What We’re Talking About in Issue 0504 (June 2021)
The complete table of contents
as it appears in the June 2021 issue of Blank Spaces.
from the editor—Find Your Solace here
shameless — Stammer and the Slope by Nicoline Antonovitch is a vulnerable story of fierceness and forgiveness as the author faces the hindrance of her speech impediment and the mockery of her father during a night skiing expedition.
— Kim Losier shares an excerpt from her personal memoire, A Tree to Remember, reflecting on an important childhood setting and the special memories that were formed there.
red solo cup — In his poem, Summer Night of Little Fish, Samuel Strathman captures the chaotic juxtaposition and striking similarities between home-grown Canadian and tourist.
— Aileen Luo explores thoughts on abandonment and legacy in her striking poems, The Chronicles of Corn Girl and Golden Ratio.
— Cindy Patrick holds back no punches in her visceral poetry. Lucky Me - Beside a Gaggle, Moody, and Listening to Mum Turn Double Sevens explore such topics as aging, judgment, and the human condition.
flash fiction — Tattletale by V.J. Hamilton follows a dedicated employee whose life is disrupted by productivity software that becomes an obsession.
— Elvira Berezowsky brings us an existential speculative piece that pushes the very question of existence in her brief story, Vanished.
— In Yearning to Walk, Salvatore Difalco invites us into a stream of conscious journey down a cold morning street.
fiction feature(s) — Joe Bongiorno puts us in the centre of a surreal experience as one man battles with both an external intruder and the internal question of his own identity and desire in Hunger.
— Leaning in to an East Coast family custom, The Smell of Seafood Burning by Daniel Bay delivers a touching view of family and how varying approaches to grief can be both polarizing and bonding.
— Nether Lands by John Van Rys combines the complications of IBS, stark religious differences, and what it might take to rekindle the flame of a dormant marriage.
different strokes —The Light of Change is the fifth instalment of the Inks Collection by artist Erica Helder. An ongoing project, the Inks Collection seek to tell stories of the human experience through abstract art.
food of love — Play On by Robin Pacific proves that you’re never too old to be a student of the arts.
story matters — Staff writer Haley Down took some time to interview Lily Wang about her recently released book of poetry, Saturn Peach, published by Gordon Hill Press and included on CBC’s The Best Canadian Poetry of 2020 list.
make art not war — Artist and past contributor Ober-Rae Starr Livingstone takes a moment to remind us that art is not a frivolous undertaking and can be a world-changing and unifying feat in his brief but profound statement piece, The Power of Art to Unite.
between the lines — Gail M. Murray brings us a review of The Way Things Fall by Liz Torlée.
write prompt challenge winner — Sarah Law rose to the top with her moving contest entry, Nothing But Bluebirds, a story that the judges called “compassionate and mature.”
final word — Caitlin Lindsay leaves us with her poem Regretting What Can’t Be Helped, a sobering reflection on the passage of time.
