Volume 19 (2018)

Editor's Note

“In the deepest hour of the night, confess to yourself that you would die if you were forbidden to write. And look deep into your heart where it spreads its roots, the answer, and ask yourself, must I write?”

– Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

Thank you for picking up the latest edition of the Bryant Literary Review. It is our honor to present the following works received from all over the world. We would also like to thank those who submitted their work, allowing their voices to be heard and keeping the BLR alive throughout its many years.

Rainer Maria Rilke, author of Letters to a Young Poet, advises a young poet to ask himself, “must I write?”, even if that moment may happen in the dead of night. The works selected prove that there are those who must and will continue to do so. Art finds its way through most things in life, allowing one to explain the unexplainable. It provides a channel of empathy, looking into a snapshot of life through words alone. It allows one to escape to a world of one’s own, even if it’s just for a little bit. The connection between art and emotion suggests a universal characteristic, transcending even language itself.

None of this would have been possible without Professor Tom Chandler, the BLR’s founder, who is retiring this year and whose work is featured in this edition; Professor Tom Roach; the Bryant University English and Cultural Studies Department; all student editors; and, of course, you. Thank you for taking the time to read our curated collection, keeping this wonderful tradition alive, and we hope you enjoy reading this edition as much as we did.

Brennan D’Elena
Student Editor