writing candidate at Columbia College and was the 2006-07 Graduate Opportunity Award recipient. She was a featured student reader at Creative Nonfiction Week 2006. A graduate of The University of Iowa, this Dubuque native now lives in Chicago with her puppy, Kona.

Dick Stahl, of Davenport, Iowa, enjoys writing about the lore of the Mississippi River. His three books of poetry are After the Milk Route (1988), Under the Green Tree Hotel (1996), and Mr. Farnam's Guests (2004). He served as Quad City Arts Poet Laureate from September 2001 to September 2003.

Patrick Irelan’s short stories and essays have been widely published in magazines, anthologies, and literary journals. His latest memoir, A Firefly in the Night: A Son of the Middle West, was published by Ice Cube Press in 2007. He lives in Iowa.

The Ice Cube Press, based in North Liberty, Iowa, began publishing in 1993 to focus on how to best live with the natural world. Since then it has published a number of well known authors, including Mary Swander, Jim Heynen, Stephanie Mills, Bill McKibben, and Paul Gruchow.

Wilson Diehl is a writer, artist, and filmmaker living in an old elementary school in Seattle. She grew up in Iowa City and has an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from the University of Iowa.

Carol Westberg grew up on a farm near Essex, Iowa, and received a BA from Duke and an MFA in poetry from Vermont College. Her poems have appeared in journals such as Prairie Schooner, Hunger Mountain, Granite Review, and Tiferet. She now lives in Norwich, Vermont.

Joan Mitchell was born in Iowa City in 1940 and graduated from Iowa City High School. She has lived in San Antonio, Texas, for twenty-seven years but travels back to Iowa every summer. Her work has appeared in Quirk, The Key, Palo Alto Review, and The San Antonio Express-News. “I enjoy raising the Iowa-consciousness of my Texas friends,” she says.

Jay Johnson publishes in literary reviews, anthologies, and magazines, including The North American Review, Tampa Review, and Voices on the Landscape. She has read for NPR and conducts workshops in the schools. She has been a board member of The Des Moines National Poetry Festival since its inception.

Steve Pudenz is a professional actor, author and licensed tour guide in New York City. He graduated from the University of Northern Iowa (B.A. 1969), taught in Des Moines at Hoover High School, and received his MFA in Theater Arts from the University of Iowa in 1975. He's been a New Yorker ever since.

Bonnie J. Rough received her MFA in nonfiction writing from the University of Iowa. She lives in Minneapolis. Her essay “The Birdmen” was published in the Winter 2006-07 issue of The Iowa Review.

Paula Melton lives in Vermont with her husband and their three children. She received her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1997.

Brandi Homan grew up in Marshalltown, Iowa, and received her BA from the University of Northern Iowa. Currently, she’s working toward her MFA in Poetry at Columbia College Chicago. Her chapbook, Two Kinds of Arson, will be available January 2007, and she is editor-in-chief of Switchback Books. “Nostalgie de la Boue” was first published in Salt Hill.

Ameena Hussein, a Sri Lankan writer, has published two short-story collections, Zillij and Fifteen. She participated in the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program in 2005. “An Ordinary Death” first appeared in The Iowa Review’s Fall 2006 issue.

Marjan Strojan, a Slovenian writer, participated in the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program in 2005. He is the author of four poetry collections. “In Our Small Room, Imperceptibly” first appeared in The Iowa Review’s Fall 2006 issue.

Uriel Quesada, a Costa Rican writer, participated in the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program in 2005. He is an assistant professor of Spanish at Loyola University in New Orleans. “Spoken Portrait” first appeared in The Iowa Review’s Fall 2006 issue.

Wanita Zumbrunnen was born, raised, and educated in Iowa. She has a Ph.D in English from the University of Iowa. At present, she is teaching English, speech, and communication classes to military members at the Incirlik Air Base near Adana, Turkey.

Debora Kuan earned an MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Her writing has appeared in American Letters & Commentary, Boston Review, Conduit, Fence, Indiana Review, and elsewhere. She lives in Princeton, NJ, again after a seven-year hiatus.

Marilynne Robinson, a professor at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, is the author of the novels Housekeeping and Gilead (which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2005), and the nonfiction works The Death of Adam and Mother Country.

Patricia Straub grew up in Whittemore, Iowa with her parents and thirteen siblings. She currently lives in St. Paul, MN, with her husband Joshua and two cats.

Ann Struthers grew up on an Iowa farm but she has always been afflicted with wanderlust and that most pernicious disease, writing. Some strange genie has called her to the Middle East and to Sri Lanka, two of the world's hot spots. While on a Fulbright Fellowship in the Middle East she began "The End of the Day."  She publishes in numerous journals and has two collections and two chapbooks. "The End of the Day" first appeared in the Fall 2005 issue of The Iowa Review.

Writer and artist Kurt Vonnegut is a former teacher in the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.

"Algren Meets Donoso" first appeared in the Winter 2005/06 issue of The Iowa Review.

Millie Mae Wicklund attended the University of Iowa and has published eleven books of poetry. "Freak!" first appeared in the Winter 2005/06 issue of The Iowa Review.

Robert Mezey earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Iowa. His Collected Poems 1952-1999 was published by University of Arkansas Press.

“Dedication” appeared in the Winter 2004-05 issue of The Iowa Review as part of a tribute to poet Donald Justice, who died in August 2004.

Marilyn Chin received an MFA from the University of Iowa and has published several books of poetry. “Summer Sleep” appeared in the Winter 2004-05 issue of The Iowa Review as part of a tribute to poet Donald Justice, who died in August 2004.

Michael Culross, a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, lives in Gig Harbor, Washington. “The Poet-Teacher” appeared in the Winter 2004-05 issue of The Iowa Review as part of a tribute to poet Donald Justice, who died in August 2004.

Charles Wright, a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, received the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1998. “North” appeared in the Winter 2004-05 issue of The Iowa Review as part of a tribute to poet Donald Justice, who died in August 2004.

Patricia Foster is a professor in the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa. She is the author of All the Lost Girls: Confessions of a Southern Daughter and editor of Minding the Body: Women Writers on Body and Soul. Just Beneath My Skin is available from Prairie Lights bookstore.

Ethan Canin teaches at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. He is the author of five books of fiction, among them Carry Me Across the Water and Emperor of the Air. The Palace Thief was selected by Linn County libraries to be the focus of Linn Area Reads for 2007. It is available from Prairie Lights bookstore.

Barbara Robinette Moss received an MFA from Drake University and now lives in Iowa City and New York City. Her most recent book is Fierce: A Memoir. Change Me into Zeus’s Daughter was the 2006 selection of Linn (County) Area Reads. It is available from Prairie Lights bookstore.

T.C. Boyle received his MFA and PhD from the University of Iowa. He is the author of nineteen books of fiction. The Tortilla Curtain was the 2006 selection of One Community, One Book: All Johnson County Reads, an annual countywide reading project coordinated by the University of Iowa Center for Human Rights. It is available from Prairie Lights bookstore.

Holly Welker holds an MFA in Nonfiction and a PhD in English literature from the University of Iowa. Her poetry, fiction and nonfiction have appeared in Best American Essays, Black Warrior Review, The Cream City Review, and elsewhere. She is assistant professor of English and Creative Writing at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. “Victory” first appeared in The Iowa Review’s Winter 2004-05 issue.

Lowell Jaeger is a 1981 graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He has published two collections of poems and numerous chapbooks. He teaches Creative Writing at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell, Montana.

Robert Rehder was born in Iowa. He has been published in numerous literary magazines; his book of poems is The Compromises Will Be Different (Sheep Meadow, 1996). “Free Fall” first appeared in the Iowa Review’s Winter 2004-05 issue.

Mary Jane White has practiced law in Northeast Iowa for 27 years. She is also a 1977 graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and the recipient of a 1979 National Endowment for the Arts grant, and a 1985 National Endowment for the Arts translation grant to translate the Russian poet Marina Tsvetaeva (1892-1941). Her translation of Tsvetaeva's elegy for Rilke is forthcoming in 2007 from Adastra Press.

Kyle McCord is a native of Adel, Iowa. He is pursuing an MFA at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. His work was recently selected by Christian Hawkey for the Academy of American Poets award. He also serves as an assistant editor for jubilat magazine.

Lucia Nevai is the author of Seriously, a novel, published by Little, Brown. Her first collection of stories, Star Game, won the Iowa Short Fiction Award. Born in Des Moines, she now makes her home in upstate New York. “Interment” first appeared in the Spring 2005 issue of The Iowa Review.

Emily Dykstra is a human services professional in the Mason City area. Her previous publications include short fiction in The North American Review and several essays for Mason City's Globe Gazette and the Des Moines Register's Young Adult Contributor's Board.

Matthew Alan Bovard was born in Iowa City and grew up in Fairfield. He is 21 years old and is currently enrolled at the University of Iowa where he is working on a degree in English and theater.

Keith Ratzlaff’s books of poetry are Dubious Angels:  Poems after Paul Klee;  Man Under A Pear Tree; and Across The Known World. His awards include the Anhinga Prize for Poetry, the Theodore Roethke Award, and a Pushcart Prize. He teaches writing and literature at Central College in Pella, Iowa.

Jan Weissmiller received an M.F.A. from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop in 1984. She lives in Iowa City with her husband, the painter John Dilg, and has worked for many years at Prairie Lights Bookstore. “The Yard’s Reason” appears in her poetry collection, In Divided Light, and also in the anthology Voices on the Landscape: Contemporary Iowa Poets, both published by Loess Hills Books.

Mary Swander's most recent work is a book of non-fiction entitled The Desert Pilgrim (Viking). She is a Distinguished Professor of English at Iowa State University and lives in Ames and Kalona, IA, where she raises ducks and geese and a large organic vegetable garden. “That Glorious Time of Old” can be found in the anthology In the Middle of the Middle West: Literary Nonfiction from the Heartland, edited by Becky Bradway (Indiana University Press).

Doug Hesse was happily raised in DeWitt, Iowa, and its surrounding farms, timbers, and creek beds. He was educated at the University of Iowa and is currently Director of the University Writing Program and Professor of English at the University of Denver. “My Father in White, Above the Royal Blue” can be found in the anthology In the Middle of the Middle West: Literary Nonfiction from the Heartland, edited by Becky Bradway (Indiana University Press).

Originally from New Orleans, Sheryl St. Germain taught at Iowa State University for seven years and now directs the MFA program in creative writing at Chatham College. Her latest book, Let It Be a Dark Roux: New and Selected Poems, is forthcoming from Autumn House Press. “What You Can See Mid-Winter in the Midwest” was first published in the anthology In the Middle of the Middle West: Literary Nonfiction from the Heartland, edited by Becky Bradway (Indiana University Press).

Michele Morano holds an MFA in Nonfiction Writing and a PhD in English from the University of Iowa, and is now an assistant professor of English at DePaul University. Grammar Lessons: Translating a Life in Spain was published this month by the University of Iowa Press. There will be a reading from the book at Prairie Lights bookstore in Iowa City on Friday, April 13, at 7:00 p.m.

Established in 1938 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Sandie Seeger, D.O., is a professor of biology at Missouri Western State University, a trauma surgeon in Chicago, and a native Iowan (born and raised in Hampton). “Marv’s Abode” is about a native Iowan, Marvin Fink, who farmed land around Latimer, Iowa. He farmed the same land for 60 years and died of colon cancer this summer.

Jim Julich worked for twenty years as a librarian (emeritus) for The University of Iowa. He is the author of a volume of translations from the French, Aubervilliers, poems of Jacques Prévert and André Verdet. He lives on a farm near Nichols, Iowa.

Jason Spangler grew up in Marion, Iowa, and graduated from the University of Iowa in 1999. He owns and operates a seasonal shaved ice hut in Cedar Rapids. "This allows me six months off to write and make films," he says.

Patrick Vecera is seven years old. He attends school at Pat's Learning Adventure, a modern one-room schoolhouse run by Pat Schmidt in Iowa City. He likes science and yoga and feels he is starting to become a writer.

Clare Lanaghan is ten years old. She attends school at Pat's Learning Adventure, a modern one-room schoolhouse in Iowa City. She enjoys sports, playing piano, and writing poetry.

Megan Kann is eight years old and a student at Pat's Learning Adventure in Iowa City. She enjoys playing soccer and basketball.

Tiarnan Fox is seven years old and a student at Pat's Learning Adventure in Iowa City. He says nature is his inspiration for writing poetry.

Ethan Kline is twelve years old. He attends school at Pat's Learning Adventure, which happens to be located in his backyard. Ethan was inspired to write "Haunted Winter" by walking in Iowa City's Oakland Cemetery and looking at the "black angel."

Kyler Paterson is ten years old. He attends school at Pat's Learning Adventure in Iowa City, where he has learned to enjoy writing poetry.

Janani Sreenivasan is an M.F.A. candidate in nonfiction at the University of Iowa. She writes for actors, for instruments, and for you.

Adam Fanning is a singer, songwriter, and poet. His albums include Fields Before Us (2003), Dreams for Sleepers (2004), Tongues on Tongue (2005), Rivers (2006), and Old Light/No Name/Ghost (2006).

Amelia Marshall Rand was born in Arlington, Virginia, but grew up in Norman, Oklahoma. She attended high school in Iowa City. "My mom made sure I covered a lot of territory before I could call one place home," she says. Amelia is currently studying creative writing at Knox College.

Perry Ross, a graduate of the University of Iowa, is a school administrator in Iowa City. He grew up in Mt. Pleasant and writes about his experiences growing up in a small town. Perry writes primarily for his family but sometimes shares his stories with a larger audience as a professional storyteller.

Huston Diehl is a professor of English at the University of Iowa. An award-winning teacher, she has published a number of essays on pedagogy as well as many articles on Renaissance literature. Dream Not of Other Worlds was published this month by the University of Iowa Press.

Established in 1938 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Nancy Price divides her years between Cedar Falls, Iowa, and Kissimmee, Florida. The author of eight novels, she has also published stories and poems in numerous journals.  Of "Safety Pins," which first appeared in the Spring 1970 issue of Kayak, she writes, "I am sad to say how contemporary it seems. Our soldiers still march in the name of safety, but holes are their trade, and holding. Tears widen around them. The empty helmets of our lost young men and women pin ruin together."

Lyz Baranowski grew up in California, Texas, South Dakota and Minnesota, but says, "I finally feel at home in Iowa." Her essays have appeared in Dragonfire, Des Moines Register, Cedar Rapids Gazette, Iowa City Press-Citizen and The Contemporary Reader. She currently works as a writer for a documentary about America's highways.

Meredith Hines-Dochterman is a 1997 University of Iowa graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and journalism.

Salma Salama, a Sudanese-American writer who lives in Coralville, works as a radio producer and a writing teacher.

Mary Conway is a graduate of The University of Iowa. Mary and her husband, Francis Conway, M.D., live in Emmetsburg. A Certified Substance Abuse Counselor in Iowa, she has also been a professional writer for more than 25 years. Her work has been published in newspapers and magazines throughout Iowa, and she has been a syndicated columnist for The National Catholic Press.

Originally from Buffalo, Dan Coffey has been the Languages and Literatures Librarian at Iowa State University since 2000. His poetry has been published in several journals, and he has a book forthcoming in 2008 from Scarecrow Press: Literary Research and British Postmodernism: Strategies and Sources. "Channeled" was first published in the summer of 2005 in MiPOesias magazine.

Janie Breggin Braverman is a fiction writer and poet living in Iowa City. Her work has appeared in The Baltimore Review; Disturbing the Peace: Writings of Colorado Lawyers; Pinyon; Steam Ticket; Desert Voices; Being Jewish Magazine; and on the kiosks of Iowa City's pedestrian mall.  She is an MFA candidate in the low residency program at Queens University of Charlotte, in North Carolina.

Kristina Dallmann grew up on a farm near Grimes, Iowa, and her parents still live there. She now lives in Iowa City and works as a chemist at the UI Hygienic Lab. She has had poems published in the Iowa City Poetry in Public project and in Lyrical Iowa.

Grant Tracey is co-editor of the North American Review, a literary magazine published by the University of Northern Iowa.

"Artists and Angels" can be found in Notes from the Flyover (NAR Press, 2006), a festschrift celebrating the life and work of University of Northern Iowa Professor Emerita Barbara Lounsberry. Dr. Lounsberry is a noted educator, writer, and scholar. One of her many interests is Midwestern life. Notes from the Flyover is available from North American Review Press.

John Wilson Swope teaches courses in literature, pedagogy, and creative nonfiction for the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of Northern Iowa.

"Listing to the Right" can be found in Notes from the Flyover (NAR Press, 2006), a festschrift celebrating the life and work of University of Northern Iowa Professor Emerita Barbara Lounsberry. Dr. Lounsberry is a noted educator, writer, and scholar. One of her many interests is Midwestern life. Notes From The Flyover is available from North American Review Press.

Vince Gotera is the editor of the North American Review (the oldest American literary magazine, founded 1815). He is also a professor of creative writing and multicultural literature at the University of Northern Iowa. His poetry books include Dragonfly, Ghost Wars, and Fighting Kite (forthcoming). His favorite color is blue, especially aquamarine and periwinkle.

The prose poem "Ghost Dance" was published in Notes from the Flyover (NAR Press, 2006), a festschrift celebrating the life and work of University of Northern Iowa Professor Emerita Barbara Lounsberry. Dr. Lounsberry is a noted educator, writer, and scholar. One of her many interests is Midwestern life. Notes from the Flyover is available from North American Review Press.

Ron Sandvik was born and raised in Cedar Falls. He believes one of the great powers of Iowa, of the prairie, is how it continually seduces its residents through the gestural force and delicate shadings of each season.

"Cold Chicken" can be found in Notes From The Flyover (NAR Press, 2006), a festschrift celebrating the life and work of University of Northern Iowa Professor Emerita Barbara Lounsberry. Dr. Lounsberry is a noted educator, writer, and scholar. One of her many interests is Midwestern life. Notes From The Flyover is available from North American Review Press.

Sara London received her B.A. from the University of Iowa in 1981 and her M.F.A. in poetry from the Writers' Workshop in 1985. She has had work published in The Iowa Review, Poetry East, and Mid-American Review. She teaches at Smith College.

"Spoon and Tree" appears in the current issue of The Iowa Review (37/1, Spring 2007).

John Casteen and his wife lived in Iowa City for two years while he was a student in the Writers' Workshop. While in the state, he says, he became "a great admirer of Iowa's daylilies." Currently, he is self-employed as a designer and builder of custom furniture. His poems have been published in Ploughshares, The Georgia Review, Shenandoah, and The Southern Review.

"Murmur" appears in the current issue of The Iowa Review (37/1, Spring 2007).

Reginald Shepherd received his MFA from the University of Iowa in 1993. He still
misses Prairie Lights. Currently, he lives, writes, and dodges hurricanes in Pensacola, Florida. His fifth collection of poetry is Fata Morgana (University of Pittsburgh, 2007).

"Eve's Awakening" appears in the current issue of The Iowa Review (37/1, Spring 2007).

James McKean has published two books of poems, Headlong (Univ. of Utah) and Tree of Heaven (Univ. of Iowa), and a book of essays, Home Stand: Growing Up in Sports (Michigan State University). He lives in Iowa City and teaches at Mount Mercy College.

"Bound" appears in the current issue of The Iowa Review (37/1, Spring 2007).

Peter Waldor received his MFA from the University of Iowa and currently lives in New Jersey, where he works in the insurance business. His poems have appeared in many journals, including the American Poetry Review and Ploughshares. His book, Door To A Noisy Room, is due out in January 2008 from Alice James Books.

"Insurance" appears in the current issue of The Iowa Review (37/1, Spring 2007).

Originally from Michigan, Mary Slowik received a PhD in English from the University of Iowa in 1975. Currently she works at Pacific Northwest College of Art, where she heads the Liberal Arts department. She writes, "I draw over and over again upon the expertise in literary theory and in close reading and the sheer love of the discipline that my Iowa mentors provided me and am always invigorated by remembering the energy and craziness of those days in Iowa."

"Teeth" appears in the current issue of The Iowa Review (37/1, Spring 2007).

Blanche Forgy has spent her life in Iowa and currently resides in Iowa City. She says: "I am really rich: my treasures are my children, my grandchildren, my great-grandchildren, and my dear friends, who love me even when I am not lovable."

Becky Soglin is a graduate of the University of Iowa's Nonfiction Writing Program. She has published creative work and book reviews in North Dakota Quarterly, Iowa Woman, 100 Words, Icon, The Des Moines Register, and The Christian Science Monitor.

Ryan Winters is a poet living in Iowa City. He currently works in the Division of Sponsored Programs and will be attending law school at the University of Iowa in the fall. He holds a M.A. in English from UC Riverside, and has just completed a book of poetry, Beige.

Bruce Moore is a 1970 University of Iowa graduate and lives in Geneseo, Illinois, with his wife of thirty-eight years, Betsy (also a U of I grad). They have four grown children and five grandchildren.

Dr. Kara E. Schmadeke, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Teacher Education at Coe College. She graduated from the University of Iowa with a BA in Elementary Education in 1988 and a PhD in Education: "Language, Literacy, and Culture," in 2003. She writes: "This poem was written while I was teaching fourth grade in small town Maquoketa, Iowa. It was my first experience planning the study of science together with the children, rather than teaching from a prescribed manual."

Zakery's Bridge: Children's Journeys from Around the World to the Heartland is a collection of nonfiction stories based on conversations with refugee and immigrant children in Iowa. For more information about this forthcoming book, please contact Kay Fenton Smith (kayfentonsmith@msn.com).

A children's author based in Des Moines, Kay Fenton Smith is involved with youth literacy through volunteer reading and writing programs. In addition to Zakery's Bridge, she is working on a middle-grade novel.

Carol Spaulding-Kruse is associate professor of English at Drake University in Des Moines, where she teaches fiction writing and ethnic American literature. She is the author of Navelencia, a multi-generational story about a Korean-American family.

Zakery's Bridge: Children's Journeys from Around the World to the Heartland is a collection of nonfiction stories based on conversations with refugee and immigrant children in Iowa. For more information about this forthcoming book, please contact Kay Fenton Smith (kayfentonsmith@msn.com).

A children's author based in Des Moines, Kay Fenton Smith is involved with youth literacy through volunteer reading and writing programs. In addition to Zakery's Bridge, she is working on a middle-grade novel.

Carol Spaulding-Kruse is associate professor of English at Drake University in Des Moines, where she teaches fiction writing and ethnic American literature. She is the author of Navelencia, a multi-generational story about a Korean-American family.

Zakery's Bridge: Children's Journeys from Around the World to the Heartland is a collection of nonfiction stories based on conversations with refugee and immigrant children in Iowa. For more information about this forthcoming book, please contact Kay Fenton Smith (kayfentonsmith@msn.com).

A children's author based in Des Moines, Kay Fenton Smith is involved with youth literacy through volunteer reading and writing programs. In addition to Zakery's Bridge, she is working on a middle-grade novel.

Carol Spaulding-Kruse is associate professor of English at Drake University in Des Moines, where she teaches fiction writing and ethnic American literature. She is the author of Navelencia, a multi-generational story about a Korean-American family.

Zakery's Bridge: Children's Journeys from Around the World to the Heartland is a collection of nonfiction stories based on conversations with refugee and immigrant children in Iowa. For more information about this forthcoming book, please contact Kay Fenton Smith (kayfentonsmith@msn.com).

A children's author based in Des Moines, Kay Fenton Smith is involved with youth literacy through volunteer reading and writing programs. In addition to Zakery's Bridge, she is working on a middle-grade novel.

Carol Spaulding-Kruse is associate professor of English at Drake University in Des Moines, where she teaches fiction writing and ethnic American literature. She is the author of Navelencia, a multi-generational story about a Korean-American family.

Zakery's Bridge: Children's Journeys from Around the World to the Heartland is a collection of nonfiction stories based on conversations with refugee and immigrant children in Iowa. For more information about this forthcoming book, please contact Kay Fenton Smith (kayfentonsmith@msn.com).

A children's author based in Des Moines, Kay Fenton Smith is involved with youth literacy through volunteer reading and writing programs. In addition to Zakery's Bridge, she is working on a middle-grade novel.

Carol Spaulding-Kruse is associate professor of English at Drake University in Des Moines, where she teaches fiction writing and ethnic American literature. She is the author of Navelencia, a multi-generational story about a Korean-American family.

Vicki L. Christensen is a farm wife and assistant librarian in Anita, Iowa. She says: "I am an animal lover and bird watcher. We have three goats, a bunny rabbit, six pea fowl, seven chickens, one dog, and many barn cats."

Sue Day-Scales Wallace graduated from the University of Iowa in 1990 with a B.A. in Communications. She has held positions in marketing, public relations, sales, and most recently she became the Assistant Director of Development for Fontbonne University in St. Louis. Sue wrote a short story, "Envy—Not a Pretty Sight," that was published in Original Sins—The Seven Deadlies Come Home to Roost in 2004. She is married to Michael, and has three children, Jordan and Halsey Scales and Mikaela Wallace, and a granddaughter, Rayleigh.

Gerry Miller was born in Des Moines, started out on a family farm near Iowa Center in Story County, and grew up in Muscatine. He earned a B.A. degree in French from the University of Iowa and has been a UI employee for 35 years.

Robin Throne is an Iowa native and lives in Le Claire, Iowa, along that great river we all share in some molecular form or another. Her poetry, essays, and reviews have been published in Slipshot: A Journal of Literary Art, North Coast Review, Gypsy Cab, poetry motel, Mankato Poetry Review, Iowa Woman, Minnesota River Review, Minnesota Women's Press, Minnesota Literature, The Corresponder, Connections, and The Muse.

After high school in Keokuk and Army service, Bill Wolf enrolled at the University of Iowa, seeking a degree in journalism; he was WSUI's sports director. Following his 1950 graduation and more military duty, he spent 43 years in the housewares industry. "Now, I write condo newsletters, letters to editors, and op-ed pieces," he says.

Blanca Datuin was a graduate student at the University of Iowa's Department of International Communication while her husband was with the Iowa Writers' Workshop. "My two sons having been born in Iowa City, we consider ourselves Iowan," she says. At present she is a teacher at the Los Angeles Unified School District.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Connie Peterson is director of the UI Creative Media Group and teaches a publication design workshop for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Iowa. She writes poetry when the muse inspires.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Iowa City resident Dave Morice, a.k.a. Dr. Alphabet, is the author of Poetry Comics: An Animated Anthology (Teachers and Writers Collaborative).

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Hilary Mosher (Buri) received a BA from Dartmouth College and an MFA from Warren Wilson. Her chapbook, Frau Rontgen's Hand, won Canada's bpNichol chapbook award in 2000; her lyric essay, "Needle Night," was awarded first prize in the 12th Annual Carol A. Bowman Creative Writing Contest in 2005. She is currently a medical student at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

For over forty years Paul Diehl has taught literary nonfiction, poetry, and American literature, from Dimmitt High School in the Texas Panhandle to Grinnell College in Iowa, from the United States Air Force Academy to the University of Iowa. Today Paul is a consultant for non-profit education organizations such as ACT, and is an expert witness in linguistic and literary matters for the Federal Circuit. He lives in Iowa City, Iowa.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Pete Muir, a native Iowan, has been a junior high English teacher at South East Junior High School in Iowa City for 25 years. He writes poetry, treats reading like breathing, is a contractor during his summers, and is an instrument-rated private pilot.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Stephen Merkel-Hess has lived in Iowa since 1977. He has taught in the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Public Schools for 30 years. He bikes to work on a daily basis, except when there is ice on the ground. Several years ago he was inspired to write a short "postcard size" poem each day by one of Ted Kooser's books. He has self-published two short poetry books: Shards from the Sky and Biking to Work. He is married to the artist Mary Merkel-Hess, and they have two adult children.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Serena Stier is a mystery writer and co-teaches a course in art, law, and ethics at the University of Iowa. She is also a psychologist, lawyer, and mediator, and the grandmother of four terrific grandsons. She is in her sixties but wrote this poem in her thirties.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Rick Zollo is a graduate of the Writers' Workshop in fiction (1973) and creative nonfiction (1997). He has been a staff writer at Buckledown Publishers in Iowa City since 1997. "For Shame Upon Reflection" first appeared in 100 Words in 1994 in a slightly different form.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Lois Muehl, an associate professor of Rhetoric retired from the University of Iowa, is a long-time freelance writer. Varied experiences raising four children, teaching in this country and abroad have contributed to her articles, prize-winning books, and poems.

This poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Tim Brown is in the seventh grade at Clear Creek Amana Middle School in Middle Amana, Iowa. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Will de Blois is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Jazmen Wade is in the eighth grade at Northwest Junior High School in Coralville, Iowa. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Claudia Nagy is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Allan Liu is in the seventh grade at Northwest Junior High School in Coralville, Iowa. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Louis Ho is in the third grade at Lincoln Elementary School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Robbie Hanson is in the seventh grade at North Central Junior High School in North Liberty, Iowa. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Leah de Matta is in the seventh grade at North Central Junior High School in North Liberty, Iowa. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Josey Gale is in the first grade at Kate Wickham Elementary School in Coralville, Iowa. "The School Bell" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Cameron Cook is in the second grade at Horn Elementary School in Iowa City. "The Hundred" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Jason Tiemeyer is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Alex Shinnick-Gordon is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. "Goldfish" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Nathan Armstrong is in the second grade at Kate Wickham Elementary School in Coralville, Iowa. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Miles Henrichs is in the second grade at Lincoln Elementary School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Lindsey Conley is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Britta Bergstrom is in the third grade at Shimek Elementary School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Abby Peterson is in the seventh grade at Willowwind School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Ada Cassell is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Brittany Martinson is in the eighth grade at North Central Junior High School in North Liberty, Iowa. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Jesus Gutierrez is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Ben West is in the seventh grade at North Central Junior High School in North Liberty, Iowa. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Sophie Neems is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Rachel Leigh is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Yiyi Liu is in the eighth grade at North Central Junior High School in North Liberty, Iowa. "Narcissus" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

John Law is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Carlos Samuel Broderson Rodriguez is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Thomas Barker is in the third grade at Lincoln Elementary School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

John Bourjaily is in the seventh grade at Northwest Junior High School in Coralville, Iowa. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Wesley Steffen is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Monica Hemingway is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Francesca Crutchfield-Stoker is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Ellen Kealey is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Lauren Carmen is in the seventh grade at Northwest Junior High School in Coralville. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Wyatt Rath is in the fifth grade at Penn Elementary School in North Liberty. His poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Isabella Wolfe  is in kindergarten at Longfellow Elementary School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Natalie Holmes is in the second grade at Shimek Elementary School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Katherine Smith is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Hannah Valentine is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. Her poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Kelsey Keranen is in the third grade at Lincoln Elementary School in Iowa City. Kelsey's poem was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Kelly McNeilly is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. "Under My Bookshelf" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Hilah Kohen is in the fifth grade at Horn Elementary School in Iowa City. "Football" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Yorik Aguilar-Rosales is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. "My Worst Days" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Deon Duarte is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. "Ladybugs in My Lamp" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Amina Tungalag Terry is in the seventh grade at South East Junior High School in Iowa City. "Hungry" was selected for the 2007 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its fifth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.

Jamey Genna teaches in California and is a graduate from the masters in writing program at the University of San Francisco, where she is also a major projects advisor. Her short fiction has been published in many literary magazines including Cutthroat, Dislocate, Shade, and Pinyon, among others. She grew up in Iowa.

Kim Groninga teaches in the English department at the University of Northern Iowa. Her poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in Jabberwock Review, The Briar Cliff Review, 100 Words, and others.

Justin Hyde lives in Des Moines, where he works as a parole officer. He graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in psychology in 2001.

A Mechanicsville native and graduate of Iowa City High and Iowa State University, Zachary Michael Jack worked as an Iowa public librarian and newspaper section editor before becoming a college professor. The author or editor of more than a half dozen books, Jack's most recent edited anthology, Letters to a Young Iowan, collects the voices of more than 100 Iowa luminaries.

Laurel Snyder moved to Iowa for the Writers' Workshop but stayed long after, waiting tables at the Hamburg Inn and ultimately marrying an Iowa boy. She has written a picture book, Inside the Slidy Diner, loosely based on her experiences at the 'Burg, and she is at work on a novel, Any Which Wall, set in "Quiet Falls, IA," a town suspiciously reminiscent of Iowa City.

Although originally from Long Island, New York, George Eklund spent his undergraduate years at the University of Dubuque, 1970–74. He moved back east to teach in the public schools, but in 1979 he returned to Iowa to write and teach. He attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop from 1987 to 1989. Since finishing his graduate work at Iowa, he has taught in the creative writing program at Morehead State University in eastern Kentucky. "Essay on Four Boys" appears in the Fall 2007 issue of The Iowa Review.

Born and raised in Des Moines, Donald Morrill has lived in Florida since 1980, mostly in Tampa, where he is currently the Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Letters at the University of Tampa. He is the author of three books of nonfiction and two volumes of poetry. His entire essay "Kite Flying at Midnight" appears in the Fall 2007 issue of The Iowa Review.

Ray DiPalma lived in Iowa City from 1966-68 and received his Poetry M.F.A. from the Writers' Workshop in 1968. His recent books include L'Usage ancien de la pierre (Éditions Grèges, 2007), Quatre Poèmes (Éditions Comp'Act, 2006), and Caper, which was translated into Italian by Gian Maria Annovi (Lombardelli, 2006). Among his earlier collections are Numbers and Tempers, Le Tombeau de Reverdy, Provocations, Hôtel des Ruines, Gnossiennes, and Letters. He has lived in New York City since 1975 and currently teaches at the School of Visual Arts.

Graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and recent winner of an NEA Creative Writing Fellowship, Kimberly Johnson is the author of Leviathan with a Hook and the forthcoming A Metaphorical God.

A CPA in Orange County, California, Steven C. Hull graduated from Iowa in 1966, after taking an undergraduate course in the Writers' Workshop that convinced him to stay in business. He is writing a book on immigration and the quest for economic security in southeastern Iowa, from which "The Passing" is adapted.

Jeffrey Raderstrong is a junior at Grinnell College. He has been writing since he could read, and is currently an Economics Major with a concentration in Global Development Studies.

Nancy Crovetti writes: "The Midwest is in my blood: my parents, Des Moines natives, migrated to New England as newlyweds in 1935. I came back to Iowa in '94, settling in Lamoni; have been a cancer survivor thanks to University Hospitals in '99 and a UI student in pursuit of the BLS since 2002."

Melissa Ginsburg is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Her poems have appeared in FIELD, Crowd, Pleiades, Forklift Ohio, and many other publications. She lives in Iowa. "Much" appears in her chapbook Arbor (New Michigan Press, 2007).

Ruth Wertzberger Carlson grew up in Dubuque, Iowa, and attended Wahlert High School until the summer following her junior year, when her father was transferred to manage the Dubuque Meat Packing Plant in South San Francisco, CA. The rest of the family, including three who attended the University of Iowa, now live on the West Coast. Ruth is a freelance writer who specializes in travel, profiles of women executives, sailing, golf, and fashion. She and her husband Richard Carlson live in Santa Cruz, California, and she hopes to get him back to Dubuque this summer to see her hometown.

Charles Shields writes: "In the sense that the University of Iowa is the birthplace of my idols and idioms, I consider myself, self-importantly, to be an Iowan. I am a Junior majoring in English and Art History."

Susan Gibbons Jordan grew up in Des Moines and attended the University of Iowa, graduating in 1978. She has had a couple books published and has had writings featured on A Prairie Home Companion, The Late Show with David Letterman, and Car Talk.

Michael Cunningham received his MFA at the Iowa Writers' Workshop. His books include Specimen Days (2005), The Hours (1998), and A Home at the End of the World (1990).

Sandra McPherson's tenth collection is Expectation Days (Illinois, 2007). She has taught at the University of California at Davis since 1985. For four years in the 1970s she taught at the Iowa Writers' Workshop. She is editor and publisher of Swan Scythe Press. "The Firefly" was published in Voices on the Landscape: Contemporary Iowa Poets, edited by Michael Carey (Loess Hills Books, 1996).

Robley Wilson retired from teaching at the University of Northern Iowa in 2000 and lives in Florida with his wife, Susan Hubbard, and five cats. His most recent novel is The World Still Melting (Thomas Dunne, 2005). "Portraits of the Wives" was published in Voices on the Landscape: Contemporary Iowa Poets, edited by Michael Carey (Loess Hills Books, 1996).

Debra Marquart is a professor of English at Iowa State University. Her work has appeared in numerous journals. "Riding Shotgun through Iowa with Quest" first appeared in her collection Everything's a Verb (New Rivers Press, 1995) and was reprinted in Voices on the Landscape: Contemporary Iowa Poets, edited by Michael Carey (Loess Hills Books, 1996).

Jane Mead's collection of poetry, The Usable Field, will be out from Alice James in 2008. She is the author of two previous collections of poetry, House of Poured-Out Waters (Illinois, 2001) and The Lord and the General Din of the World, (Sarabande, 1996). For many years Poet-in-Residence at Wake Forest University, she now teaches in the Iowa Summer Writing Festival and manages a ranch in northern California. "The Argument Against Us" appears in Voices on the Landscape: Contemporary Iowa Poets, edited by Michael Carey (Loess Hills Books, 1996).

Diane Frank is author of five books of poems, including The Winter Life of Shooting Stars and Entering the Word Temple. Her friends describe her as a harem of seven women in one very small body. She has mentored hundreds of writers at San Francisco State University, City College of San Francisco, The University of Vermont, and the Professional Writing Program at MIU in Fairfield. She divides her time between Iowa and San Francisco—where she dances, plays cello, and creates her life as an art form. "Planting Flowers in the Intuitive Garden" appears in Voices on the Landscape: Contemporary Iowa Poets, edited by Michael Carey (Loess Hills Books, 1996).

Neal Bowers is the author of eight books, including Out of the South (poems), Loose Ends (a novel), and Words for the Taking (nonfiction). He is currently Distinguished Professor of English at Iowa State University and lives in Ames with his wife Nancy and their six special-needs cats.

John Harper attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop between 1999 and 2001. Several of his poems have been published in Cutbank, Mid-American Poetry Review, Iowa Journal of Cultural Studies, and The Dickinson Review, amongst other journals.

Rosie Sorenson grew up near the Quad Cities and attended the University of Iowa from 1963 to 1968. Her work has been published in several publications, including the San 
Francisco Chronicle and Mobius. One of her essays, broadcast on KQED-FM (San 
Francisco's public radio station), won the Listener Favorite Award for 2006. She also won Honorable Mention in the Erma Bombeck Writing Competition for 2007.

Doris Kareva, of Estonia, has published thirteen poetry collections, most recently Shape of Time (2005). Her poems have been translated into fifteen languages. Kareva participated in the University of Iowa's International Writing Program in 2006. These poems first appeared in The Iowa Review's Fall 2007 issue.

Choi Jeong Rye has published four books of poetry. In 2007, she received Korea's prestigious Modern Literature Award. Choi participated in the University of Iowa's International Writing Program in 2006. "It Was Just a Brief Flash" first appeared in The Iowa Review's Fall 2007 issue.

Ayurzana Gun-Aajav, from Mongolia, writes nonfiction, poetry, and fiction. In 2002 and 2003, he won consecutive national literary awards. Ayurzana participated in the University of Iowa's International Writing Program in 2006. "Two Poems" first appeared in The Iowa Review's Fall 2007 issue.

Gentian Çoçoli has published three collections of poetry in his native Albania, most recently Human Soil (2006). He is also the founder of the literary journal Aleph Review. Çoçoli participated in the University of Iowa's International Writing Program in 2006. "In the Author's Hand" first appeared in The Iowa Review's Fall 2007 issue.

Martin R. Biro is a native of Northern California, but has spent the last two years as a student at the University of Iowa. He will graduate in December 2007, putting an end to a long and arduous college career.

Craig Moreau is a junior at the University of Iowa who loves to read, write, and kayak. His plans beyond college include more college to study poetry. If "Plan A" does not work out, he has arranged to live in his business friends' garages where he can sell poetry to their children. He would like to thank his parents for being his biggest patrons.

Jeff Roberts is a 45 year-old father to two, lover of one and is blessed with the friendship of many. He's finishing the last 3 hours in the Bachelor of Liberal Studies Program at Iowa and will graduate next December. This piece is from his book, Little Stories, which is a collection of his undergraduate writing here at Iowa is now on sale at Praire Lights Books in Iowa City, Prospero's Book in Kansas City, and on-line.

In addition to his own poetry, for the past few years Dan Troxell has been hosting published, award-winning poets at his Readings-at-Zanzibar's series in Des Moines, Iowa.

Marc Nieson lives in Pittsburgh, PA, where he can typically be found writing, teaching, or soccer mom-ing. "Every December," which appears in the Winter 2007-08 issue of The Iowa Review, is excerpted from his forthcoming memoir of living in Iowa, Schoolhouse: A Year in the Heartland.

Zach Savich has had recent poems in Colorado Review, American Letters and Commentary, and Jubilat. He lives in Iowa City. "Circus" was first published in the Winter 2007-08 issue of The Iowa Review.

Elaine Johnson, a retired science teacher, lives near Niagara Falls, NY. A graduate of Iowa State University, she has written more than 40 stories about her farm life childhood near Webster City during the Depression and World War II.

"Sky Draperies" appears in issue #13 of The Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac. Issue #14 is now on sale.

Skip Willits is a sculptor who lives with his family, happily, on the banks of the Mississippi in Camanche, IA.

"The River" appears in issue #13 of The Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac. Issue #14 is now on sale.

Jean Snodgress-Wiedenheft is the land steward at the Indian Creek Nature Center in Cedar Rapids.

"The Way of the Frog" appears in issue #13 of The Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac. Issue #14 is now on sale.

Mark Edwards is a DNR worker who lives in Madrid, IA.

"Frog Holler Iowa" appears in issue #13 of The Wapsipinicon Almanac. Since 1988 the almanac has been edited by Tim Fay and published at his Route 3 Press in rural Anamosa/Monticello. Each issue features a mix of fiction, reviews, essays, poetry, art and homey information, packaged in the format of a folksy, old-time almanac. Issue #14 is now on sale.

Deirdra McAfee grew up in Sigourney, a town named for one of nineteenth-century America's most famous poets. McAfee's stories have appeared in Confrontation, Willow Springs, The Seattle Review, The Baltimore Review, The Diagram, and others. She earned an MFA in fiction from the New School in 2004. This is an excerpt from her novel, Heart Trouble.

David Hamilton edits The Iowa Review and teaches English literature at the University of Iowa. "Kindnesses" is from his collection of poems, Ossabaw (Salt, 2006).

Jim Estes is a therapist in private practice living in Davenport, Iowa. He writes, "I fish, write, work on our old house and love my wife and daughters." "Paddleboatin'" is an excerpt from his novel, Giants Of The Earth.

Scott Lawrence-Richards earned his BGS and MA degrees from the University of Iowa. He has recently had work published in The North American Review.

Jonathan G. Andelson teaches anthropology and directs the Center for Prairie Studies at Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, where he joined the faculty in 1974.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Pat Blank is a senior news producer for Iowa Public Radio's KUNI. She grew up on a farm in north central Iowa with her parents and two brothers. She lives on an acreage just outside Shell Rock with her husband, yellow Lab, five cats, and sixteen pygmy goats.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Hal S. Chase teaches U.S., African-American, and Iowa history at Des Moines Area Community College—Urban Campus, and, since 1984, has served Farmers & Merchants State Bank of Winterset as a director and majority shareholder.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Thomas Burnell Colbert is Professor of Social Sciences and Humanities at Marshalltown Community College, where he has taught American Indian history and Iowa history, among many other subjects, for twenty-five years.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Susan Futrell is a freelance writer who was born in Iowa and lives in Iowa City with her husband, two cats, and a very small garden. She worked in food marketing and distribution for 25 years and now provides communications, marketing, and research on food and sustainable agriculture through her company, One Backyard.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Morgan Halgren recently retired from 27 years as a host of a weekly magazine show on Iowa Public Television, Living in Iowa. She continues in her role as the lead singer for a Latin jazz group known as Sabrosa. Both her daughters live in Europe.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Associate head coach of the University of Iowa women's basketball team and Iowa Girls High School Basketball Hall-of-Famer, Jan Jensen serves as the recruiting coordinator for the Hawkeyes and also works with the post players, efforts which have helped guide Iowa to six straight postseason appearances and a Big Ten Tournament championship in 2001.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Myrna Sandvik grew up on a traditional family farm near Lake City and taught high school English, speech, and French for much of her adult life. Currently she teaches adult creative writing at the Hearst Center for the Arts in Cedar Falls.

Editor Zachary Michael Jack compiled Letters to a Young Iowan (Ice Cube Press, 2007) by inviting prominent Iowans to contribute their advice to the next generation.

Barbara Brooks-Wheeler writes, "My latest published poem appears in Lyrical Iowa 2007. I am also working on a poetry collection as well as my non-fiction essays. I have presented papers at the American Women Nature Writers' Conference and the conference for The Study of Literature and Environment. I've been teaching writing in community college for over ten years."

Tim Tysver writes, "I was born in Sheldon, Iowa, and moved to Storm Lake at a young age. I graduated from Storm Lake High School in 1983 and attended college in Sioux City for two years. I spent five years in the United States Army as a Military Policeman and joined the East Point, Georgia, Police Department in 1990 as a patrol officer. I have spent the last nine years assigned to the Drug Enforcement Administration in Atlanta, Georgia. I am married with two sons."

Dustin Renwick is a sophomore journalism student at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa. Dustin is the Ads Director and frequent contributor to the school newspaper, The Buzz. He is also a hurdler and triple jumper for the men's track and field team.

Aline Soules' work has appeared in journals, e-zines, and anthologies such as The MacGuffin, Literature of the Expanding Frontier, Variations on the Ordinary, and The Size of the World. Prose poems have appeared in Kaleidowhirl, Tattoo Highway, Edifice Wrecked, Poetry Midwest, Binnacle, Long Story Short, the Newport Review, and the Kenyon Review. She earns her living as a library faculty member at Cal State East Bay and teaches workshops, reads her work at events, and engages in editorial work and professional voice work (reading/singing).

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Prasenjit Gupta graduated from the Writers' Workshop in 1995 and earned his Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Iowa in 2000. He is the author of A Brown Man and Other Stories and also translates fiction and poetry from Hindi and Bengali. He has received Fulbright and NEA awards and currently serves as a diplomat for the State Department.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words , a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Kathleen Walsh Spencer, editor-in-chief of Plastic Surgical Nursing Journal, practices as a post-anesthesia care nurse in metropolitan Detroit.  Her poems have appeared in Rosebud, Nimrod, Rattle, Clackamas Literary Review, and other journals, as well as in the collections Intensive Care: More Poetry and Prose by Nurses and a chapter in The Poetry of Nursing: Poems and Commentary by Leading Nurse Poets.  Spencer says, "I write poems to preserve moments that aren't recordable with film, audio or video.  It is the truth of emotion, not the facts of the narrative, that is important, and once that is on the page, it is mine forever."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Kristin Kalsem received her J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School and her B.A. and Ph.D. (English) from the University of Iowa. She joined the faculty of the University of Cincinnati's College of Law in 2001.  She co-directs (with Professor Verna Williams) UC's joint degree program in Law and Women's Studies, a program that was the first of its kind and for which the College of Law is nationally known.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Rowena Torrevillas teaches nonfiction writing and transnational literature at the University of Iowa.  She writes poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, for which she has received the Philippines' National Book Award.

This piece originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Linda M. Bendorf, a Chicago area communications specialist, offers writing workshops through the University of Iowa Summer Writing Festival and as Founder and Director of Blue Sage Writing. She and her husband, Carl, met the first day of accelerated rhetoric class in the fall of 1972. Daughters Analiese and Ilse were born and raised in Iowa City, where the Bendorfs lived and worked until their recent move to Minneapolis, then Chicago. Bendorf is currently working on her memoir as a writing teacher.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Cathryn Cofell's recent books are Kamikaze Commotion (Parallel Press, 2008) and Sweet Curdle (Marsh River Editions, 2006). Publishing credits include NY Quarterly, Main Street Rag, MARGIE, Slipstream and Nerve Cowboy, among others. She makes a living as a nonprofit executive in Appleton, Wisconsin.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This piece originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Rolf Hughes has published prose poems in The Prose Poem: An International Journal, Sentence, Quarter after Eight, 100 words, Stride, Double Room, and elsewhere. An English writer, critic and scholar, he currently lives in Sweden where he is an Assistant Professor in Artistic/Practice-Based Research at the Royal Institute of Technology and Konstfack University College of Art, Crafts and Design, both in Stockholm.

"Memoirs of a Dog" originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Caroline Ledeboer has been published elsewhere online at www.narrative.com and has a poem forthcoming in Sentence, Volume 6. She is currently at work revising a historical children's novel and recording a third CD with the pop-folk musical group, Eacret and Ledeboer (www.eacretandledeboer.com). She lives in Cedar Falls, Iowa, with her husband, Al Eacret and two kids, Carson and Willa.

A recent graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, Dan Rosenberg currently lives in Iowa City and teaches at Augustana College in Rock Island. He writes, "Andalusia is where Federico Garcia Lorca is from. I pass a sign for another Andalusia on my commute from Iowa City to Rock Island."

Victoria Sprow received her  B.A. from Harvard University and her M.Phil in Creative Writing from Trinity College Dublin. She is currently a candidate for the M.F.A. in Fiction at the Iowa Writers' Workshop.

Brittany Rain Stone is a native of Southern California, which seceded from the United States in 2000. She is currently working undercover as an undergrad at the University of Iowa. She'd tell you more, but then she'd have to kill you...

Besides being lonely, Ms. Rainey is currently a M.F.A. candidate in the University of Iowa's Nonfiction Writing Program. She loves writing about Iowa (although, if pressed, she'll admit she's been working on a screenplay for quite some time now, titled Paradise Rewritten: Lucifer's Memoirs). If winter ever ends, she has sworn to read Ulysses to the sparrows, finches, and cardinals come May.

Amy Kolen's essays have appeared in Best American Essays 2002, Bicycle Love, Prairie Weather, The Missouri Review, The Massachusetts Review, Orion Magazine, The Florida Review, Under the Sun, and elsewhere. She is the University of Iowa's MBA Writing Consultant and is a freelance editor and writing coach.

This essay was originally published in Marginalia's online issue 3.1.

Katherine Factor was raised across the river in Galesburg, Illinois, educated at Interlochen Arts Academy and Grinnell College. A recent graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, she is interested in new natural histories.

Christina Goeddel lives in Cedar Rapids and was a student at Harding Middle School when she wrote this piece. She has participated in many literary activities, including the Modern Woodman Speech Contest, Optimist Speech, Writer's Workshop classes, and she placed third in the school-wide Modern Woodman Essay Contest. Along with writing, Christina also enjoys tennis, music, math, and science.

Bruce Moore grew up in the small farming community of Earlham, Iowa. He received his B.A. from the University of Iowa and his M.A. (Biology) from Drake University. He and his wife Betsy live in Geneseo, Illinois, and have four children ranging in age from 23 to 33.

John T. Price, a professor of English at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, lives in western Iowa with his wife Stephanie and two young sons. He is author of Not Just Any Land: A Personal and Literary Journey into the American Grasslands. The entire essay "Night Rhythms" can be found in his new book, Man Killed by Pheasant and Other Kinships, published on April 15 by Da Capo Press.

Phyllis Rose is the author of Parallel Lives, Jazz Cleopatra, and other biographical works. Her memoir, The Year of Reading Proust, appeared in 1997. The entire essay "Whose Truth?" can be found in Truth in Nonfiction: Essays, edited by David Lazar and published this month by University of Iowa Press.

Established in 1938 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

David Shields is the author of eight books, including Black Planet: Facing Race during an NBA Season, Remote: Reflections on Life in the Shadow of Celebrity, and Dead Languages: A Novel. The entire essay "Reality, Persona" can be found in Truth in Nonfiction: Essays, edited by David Lazar and published this month by University of Iowa Press.

Mark Doty is the author of seven books of poems and four volumes of nonfiction prose. The entire essay "Bride in Beige" can be found in Truth in Nonfiction: Essays, edited by David Lazar and published this month by University of Iowa Press.

Robyn Schiff received her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1999. Her book Worth, published by the University of Iowa Press in 2002, appeared on Fence magazine's list of most notable books.  Her latest book, Revolver, is coming out from the University of Iowa Press in October.

Melissa Delbridge is an archivist in the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library at Duke University. Delbridge lives with her family in Orange County, North Carolina, where she spends her leisure time letting the dogs in and out, making pickles, plotting vengeance, substantiating rumors, and working on a novel. Family Bible was published by the University of Iowa Press this spring.

Mary Swander teaches at the University of Iowa at Ames. She is a widely published poet and essayist. Out of This World is new in paperback from the University of Iowa Press.

Ecologist Cornelia Mutel is the historian and archivist for IIHR-Hydroscience and Engineering at the University of Iowa College of Engineering. She is the author of Fragile Giants: A Natural History of the Loess Hills (Iowa, 1989). The Emerald Horizon: The History of Nature in Iowa was published by Iowa this spring.

Paul Engle (1908-1991) was director of the Iowa Writers' Workshop from 1941 to 1965 and the founder of the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.  A Lucky American Childhood is new in paperback from the University of Iowa Press. It is the 2008 selection for Linn Area Reads, an all-county, everyone-read-one-book program.

Amy Leach lives in Chicago, where she teaches literature and plays the piano. A collection of her essays, Warbler Delight, was published by Pastoralia Press in 2007. "Stairs" and other work by Amy Leach can be found in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review.

Jennifer Pilch's poems are forthcoming in Third Coast and Ur Vox and have appeared in 26, American Letters and Commentary, Cutbank, Denver Quarterly, Failbetter, and elsewhere. She lives and teaches in Southern California. 

"Camden Refractory" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Malachi Black is literary editor of The New York Quarterly. He lives in New York City.

"Dandelion" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Mary Ruefle's latest book is The Most of It (Wave Books, 2008). She was a visiting professor at the University of Iowa during the spring semester of 2008. "All My Roe" and other work by Mary Ruefle can be found in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review.

Nance Van Winkel's fifth collection of poems, No Starling, is recently out from University of Washington Press. She is also the author of three collections of short fiction. She teaches in the MFA Programs at Eastern Washington University and Vermont College.

"Almost Impervious" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Warren Slesinger was a university press editor for several years. In 2003, he received the South Carolina Poetry Fellowship. His poems and "definitions" have appeared in numerous publications. 

"Margin" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Jim Barnes's ninth book of poetry, Visiting Picasso (2007), is published by University of Illinois Press. He and his wife, Cora McKown, an artist and designer, live in Santa Fe and have a ranch in eastern Oklahoma.

The entire poem "Five Villanelles" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

J.D. Robinson lives and writes in Little Rock, Arkansas. He keeps a tattered photocopy of Ted Solotaroff's essay "Writing in the Cold" in his top desk drawer. 

"Relentless" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Lance Larsen's third collection of poems is forthcoming from University of Tampa Press this year. His essays have appeared in Agni, Quarterly West, Hunger Mountain, Bellingham Review, and elsewhere. 

The entire essay "A Feeling in Your Head" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Nick Courtright, an Ohio native, currently resides in Austin, Texas. In his spare time he teaches composition at Texas State University, and his poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in Court Green, The Literary Review, Zone 3, Caketrain, and Diagram.

"Elegy for the Builder's Wife" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Deborah Bogen's first full-length collection, Landscape with Silos, won the 2005 X.J. Kennedy Poetry Prize. Her poems and reviews appear widely.

"Cantilevered Bedtime Story" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Laura Littleford is an award-winning writer, solo performer, and teacher who specializes in the arts as a tool of healing. She has published in literary journals around the United States, and her work has been nominated six times for the Pushcart Best of the Small Presses annual prize. Her latest one-woman show, GanElvis, recasts Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu god of new beginnings, as Elvis Presley, king of rock & roll.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Carolyn Lieberg lives in Washington, D.C., where she writes, edits, and teaches. She received an MA in Nonfiction Writing from the University of Iowa, was editor of Iowa Woman for four years, and calls Iowa "the only place I've successfully grown tomatoes."

This piece originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Julia Klatt Singer writes fiction and poetry, is co-author of Twelve Branches: Stories from St. Paul, and she works as a visiting writer in the schools through COMPAS (Community Programs in the Arts). She lives in Minneapolis. 

This piece originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

John Birkbeck writes: "I was born in Iowa just as The Great Depression lurched in. The two events were only consequential and not causal, however. Most of my life was spent in endless roving about the world, trying to find a place where I might not necessarily fit in, but at least to find a niche."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Kathleen M. Heideman is a recent fellow of the National Science Foundation's Antarctic Artists & Writers Program, where she worked with scientists, observing their research projects at bases and remote field camps.  Previous artist residencies include several National Parks, and the Anderson Center for Interdisciplinary Studies. Her poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart, and will appear in a forthcoming anthology of literary responses to String Theory (Scriblerus Press, 2008). 

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Casey Wagner grew up in Iowa City and graduated from the University of Iowa in 2006. He now lives in California.

Kate Hunter's The Dream Sequence: A Novella was published in 2006 by Impetus Press, an independent publisher based in Iowa City. Founded on a mountain of contempt for mainstream publishing and a dislike for the rigid constraints of experimental presses, Impetus Press began with the desire to bridge the gap between experimental and commercial publishing.

Nick Antosca's Fires was published in 2006 by Impetus Press, an independent publisher based in Iowa City. Founded on a mountain of contempt for mainstream publishing and a dislike for the rigid constraints of experimental presses, Impetus Press began with the desire to bridge the gap between experimental and commercial publishing.

Jennifer Banash's Hollywoodland: An American Fairy Tale was published in 2006 by Impetus Press, an independent publisher based in Iowa City. Founded on a mountain of contempt for mainstream publishing and a dislike for the rigid constraints of experimental presses, Impetus Press began with the desire to bridge the gap between experimental and commercial publishing.

Dave Housley's Ryan Seacrest Is Famous was published in 2006 by Impetus Press, an independent publisher based in Iowa City. Founded on a mountain of contempt for mainstream publishing and a dislike for the rigid constraints of experimental presses, Impetus Press began with the desire to bridge the gap between experimental and commercial publishing.

Christian TeBordo's We Go Liquid was published in 2006 by Impetus Press, an independent publisher based in Iowa City. Founded on a mountain of contempt for mainstream publishing and a dislike for the rigid constraints of experimental presses, Impetus Press began with the desire to bridge the gap between experimental and commercial publishing.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

This poem was chosen for Poetry in Public 2008, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Poetry in Public celebrates Iowa City's rich literary tradition and local writing talent by displaying poems by writers of all ages in city buses, a downtown kiosk, community centers, and the public library.

Lolita Stewart-White lives and works in Miami. Her poetry has appeared in African Voices, Common Ground, and Phoebe. Stewart-White is a Cave Canem fellow and was a recent participant in the Callaloo Creative Writing Workshops.

"Prequel" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

A native of Des Moines, Lucia Nevai now lives in upstate New York. She is author of the novel Seriously and two story collections, Star Game and Normal. This month, Tin House Books published her new novel, Salvation. Tin House Books is an offshoot of the award-winning literary magazine Tin House.

Joyelle McSweeney received her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 2001. Her first book, The Red Bird, won the first Fence Modern Poets Series Prize. "Bureau of" is from The Commandrine and Other Poems, published by Fence Books in 2004.

Sabrina Orah Mark received her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 2001. "Non Vixit" is from The Babies, winner of the Saturnalia Books Poetry Prize and published by Saturnalia in 2004.

Aaron McCollough received his MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 2001. "The First Poem of Jan Vandermeer" is from is his third book of poetry, Little Ease, published by Ahsahta Press in 2006.

Jay Hopler received his MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1997. "Mèditation Malheureuse" is from Green Squall, which won the 2005 Yale Series of Younger Poets Award and was published by Yale University Press in 2006.

Henry Israeli's books include New Messiahs (Four Way Books, 2002) and Fresco: The Selected Poetry of Luljeta Lleshanaku (New Directions, 2002)—which he edited and co-translated. He has been awarded fellowship grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Canada Council on the Arts, and elsewhere. Henry Israeli is also the founder of Saturnalia Books.

"The Devil in Arcadia, Iowa" is from New Messiahs and is reprinted with permission from Four Way Books.

Meridel Le Sueur (1900—1966) was born in Murray, Iowa, and spent most of her life in the Midwest. She has been recognized as one of the leading proletarian short story writers of the 1930s. Her 1978 novel The Girl was reissued by West End Press in 2006 with a new introduction by Linda Ray Pratt.

Tom Ruud writes: "I live in Saint Paul, MN with my wife, Sylvia, and two dogs, Sparky and Pepper. With a BA in Classics and MFA in Writing, I teach both publicly and privately in the Twin Cities area. My poems have appeared in numerous national and local journals, as well as in my first book, Unable for the World to Sleep (2005)."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

William Reichard is the author of three collections of poetry, most recently This Brightness (Mid-List Press, 2007).

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by the University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Karen An-hwei Lee's first book-length collection, In Medias Res, won the Kathryn A. Morton Prize from Sarabande books and the Poetry Society of America's Norma Farber First Book Award. 

"Prayer for the Underground Supplicant" appears in the current (Spring 2008) issue of The Iowa Review, a literary magazine based at the University of Iowa. Founded in 1970, The Iowa Review has been edited by David Hamilton since 1978.

Victoria Fedden lived in Iowa City for the month of July as a participant in the Iowa Summer Writing Festival. This poem was written in Katie Ford's Advanced Poetry Workshop, "Subject Matters."  Victoria lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where she is finishing her MFA in poetry at Florida Atlantic University.

Margot Demopoulos attended the 2008 Iowa Summer Writing Festival. Her work has appeared in Pedestal Magazine, The Potomac Review, The Briar Cliff Review, Mondo Greco, and other literary journals. She is currently working on a novel.

Anastasia Sasewich is currently completing a B.A. in English with minors in Women's Studies, Italian, and Creative Writing at Loyola University, Chicago. She studied in Iowa for two years before moving to Chicago to study the city. She writes mostly fiction.

Mark Stellinga writes, "I've been an Iowa City resident since 1958. I've been writing verse since I was thirteen, and been infatuated with it since I was six. Now 58 years old, I'm readying to publish my sixth book of poetry, following eleven children's books and five 18-and-older crime/drama novels. My books are available at Prairie Lights, barnesandnoble.com, and on my new personal site."

Sheila Simon teaches law at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, and she recently attended the Iowa Summer Writing Festival.

Jaton writes, "Fresh off the plane from Manila, I discovered I could write fiction (or something that looks a lot like it) after spending this last summer in Iowa City. This is my first story, inspired by the fascinating homeless people that hang out on the ped mall, where calls for 'change' happen daily."

Elaine Erickson received a Master of Music degree in Music Composition from Drake University. She has composed five operas and travels to schools throughout Iowa presenting workshops involving her compositions through VSA. Elaine's poetry has been published in The Briar Cliff Review and The Midwest Poetry Review, as well as in six books published by Chestnut Hills Press (Baltimore, MD).  She began writing poetry in 1979 and enjoys writing about her experience as a musician.

"First Piano Recital" was first published by The Briar Cliff Review, Volume 20, 2008.

Roy R. Behrens, an artist as well as a writer, teaches graphic design, illustration and design history at the University of Northern Iowa. Among his recent books are FALSE COLORS: Art, Design and Modern Camouflage (Bobolink Books, 2002), and (his design of) Marguerite Wildenhain and the Bauhaus: An Eyewitness Anthology (South Bear Press, 2007). COOK BOOK: Gertrude Stein, William Cook and Le Corbusier was published in 2005 by Bobolink Books and is available online at Amazon.com.

Eva Schultz lives in Plainfield, Illinois and has attended the Iowa Summer Writing Festival for the past five years. She is a business writer by day and fiction writer by night.  Her work has appeared in Perspectives, The Rockford Review, and Vox.

A native Minnesotan, Eric J. Bruce earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. He credits Iowa and his knowledgeable professors at Simpson for expanding his love of art in all its forms and will be continuing his education in Arts and Cultural Management.

Rob Vogt is a Chicago-area native and an Iowa Summer Writing Festival attendee. He has studied short story writing under Elizabeth Wetmore and Bret Anthony Johnston, graduates of the Iowa Writers Workshop.

Len Joy lives in Evanston, Illinois with his wife and three children. For fifteen years Joy owned and operated an automobile engine remanufacturing company in Phoenix. In the past year his work has appeared in Hobart, 3:AM Magazine, NightsAndWeekends.com, GlassFire Magazine, 21 Stars Review, and Boston Literary Magazine. He is currently working on a novel.

Courtney McDermott is a native of New Hampton, Iowa, and a returned Peace Corps Volunteer from Lesotho. She has had work published in the Iowa Source Poetry Anthology, Berkeley Fiction Review, and Italy from a Backpack. She teaches humanities and yoga at Scattergood Friends School in West Branch.

John D. Thompson is the author of six books of poetry, including 99 Voices, 99 Lives: County Poems of Iowa and On Holiday, a book of seasonal verse.  Born and raised in Iowa, Thompson is passionate about creating Iowa-based poems from geography and history throughout the state. Over the past few years, he traveled to all 99 counties in Iowa and wrote a poem about each county during his visit there. "Ode to Thresher" is the Henry County Poem, written in Mount Pleasant just a few weeks before Thresher Days in 2005. The poet may be reached at sttaepoetpro@yahoo.com.

Tom Reiter writes, "I was born and raised in Dubuque, and graduated from Loras College in 1962.  My most recent book of poems, Powers and Boundaries, was published in 2004 by Louisiana State University Press. In 2009, LSU will bring out my next collection, Catchment."

Nancy writes, "I've lived in Lamoni for 14 years, and the biggest the reason I stayed after my husband died in 2000, was because of our dogs.  We had created a wonderful kennel set-up, for Lady, a once famous Narcotics Detection K9 and her entourage. Where was I going to go with 5 Rottweilers?  This poem was originally a descriptive paragraph for a Non-Fiction Writing class I took with Carol Lauhon, a memorial tribute to one of my canines."

Janet Clark writes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.  Her work has appeared in The Iowan, Iowa Gardening, The Des Moines Register, Fort Dodge Today Magazine, The Messenger, and Fort Dodge Business Review. Her first novel, Blind Faith, was published by 1st World Publishing of Fairfield, Iowa, in 2007.

Jane Banning was born and raised in Mason City, Iowa. She received her BA from Iowa State University and MA from the University of Wisconsin. She now lives in Oregon, Wisconsin with her husband, son, and their dog, Thunder.

Sarah Myers grew up in Iowa City and graduated in 2003 from West High. She then attended Dartmouth College, where she majored in Classical Literatures and Romance Languages and Literatures. Her senior thesis for Classics was a verse translation of the sixth book of Lucan's "Pharsalia." This poem was inspired by both her Latin thesis and her French thesis, which was on Samuel Beckett's trilogy of novels. She now lives in New York.

Ryan Roenfeld has lived his entire life in Glenwood, Iowa but sometimes wishes he didn't.

Deirdre Leahy, from Dublin, Ireland, attended "The Advanced Novel: Through A Different Lens" course with Ashley Warlick during Iowa's Summer Writing Program 2008. Deirdre is a graduate of University College Dublin and has a Masters in Film Studies. Her short film, Uaigneas, was screened at the 2001 New York University Student Film Festival, and her television script Ten Green Bottles was shortlisted for the BBC Northern Ireland Tony Doyle Bursary For New Writing. Deirdre is the recipient of several awards from the Arts Council of Ireland. This is an extract from Roma Amor, her recently completed period novel set in Italy.

Bhaskar Pulikal immigrated to the USA in 1998 and has been living in Cedar Rapids ever since. He has written and published a number of short stories in his native language, Telugu, and is currently working on translating them to English. He is an alumnus of The University of Iowa.

This poem was selected for the 2008 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its sixth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Omar Martinez attends Southeast Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2008 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its sixth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Nate Moyston attends Southeast Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2008 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its sixth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Detric Coleman is currently in fifth grade.

This poem was selected for the 2008 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its sixth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall.  Abram Nothnagle attends Southeast Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2008 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its sixth year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Abby attends Horn Elementary.

Kiki Petrosino lives in Iowa City. Her collection, Fort Red Border, will be published in 2009 by Sarabande Books.

Mary Jane White's translation of Marina Tsvetaeva's elegy for Rainer Maria Rilke, New Year's, was published in 2007 by Adastra Press. A portion of her translation of Tsvetaeva's "Poem of the End" will appear in Notre Dame Review in the Spring of 2009. Mary practices law in Waukon, Iowa.  White's translation of Marina Tsvetaeva's Poem of the End (26 pp) will appear in the Winter Special Translation Issue of The Hudson Review, edited by Paula Dietz.

Jessica Wilson is an MFA candidate in the Nonfiction Writing Program at The University of Iowa. She moved here from Boston last August and is finding a host of things to love about living in "flyover country."

Lindsay Bland grew up in Coralville, Iowa and attended The University of Iowa as an undergraduate. She currently lives and teaches in Missoula, Montana where she is a second-year MFA candidate in the University of Montana's Creative Writing Program.

Dean Grondo spent years traveling throughout the great American Southwest, first as a performer, then as a country western music concert promoter. He has no serious aspirations as a writer. He hopes all our Iowan servicemen and women overseas come home safe.

Douglas Bauer has written three novels, Dexterity, The Very Air, and The Book of Famous Iowans, and a book of essays, The Stuff of Fiction: Advice on Craft. He has taught at Harvard and the University of New Mexico and has been writer-in-residence at Rice University and Smith College. He currently teaches at Bennington College.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Amy Lee Scott is an MFA candidate in the Nonfiction Writing Program at The University of Iowa. Her essays and poems have appeared in JuiceBox Journal, The Iron Horse Literary Review, Quarter After Eight, and Brevity.

Patricia Bryan is a professor of law at the University of North Carolina. She is the author of Stories in Fiction and in Fact: Susan Glaspell's "A Jury of Her Peers" and the 1901 Murder Trial of Margaret Hossack. Thomas Wolf received his MFA in creative writing from The Iowa Writers' Workshop; he is now a writing consultant for the Association of American Medical Colleges.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.


(University of Iowa press link: http://www.uiowapress.org/)

Sarah Viren is a former newspaper journalist from Florida and Texas working on her MFA in nonfiction writing at The University of Iowa.

Jill Wheeler teaches English at Carlisle High School in Carlisle, Iowa. She is also pursuing an MA in literature at Iowa State University.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 1 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Memory."

Robyn Schiff is the author of Worth (Iowa, 2002). She is an associate professor at The University of Iowa, where she is the director of the undergraduate creative writing program. She also co-edits Canarium Books.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Iowa native John Madson (1923-1995) is considered the father of the modern prairie restoration movement; his books include Where the Sky Began (Iowa reprint, 2004), Stories from under the Sky (Iowa reprint, 2007), Up on the River, and Tallgrass Prairie. He wrote extensively on natural history and resource conservation for Audubon, Smithsonian, and National Geographic, among many others.

Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 4, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Fate."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 4, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Fate."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 4, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Fate."

Justin Hyde lives in Iowa where he works with criminals. More of his poetry and his first book can be found on his website.

Emily Wilson is the author of The Keep (University of Iowa Press, 2001). She holds degrees from Harvard and The University of Iowa Writers' Workshop and is the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. She lives in Brooklyn.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Andrew Michael Roberts is the author of Dear Wild Abandon, selected for a 2007 PSA National Chapbook Award, and Give Up. His poems can be found in journals such as Tin House, The Iowa Review, LIT, Colorado Review, and Gulf Coast.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

David Watts practices medicine in San Francisco. A poet, musician, television host, and teacher, he is the author of Bedside Manners and Slow Walking at Jenner-by-the-Sea. He also produced Healing Words: Poetry and the Art of Medicine, which was broadcast nationally on PBS in the summer of 2008.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Sabrina Orah Mark received her MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in 2001. "The Song" is from 12 x 12: Conversations in 21st-Century Poetry and Poetics, edited by Christina Mengert and Joshua Marie Wilkinson.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

Noah writes, "I grew up on a farm in Iowa, did my undergrad at The University of Iowa, and recently moved to Baltimore to start the MFA program for poetry at The University of Maryland, College Park. I teach at Coppin St. University and tutor in the Baltimore Public School System. I lived in Iowa City for twelve years, and I always had a sneaking suspicion that I'd miss it when I left; I just didn't think I'd miss it this much."

Maris Venia is a former high school teacher from Michigan. She is in her second year at The University of Iowa as an MFA candidate in the Nonfiction Writing Program.

Tom Miller lives and works in Davenport, Iowa.

Rita McCord has a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education from The University of Iowa. She teaches elementary school in Cedar Rapids and has been writing poetry since she was fourteen. Her work has appeared in Lyrical Iowa 2008.

Debra L. Hutchison spent the first eighteen years of her life on a dairy farm outside of Hampton, Iowa.  "Iowa has had a great deal of influence on my sensibilities as a poet," she says.  She earned an MFA from Vermont College and currently teaches Critical Writing at Le Moyne College.

Tharin Schwinefus grew up in northeast Iowa and attended Postville High School and Wartburg College. He enjoys writing in his spare time.

Linda Egenes has written about the Amish for Cobblestone, Plain, The Iowa Source, and The Plain Reader. She is an adjunct faculty member at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa. Vermont artist Mary Azarian won the Caldecott Medal in 1999 for her illustrations in Snowflake Bentley.


Established in 1969 and housed in the historic Kuhl House, the oldest house still standing in Iowa City, the University of Iowa Press publishes scholarly books and a wide variety of titles that will appeal to general readers. As the only university press in the state, it is dedicated to preserving the literature, history, culture, wildlife, and natural areas of the region.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Debra L. Hutchison spent the first eighteen years of her life on a dairy farm outside of Hampton, Iowa.  "Iowa has had a great deal of influence on my sensibilities as a poet," she says.  She earned an MFA from Vermont College and currently teaches Critical Writing at Le Moyne College.

Eric Johnson grew up on a farm in Fairfield, Iowa, and is now a web programmer in Iowa City. He designs humorous and offbeat t-shirts in his spare time and is working on a second children's book.

Hua Ou is a University of Iowa graduate student from southwest China. She will soon earn her Ph.D in Hearing Science and is currently at work on her dissertation. She writes, "I have a dream to help hearing-impaired people." This piece originally appeared in the Spring 2007 issue of Voices, a journal of student writing published by The University of Iowa Writing Center.

Ellen Birkett Morris is an honorary Iowan each summer when she attends the summer writing festival.  Her poetry has appeared in Juked, The Centrifugal Eye, The Rambler, Ruminate, The Pedestal Magazine, The Heartland Review, and Alimentum.  Her work has been included in The Binnacle Ultra-Short Edition and was winner of the top prize in 2008. In 2006, her poem, "Origins," was nominated for the Pushcart Prize.

Will Smiley received his MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he was a Provost Writing Fellow for 2006-07. His poems have appeared in Colorado Review, Fence, NEO (Portugal), and elsewhere. "She" was first published in The Iowa Review.

Jenna Hammerich, current literary editor of the Daily Palette, is a student in The University of Iowa's Nonfiction Writing Program. This is an excerpt of an essay in progress.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Debra L. Hutchison spent the first eighteen years of her life on a dairy farm outside of Hampton, Iowa.  "Iowa has had a great deal of influence on my sensibilities as a poet," she says.  She earned an MFA from Vermont College and currently teaches Critical Writing at Le Moyne College.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

"Grandmother's Flower Garden" is the name of a favorite quilt pattern made by the women of Appalachia at their quilting bees.

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

This poem originally appeared in Volume 5, Number 6 of 100 Words, a journal published by The University of Iowa's International Writing Program between 1993 and 1998. Each piece in the journal had to be 100 words or fewer, and each issue had a theme. This issue's theme was "On Garden."

Amy Nolan teaches creative writing, the graphic novel, and film at Wartburg College, and she is currently at work on her first book, a memoir called Water Music. An excerpt from the memoir, an essay called "Close to the Bones," was recently published in The Bellevue Literary Review.

Mary Potter Kenyon lives in Manchester, Iowa. Her work has appeared in publications such as Our Iowa, Julien's Journal, Home Education, and Backwoods Home, and in the books Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul and Voices of Caregiving. Her book Coupons, Chemo, and Chuck E. Cheese will be released by Diversion Press later this year.

Laura Jackson was born in Iowa Falls and enjoyed writing from very early in life; she began to write short stories and poems in elementary school. In high school, she had an essay and a poem published in teens' literary works. An English major and Chinese minor at The University of Iowa, Laura is very interested in poetry and the different forms it can take, and she hopes to be accepted one day into the Iowa Writers' Workshop. She is currently planning to teach high school English when she graduates from college.

Joe Crowley is an Iowa native, born and raised in Oelwein and a 1959 graduate of The University of Iowa (political science). After a career as a professor, author, and administrator at the University of Nevada, Reno, he writes poetry in retirement.

Jacob Zawa graduated from The University of Iowa in May 2009. He writes, "Struck by a lecture I attended led by Dr. Burns Weston on the subject of climate change, I thought for days that if I knew law I'd do something profounder than poetry."

Tim Trenkle writes, "Most of my stories are portraits of Iowans who see neighbors with obstacles and want to help. I write about these common people and am one. I see faith and grit in Iowa. I also teach psychology and writing at a community college and have a column in Dubuque's newspaper. My writing has been published in anthologies of poetry and essays."

Casey Westlake was born in Cedar Rapids and lived there until she was eight, when she was dragged out of Iowa. She graduated from Ohio University in June 2007 and is studying for an MA in Creative and Media Writing from the University of Wales Swansea. She hopes to own a dog named Julius Caesar someday.

Bonnie Manion attended the UI's Summer Writing Festival in 2008. She has published approximately 170 poems over the past eight years and mostly writes about death, cancer, aging, prison, nature, the angst in human relationships, and spiritual matters.

Kathryn Duffy is an undergraduate at The University of Iowa pursuing an English Major. She enjoys writing both poetry and fiction and will begin the Undergraduate Creative Writing Track this fall.  She's also interested in editing and publishing and plans to write full-time in the future.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Ruby is currently in kindergarten at Penn Elementary School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Frances is currently in preschool at Regina Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Claudia is currently in first grade at Roosevelt Elementary.

Jessica C. White received an MFA in Printmaking from the University of Iowa in 2008.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Gracie is currently in third grade at Van Allen Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Abhijay is currently in first grade at Weber Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Billy is currently in first grade at Hoover Elementary.

John Manion received an MFA in Sculpture from the University of Iowa in 2008.

Stephen L. Maxon received an MFA in Sculpture from the University of Iowa in 1980.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Sarah is currently in fifth grade at Grant Wood Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Tony is currently in fourth grade at Weber Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Thomas is currently in fourth grade at Mann Elementary.

Yoong-Kyung Oh received an MA in Jewelry and Metal Arts from the University of Iowa in 1996.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Mary is currently in second grade at Kate Wickham Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Pombie is currently in eighth grade at Northwest Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Max is currently in seventh grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Isaac is currently in eighth grade at Northwest Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Rebecca is currently in third grade at Horn Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Layla is currently in fourth grade at Willowwind School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Malin is currently in eighth grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Zora is currently in eighth grade at Northwest Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Lorelei is currently a junior at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Andrea is currently a freshman at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. The writer is currently a freshman at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Nora is currently a freshman at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Max is currently in second grade at Horace Mann Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Eliana is currently in fourth grade at Shimek Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Alena is currently in fifth grade at Lincoln Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Nathaniel is currently a junior at Iowa City High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Liana is currently in fifth grade at Shimek Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. T'Shailyn is a student at Van Allen Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Hailey is currently a senior at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Colton is currently in seventh grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. The writer is currently in seventh grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Elizabeth is currently in seventh grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. The writer is currently a senior at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Lauren is currently a freshman at West High School.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Andrew is currently in third grade at Weber Elementary.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Anas is currently in eighth grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. The writer is currently in eighth grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Zach is currently in eighth grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Taylor is currently in eighth grade at South East Junior High.

This poem was selected for the 2009 Poetry in Public project, sponsored by the Iowa City Public Art Program. Now in its seventh year, Poetry in Public displays poems by local writers of all ages in Iowa City buses, downtown kiosks, and select public buildings from April (National Poetry Month) through the fall. Tareq is currently a junior at Iowa City High School.

Alex Ryan is currently studying art history, museology, and French at The University of Iowa. He enjoys expensive bottled water and has often been described as "eurotrash meets Midwestern white boy."

Kelly writes, "I am sixteen, and I enjoy movies, cycling, and Garrison Keillor. I first discovered I enjoyed reading from my English textbook in seventh grade, a reality I am still adjusting to."

David Faircloth was born in Indianapolis in 1943 and moved to Kellogg, Iowa when he was three years old. He taught high school science for ten years, including five years overseas, and ultimately finished his work life as a forensic chemist. He has written close to a thousand poems, but this is his first publication.

Justin Holger Lindholm is a transplanted Iowan, born in Van Cleve, Iowa, raised in Marshalltown, and now residing in Derby, Kansas, where he attends Wichita State University. He is a two-time award winning playwright (One Day at the Last Stop and Polarity, both staged by the Huff Theatre in Ankeny, Iowa) and has another play in process. He enjoys arguing, finding the world in the great outdoors, and collecting elephants.

JoAnna Naomi Tatman was born in Sibley, Iowa and was homeschooled from kindergarten onwards. She graduated with a BA in business administration from Chadron State College in Chadron, Nebraska in 2006. She works as a technical copywriter for the in-house marketing department of a K–12 Christian curriculum provider.

Bruce Moore received his BA from The University of Iowa in 1970 and his MA in biology from Drake University in 1973. He and his wife Betsy live in Geneseo, Illinois and have four children and six grandchildren.

A University of Iowa graduate, Gogerty has taught writing and literature in Iowa, Australia, and Japan. Now a resident of Ames, he teaches at Iowa Central Community College and writes regularly for the Ames Tribune and Our Iowa magazine.