It's a Deal!: Dynamic Transactions (Volume 18) (CHRYSALIS READERS)

We don’t often think of our daily lives and social connections as a marketplace, but sometimes that’s exactly what they are. Sometimes the interactions are win-win, and sometimes the outcome hangs on a single breaking point. The eighteenth volume of the annual Chrysalis Reader anthology explores the bargains that shape our lives through poetry, essays, and short fiction.

Among the fifty-three entries in this volume are poetry from poet laureates William Kloefkorn, Judith Ann Levison, Linda Pastan, and Wesley McNair. Acclaimed poet Robert Bly writes of regret and “long-leggèd birds.” Professor Michael Thomas’s short story “Are You an American?” highlights the desperation of Mexico’s rural villages; artist David S. Rubenstein gives a medical researcher a second chance; Pushcart Prize nominee Frank Scozzari spins a tale of revolution and sacrifice. Rounding out the volume are two Bailey Prize winners: Byron Edgington, whose journey home to see his dying father means tough choices, and Chloé Joseph with a poem about a mother’s infidelity.

Robert F. Lawson’s poetry has appeared in Three Rivers Poetry Journal, Salt Lick, Plum Review, Phoenix, Negative Capability, Lullwater Review, Kalliope, Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review, and others. He is currently the major gifts and planned giving officer for the Maine Public Broadcasting Network. A co-editor for the Chrysalis Reader and former editor for Simon & Schuster, Lawson does freelance editing and writing consultation as time permits.

Carol S. Lawson holds a master’s degree in creative writing and literature from Bennington College. Her long and varied career in publishing has included editing a medical journal for Harper & Row, publications work for the US Public Health Service and the Environmental Protection Agency, and the executive editor position at the American Birding Association. Currently, she and her daughter provide publishing services to nonprofit groups via Scholarly & Specialized Publishing.