The Ostrich Review – 2014

The Ostrich Review, founded in 2012 and having put out five issues so far, offers fiction, poetry, and artwork. This issue holds several pieces worth reading. If you read Chris Lowe’s “Kudzu” for face-value and you’re just along for the ride, you may not get much out of it. It’s not just about wrestling, football, and pre-teen sexual desire. The reward comes with a close read, piecing together all the subtle references to the character’s mother… The Ostrich Review, founded in 2012 and having put out five issues so far, offers fiction, poetry, and artwork. This issue holds several pieces worth reading.

If you read Chris Lowe’s “Kudzu” for face-value and you’re just along for the ride, you may not get much out of it. It’s not just about wrestling, football, and pre-teen sexual desire. The reward comes with a close read, piecing together all the subtle references to the character’s mother and lines such as “’Won’t none of the clearing matter unless you take out these crowns.’ . . . that thick knot of root that the tendrils and tributaries of the kudzu stretched back to,” and “I tongued another sunflower seed from its shell, sucked the salt from it, spat the empty shell down to the grass,” and, “Out in Bittle’s field, the kudzu grew back . . . I always wish for a pack of menthols, for a friend’s back against mine.”

The beauty in Neil Aitken’s “Long” comes with the long, rolling lines paired with the words that match in content: “the old lady on the corner in her bed of papers, a cocoon / spun out of every breath she exhales, her face rough with words // and dates, the photographs of stranger—” And I’m reminded again of this as I read P. J. Williams’s “Artifact,” in which a similar line exists: “From the pullout sofa I’d watch him swirl the air / about his mouth, a conversation in his throat / no one else would hear—”

There is also poetry by Dexter Booth, Jeff Whitney, Lauro Vazquez, Raena Shirali, and William Fargason; fiction by Paul Handley, and a number of paintings by Karin Johannesson. Based on just this issue, it’s hard to tell exactly what they are looking to publish, and there isn’t much description on their site, so reading all of the issues (only 5 so far) may help get a better feel for the journal. It’s in an easy-to-read format and presents some good work.
[ostrichreview.com]