The Massachusetts Review

Interview with Carl "Taqwaa" Moore by G. Ziegel

"I love the feeling of knowing that communication has been achieved, the transfer of an idea from one mind to another."

Carl "Taqwaa" Moore in our newest interview: open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

Square Peg, Round Hole by Sophie Lewis

"Having read SCREAM WITH ME first, I more than once mentally thanked Lisowski in UNCANNY VALLEY GIRLS for the respect she affords [horror films] merely by refraining from jamming the square peg of horror into liberal feminism’s round hole."

Sophie Lewis:
open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

10 Questions for Dong Li - The Massachusetts Review Two middle-aged men before an ancient mapLook for where they are The bronze birds are now rottenCloser to Giacometti—from “In the Exhibition Hall” by Ye Hui, Translated from Chinese by Dong Li (Volume...

"If I am insistent and lucky, I might stumble upon something surprising but that which seems to be already waiting in the language of arrival."

Dong Li on the uncovering found within translation, plus his admiration of en plein air painting, for our #10Questions: massreview.org/2026/02/24/1...

Congrats to past MR contributor Robin Myers and her translation of Gabriela Cabezón Cámara WE ARE GREEN AND TREMBLING on making the longlist for the #InternationalBooker2026

Interview and Reading with Sheree L. Greer by G. Ziegel

"I loved writing. It has always felt like something no one could take away from me."

Sheree L. Greer's interview, plus a short reading: open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

So excited and honored to be a part of this roundup! We look forward to seeing you all and the other finalists at AWP.

The Writer's Center Book Club: Register at writer.org/book-club

Poetry Online on 2nd Wednesdays, starting March 11th. Fiction in person on 3rd Sundays, starting April 19th.

TWC book club is no run-of-the-mill book club. Visiting writers will read excerpts and join the discussion, and answer your questions about craft, process, the publishing industry

Want to read amazing books, build community, and meet small press writers? Join the book club!

I'm working with The Writer's Center on two new book clubs that focus on independent authors and presses!!

We'll read a new book each month. Then the author will join us, read an excerpt, and answer reader questions!

Read with us!

Gaza in the New Year: Countdown to Death, Not Celebration by Amna Dmeida

"Israel’s color-zoning of Gaza is an aggressive policy of grabbing land and redrawing borders, making the return of Gazans to their homes almost impossible."

Amna Dmeida for our Public Affairs: substack.com/@themassachu...

Complementary Readings by G. Ziegel

Watch Jakyra Green and Carl "Taqwaa" Moore from our INCARCERATION & FAMILY special issue read and discuss each other's poems:

open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

Sometimes My Lies Are True by Benjamin Frandsen

"I had witnessed the miracle: my inspired thought had been conveyed and then experienced by my audience. I had created a moment."

Benjamin Frandsen's new creative nonfiction piece on the craft of his essay from 66.4: open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

Fireside Beers by Marsha Bryant

"When it’s cold, find some warmth by the fire.
Pour a beer right before you retire
To your favorite chair.
Here are some you can share
As these frostier evenings transpire."

FIRESIDE BEERS in review by Marsha Bryant: substack.com/@themassachu...

Our winter BOGO sale ends this Saturday! Specify which two issues you'd like in the "Back Issue" text box:

general-umass.nbsstore.net/massachusett...

YouTube video by The Massachusetts Review Mae Ellen-Marie Wissert reads "one night outlaw" (from Volume 66, issue 4)

Watch Mae Ellen-Marie Wissert read her poem "one night outlaw" from our INCARCERATION & FAMILY issue:

youtu.be/DYXfrO-BSC4?...

This isn't the first time that children were taken from their parents by Immigration Enforcement and sent to Dilley, TX; in fact, Katherine Silver wrote about her experiences visiting the detainment center there for MR back in 2018: massreview.org/2018/10/22/t...

The Magicians: A Review by Ayesha Harruna Attah

"We need more archives of African lives, especially of places like the north of Ghana, and [Wunpini Fatimata] Mohammed’s book is the right start."

Ayesha Harruna Attah's review of MEDIA, CULTURE, AND DECOLONIZATION:
substack.com/@themassachu...

Curious what kinds of work we publish as Working Titles? Purchase a few from @weightlessbooks.bsky.social (They're only $1.99!!) weightlessbooks.com/category/pub...

Submissions - The Massachusetts Review Submission Guidelines Submissions The Massachusetts Review 2025 – 2026 Submissions Period is now open.  If you have submitted to us online, please check that your spam filters do not block our email. You can add massrev@external.umass...

After a not-so-brief hiatus, we've re-opened submissions to our #WorkingTitles series, our digital e-book collection of works longer than can fit in our print journal. For a full set of guidelines, check out massreview.org/new-submissi...

Interview with Michael Fischer by G. Ziegel

"I think a sporadic or low-stakes writing life can still be productive and deeply serious."

Michael Fischer shares his unpopular writing advice (and confesses his great schemes): open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

“Tatreez, Taught” التطريز , مُدرَّس by Samar Abdrabbou

"This art-form encourages a kind of vulnerability which is needed now more than ever, for those of us who cannot stop worrying yet refuse to look away."

Samar Abdrabbou on the Palestinian art of Tatreez: open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

YouTube video by The Massachusetts Review J. D. Mathes reads "Momma Tried" (from Volume 66, issue 4)

J. D. Mathes from our Winter Special Issue reads his essay "Momma Tried":
youtu.be/kuPKYvoDCBQ?...

"The court of public opinion matters, because the public has power. In other words, the end of romance is where our own political work begins."

Jim Hicks' review of Colangelo-Bryan's THROUGH THE GATES OF HELL: open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

Production Job Opening We're hiring a production designer!

We're hiring a production designer! Read the full job posting and apply here: open.substack.com/pub/themassa...

A Kidnapping in Minnesota - The Massachusetts Review At 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday November 25th, my husband Peter gets an alert that ICE is attempting a house raid nearby. We jump in the car. Several blocks from the address, we encounter Saint Paul police, ...

An unfortunately prescient piece, we go back to Beth Cleary on an ICE kidnapping in Minnesota from the MR blog back in December: massreview.org/2025/12/12/a...

Thank you to everyone who made a donation in the waning days of 2025! We know things seems scary and uncertain, but we'll continue to bring you the voices from around the globe that give us all a little hope.

So excited to be in this issue, which is absolutely stacked with amazing work

"I found an angle that also allowed me to give voice to my love of cats, as well as a specific form that let me play with—and satirize—academic scholarship."

@srkraaijeveld.bsky.social on cats, Dostoevsky, and teaching ethics for our #10Questions: massreview.org/2025/12/29/1...

We're having a winter BOGO sale on all Volume 65 and 66 issues!! Order one copy from the past two volumes and we'll send you another of your choice for free. Name the two issues you want in the "Back Issue" text box. Happy holidays from MR!
general-umass.nbsstore.net/massachusett...

9 Questions for Caroline Stevens - The Massachusetts Review What I mean is, there are waysback  in  when your  brain  has  checked  you out:singing badly, for example.           Making uglinessa god of sorts. Knowing yourself as a person thatcan be unwillingly...

"I think the same part of me [that wanted to be an actor] today enjoys reading poems aloud—the performance aspect can be electric."

Caroline Stevens from our Fall 2025 issue answers our #10Questions (almost)!
massreview.org/2025/12/17/9...

YouTube video by The Massachusetts Review MR Winter 2025 Special Issue: INCARCERATION & FAMILY. Zoom launch and reading.

Can't wait for your Winter Special Issue to arrive? Hear commentary from our guest editors and select pieces from contributors in our recorded launch event:

youtu.be/lWYLBXC0nFw?...

Volume 66, Issue 4 - The Massachusetts Review FRONT COVER:Alvin SmithUndesirable Water, c. 2015ACRYLIC ON UNSTRETCHED CANVAS ONE FATHER in a khaki jumpsuit branded with “Correctional Facility” smiles as he supports his fourteen-year-old’s interes...

Our Winter Special Issue, FAMILY & INCARCERATION, is out now!!

Guest edited by Caits Meissner and Nicole Shawan Junior; featuring poems by Zeke Caligiuri and Janice Lobo Sapigao, prose by Patty Prewitt, Rickey Cummings, and Teddrick Batiste, and more!

massreview.org/issue/volume...