Fish are an important symbol in Libyan folk art and can be found as carpets and textile decoration throughout the Arab world. They are a symbol of renewal and a sign of abundant livelihood and fertility, and a good omen for the bearer. The red eye in the fish is a talisman to protect from envy and evil.
ELISA ALBERT is the author of the story collection How This Night Is Different (2006) and the novels After Birth (2015) and The Book of Dahlia (2008). Her fiction and essays have appeared in The New York Times, Tin House, The Guardian, Time, The Literary
Featuring Essays by Peter LaSalle, Mary Wang, and Aaliyah Bilal. Fiction by Elisa Albert and Blair Hurley. Poetry by David Wojahn, Marilyn Hacker, Martha Collins, Ed Pavlić, Richard Tillinghast, Tariq Luthun, and John Freeman. Translation by Rainie Oet.
In Rilke’s great poem, “Statue of an Archaic Apollo,” the poet articulates the moral statement which the wonderfully wrought torso proclaims: “You must change your life.” Is this the message of the modern Apollo? And if so, how is it we must change?
The Michigan Quarterly Review is pleased to announce that you can now submit directly to the Goldstein Poetry Prize. The 2019 prize will be judged by Linda Gregerson. The winner will be announced in Spring 2020. Guidelines can be found below. You can submit via