In honor of "Midwest Surrealist" Sylvia Fein's 100th birthday, Ron Nyren, Maw Shein Win, and Sarah Stone wrote 100-word stories inspired by Fein's fantastical imagery. Evan Karp accompanied the stories and paintings with his musical interpretations.
By Lisa Fairman
We take revenge during goat-yoga class. A herd of ladies arrive each Saturday, and Friday night we gorge ourselves like horses before a race.
By Sarah Freligh I have my secrets. I take my time, stare at my face until I’m a stranger, a she who is not me. A she who helps herself to whatever will buff the sharp edges of the world.
By Adam Schuitema The tallest palm on the atoll lost its fronds long before falling. King tides and storm surges had breached the walls, poisoned it with salt.
By Heather Bourbeau She woke to news of another stalemate, more children dying on the border, mounting humanitarian crises overseas, and a small mass in her breast.
By Kim Addonizio
It’s hard to get together with his friends because they all like to hibernate. Everyone mostly prefers staying home, so when they make plans with him they often cancel, last-minute.