Recommended Reading From Online Magazines

“I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read.”

Good advice, we think. Enjoy these stories while not watching the television.

– Perhaps it is the jungle that re-ignites fears that have lain dormant in us like eggs, and it does so for no particular purpose. It simply likes to get inside the head, to re-arrange things the way we re-arrange our schedules so as to demonstrate our mastery over something that might otherwise seem to be in charge. And more than a little capricious. — Charles Freeland in Cricket Online Review

– Puke. Running. Breath. Ten. Eight. Six. Four. Two. One. There. Home. Broken glass. Beggar. Jingle jangle morning. Must be cold at night. Warm here. Empty. Fridge. Eggs. Bread. Beer. Hot sauce. Old chicken box. Beer. Drink. — Henry Vauban in Gone Lawn

– The first time I wore boy’s clothes I thought I would die with happiness. I know now that nobody can die from happiness, in the same way that nobody can die from a panic attack. Fact. — Jessica Maybury in Fiction at Work

– This little body’s father’s body bought it a balloon. A purple one. It tied the string around its wrist to keep it safe. The wind blew the balloon slanted. It tugged gentle but insistent on this body’s arm. — Mike Meginnis in Everyday Genius

– Lamps like spherical fruit hung from the ceiling, shedding a mellow yellow glow on shelves and tables stacked with books. The room was fairly small and, oddly, hexagonal in shape; near the far wall a couple of steps led down to another door, which was closed but had a doorknob. — David Misialowsky in A capella Zoo