Fiction

Justice Is a Myth

Cady Vishniac -

I’m a shad, or a שד, plural שדים. I render toxic any food humans leave under the bed; I used to have an eye in...

The Lucky Ones

Adrianna Sampedro -

Renata and I walked home from school. The clouds had parted like a pair of lips and the sun was steady...

Stand by to Disembark

Vanessa Blakeslee -

The day after a few of the ship’s factory workers pulled a joke on him, Crazy Paul flipped out and beat up a table...

A Dull Yellow Presence

Mona’a Malik -

Aida, on the day of her uncle’s funeral, was a hummingbird—little brown twig elbows fluttering up and down for attention. Making as much commotion...

Fare

Joseph Han -

In our taxis we were mostly middle-aged and feeling older with each shift. Coming from South Korea and driving in Oʻahu meant that we either...

The Beautiful Doll

Olivier Castaignède -

"Why are you lying?" said the Azeri custom officer, from his window at the Lagodekhi land border between Georgia and Azerbaijan. "Why hide that you’ve been...

Seagull

Bryan Hurt -

This story, which initially appeared in Denver Quarterly, is an excerpt from Joyland Midwest editor, Bryan Hurt's story collection, EVERYONE WANTS TO BE AMBASSADOR...

Chilean Fruit Bats

Meredith Westgate -

The hotel is just outside the tiny town of Puerto Natales and from the look of the exterior, lights out, deserted parking lot, it is...

Darklands

Mara Beckman -

On a searing weekend afternoon Ingrid’s apartment was clean and everything thoughtfully arranged, knickknacks curated and pristine. As it should be, thought Ingrid, for a birthday...

Smooth

Kate Jayroe -

We met outside a coffee shop where you can pay to pet kitties. I said what do you do in the real world. He said...