I’m deeply grateful to Uncanny Magazine for inviting me to contribute to their current issue. I was supposed to write an essay, but I ended up writing a poem called “Book Club” about reading Dandelion Wine to my mom during her last weeks. Here are the opening lines:
Your mother is dying
What do you read to her?
During the pandemic, she started an online book club
For her school-aged grandchildren
Now they’re lounging in the cool, dark house
But she’s too tired to run the meeting
That’s become your job
Pick a book
The poem is free to read at https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/book-club/ — along with many other stories, poems, and essays from this issue of the magazine. I’ve just realized it’s my first new poetry published in someone else’s publication since high school. Whew. I hope you’ll check it out.