Where Moral Authority Begins: Part IV: Jesmyn Ward’s Sing, Unburied, Sing
I first fell in love with Jesmyn Ward’s prose when I read her 2017 National Book Award winning novel, Sing, Unburied, Sing. I don’t know how many times I’ve read it over the years. Jojo struck my heart at the very beginning. I do love a vulnerable character, a young ... Read More
Where Moral Authority Begins: Part III: Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God
Rae Cline examines Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God, violence, masculinity, and moral authority in this essay from the Moral Authority series ... Read More
Where Moral Authority Begins: Part II: Dorothy Allison’s Bastard Out of Carolina
This essay originally appeared in Openings: Moral Authority on Substack. Triggers. Spoilers. In “Where Moral Authority Begins: Part II,” I am curious about what truth costs a child and her family in Dorothy Allison’s Bastard Out of Carolina. I have obsessed over this novel for years, not only the story but also the ... Read More
THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY by Elizabeth Strout and HONEY BUNCH by Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli
Elizabeth Strout’s The Things We Never Say (releasing May 5, 2026 from Random House) opens with a delightfully intimate and mundane darkness that made me fall in love with Olive Kitteridge. In her new novel, Artie Dam is a high school teacher who once coached soccer but now that his belly has grown ... Read More
THE WITCH by Marie NDiaye
The Witch by Marie NDiaye, translated by Jordan Stump (Vintage Books/Penguin Random House) opens with a mother's musings on the apathies her daughters wield, dismissing their inherited powers generationally passed from mothers to daughters: "When my daughters turned twelve I initiated them into the mysterious powers. Mysterious not so much in ... Read More
Where Moral Authority Begins: Part I: Toni Morrison’s Beloved
This essay originally appeared in Openings: Moral Authority on Substack. Triggers. Spoilers. I am curious about moral authority in stories and how moral authority presents within openings. Morality is a central function of stories that I find most engaging, in particular, the moral implications surrounding gender-violence and abuse. I prefer stories ... Read More
NOBODY’S GIRL by Virginia Roberts Giuffre
"Baby" is the opening chapter of Virginia Roberts Giuffre's Nobody's Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice, a collaborative book with Amy Wallace, published in 2025 by Knopf (Penguin Random House). I have delayed reading this memoir because I knew the impact it would have and the ... Read More
AMERICAN MEN by Jordan Ritter Conn
"Ryan" is the opening chapter of Jordan Ritter Conn's biographical tapestry, American Men, releasing from Grand Central Publishing (Hachette Book Group) on April 21st of this year. American Men is not the sort of title to which I usually migrate; however, the description promised a diverse collection of portraits with ... Read More
Appalachian Literary Fiction
Appalachian literary fiction draws me to it, the language and texture, the attention to place, gender, socioeconomics and the complicated relationships it forms—family, land, labor, religion and survival. Having grown up as a young girl in northern Appalachia, I return particularly to writers who resist flattening the region or its ... Read More
THE CRUELTY VIRTUES by Seth Brady Tucker
"Solace" is the opening poem of Seth Brady Tucker's new collection, The Cruelty Virtues released by 3: A Taos Press. This is Tucker's third poetry collection. In "Solace," a father observes his children riding skateboards on a half pipe while the speaker views from above behind glass: A man parks ... Read More
The Center for Jewish History: One Day in October
I attended a viewing of One Day in October at the Center for Jewish History. The Center features an exhibit dedicated to The Paper Brigade, heroes saving the written word at great peril during WWII ... Read More
NORTH COUNTRY by Matt Bondurant
North Country by Matt Bondurant released from Blackstone Publishing in November 2025. The literary thriller opens with "Two children of the North Country, up before dawn," a sort of preamble detailing a traumatic moment in the main character's childhood: Their spoons clinked in unison as they ate cereal in the ... Read More
Eckleburg and Emerald Coast Storytellers Present Jessica Lanay, Michael Martone, Rania Moudaress and Richard Peabody
Eckleburg and Emerald Coast Storytellers present Jessica Lanay, Michael Martone, Richard Peabody and artist Rania Moudaress at Distillery 98 in Santa Rosa, Florida on August 21, 2025 for a literary evening celebrating "the giant eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg.... “Over the ashheaps the giant eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg ... Read More
HOLLER, CHILD by LaToya Watkins
LaToya Watkins' collection Holler Child released from Tiny Reparations Books in 2023 and was a finalist for the National Book Award. I first read Watkins' short story "Cutting Horse" and this is where I fell in love with her storytelling. I first heard her read at the 2025 Longleaf Writer's ... Read More
CODE by Charlotte Pence
"Orderly" is the first poem in Charlotte Pence's poetry collection Code, out from Black Lawrence Press. The collection released in 2022. I had the honor of hearing Pence read this summer at the Longleaf Writer's Conference and get a signed copy at the local bookstore, Sundog Books. I find myself ... Read More
ARROYO by Chip Jacobs
I'm enjoying the first chapter of Arroyo (Rare Bird Books), "The Birds of Pasadena," by Chip Jacobs: "Say what you will about his morning pep and cowlick, his galling diet and corny pride. No one ever rode Mrs. Grover Cleveland, the animal, quite like Nick Chance...." ... Read More
Eckleburg’s 15th Anniversary at AWP 2025 in Los Angeles
A big thank you to Sara Lippmann and Danielle Harms for making Eckleburg's 15th Anniversary celebration at AWP 2025 in Los Angeles a very special success. Also a big shout out to 7.13 Books, Rare Bird Books, Leland Cheuk and Tyson Cornell for their talented readers. Truly enjoyed. Last but ... Read More
The Eckleburg Reading Series raises the roof at Sky Stage | Frederick News Post
Frederick News Post: Open mic nights often take place in coffee shops or book stores amid patrons chatting over coffee or browsing through books. But what would it be like to read flash fiction or play a song in an intimate setting designated exclusively to literature readings and music performances? ... Read More
INTERVIEW | Brenda Mann Hammack, Editor and Eckleburg Workshop Instructor
The Doctor TJ Ecklburg Review is thrilled to have Brenda Mann Hammack as part of our workshop series’ team of instructors. Hammack teaches workshops on fairy tales. She encourages cross-genre writing and by the end of her workshops, participants will have created three original short stories, and gone through one ... Read More
ECKLEBURG EVENT | Rue de Fleurus Salon
On Tuesday night, fans, staff, and writers for The Doctor T.J. Eckleburg Review gathered at the KGB Bar in New York City for a night of literature and camaraderie. Posters of socialist propaganda, some written in Cyrillic, hung on the walls of the one-room bar where we mingled on the ... Read More
STAFF SPOTLIGHT | Lisa Marie Basile
Eckleburg‘s NY Editor, Lisa Marie Basile, discusses her history with the Review, life in NYC and her goals as Assistant Editor and NY Coordinator. Q: How did you learn about/become involved with Eckleburg? LMB: In 2009-2010, I was writing both fiction and poetry. Heavily influenced by magic realism, after devouring everything by ... Read More
Rae Bryant Answers Questions on Steven Tyler’s Lips and William Shatner as Alien Sex Worker at Quiddity International Literary Journal, Benedictine University/NPR
Q: In your opinion, was T. J. Hooker named after Dr. Eckleburg? A: I have often wondered this myself and I’m so glad you asked the question. I think so. And since you’ve brought this up, may I add that my initial concern with the journal and T. J. Hooker ... Read More
INTERN SPOTLIGHT | Richard Perkins
Question: How did you learn about Eckleburg? Richard Perkins: I took the intern class taught by Rae Bryant because I wanted a better feel for the editing process at literary journals and I wanted to sharpen my critical reading skills prior to setting out to finish a collection of connected ... Read More
INTERN SPOTLIGHT | Debbie McCulliss
Intern Debbie McCulliss describes how she became with The Doctor T.J. Eckleburg Review and her interest in writing. Q) How did you learn about Eckleburg? Debbie McCulliss: I took a class with Rae Bryant (Editor-in-Chief of Eckleburg) my second semester in the MA in Writing Program at the Johns Hopkins ... Read More
STAFF SPOTLIGHT | Rae Bryant, Editor-In-Chief
Rae Bryant, the creator of, the Editor-In-Chief of, and the mastermind behind The Doctor T.J. Eckleburg Review shares the journal's history, what she's looking for in submissions, and how to approach writing like the tip-toeing Elmer Fudd. Q: How did you learn about/become involved with Eckleburg? Rae Bryant: Eckleburg started as Moon ... Read More
Rick Moody’s Story BOYS (and Girls) Enter the House…at the Rue de Fleurus Salon
Fantastic time had by all at last night's debut of The Rue de Fleurus Salon and Reading Series at The Foundry Gallery in Washington, DC. Thank you to all who came out! This debut salon featured a reading by Rick Moody. Among the stories he read was his popular piece ... Read More
Inaugural Rue de Fleurus with Rick Moody in DC | TOMORROW NIGHT!
The Doctor T. J. Eckleburg Review, a literary and arts journal housed at The Johns Hopkins University, M. A. in Writing Program, is pleased to announce our new Rue de Fleurus Salon and Reading Series. Our debut event will be on Thursday, June 27th, 2013 at The Foundry Gallery off ... Read More
Stochasticism, Ambition and John Cage: A Discussion with Rick Moody
RAE BRYANT | I first met Rick Moody in 2010 at Jimmy’s No. 43, a Sunday Salon reading featuring Moody and a friend I was there to support as he was reading from his newly published epistolary novella. Moody was there to read from his newly released Four Fingers of ... Read More
Join Eckleburg and Rae Bryant at the Three Rooms Press Have a NYC2 Launch | 5-3-13, 6PM, Cornelia Street Cafe, NYC
Join our own Rae Bryant as she joins Three Rooms Press and a host of talented writers for the official Have a NYC2 book launch at Cornelia Street Cafe in NYC this Friday, 6PM! ... Read More
4-21-2013 Reading PiP, The Vintage Theater, Scranton PA at 4:00 PM | Writing Workshop at 2:30 PM
Eckleburg's Editor in Chief, Rae Bryant, will be the featured reader for Prose in Pubs this Sunday in Scranton, PA. Prior to the reading, she will be leading a small group writing workshop as part of the series. Come out. Have a beer. Listen to some words. You might even ... Read More
The Johns Hopkins University, M. A. in Writing Spring Reading 2013 | Mark Farrington, Ed Perlman, Rae Bryant
Friday, March 15, 2013 6 PM Reception | 7 PM Reading Gilman Hall, Room 132, Homewood Campus The Johns Hopkins University, M. A. in Writing Program, Baltimore, Maryland ... Read More