Mary-Fiedelis Feeley
Wed, 29 Apr 2026 13:46:48 PDT

Sing a Song of Flaco & Other Love Sorries is a collection of short fiction, poetry, graphic, and hybrid forms. In conversation with traditional tales and modern narrative conventions, this collection challenges popular notions of love stories, especially those in which love goes wrong. The collection begins with “The Book of Salome,” an apocryphal bible story, which reconsiders the motives of its teen heroine and frames the beheading of John the Baptist as an act of mercy. “Eyes of Love at the Creature Corner Bookstore Cafe” follows a shy costume designer whose efforts to woo Dr. Frankenstein’s famous Creature push him into another woman’s arms. “Mother Fucking Meet Cute,” illustrates the power of perspective as its romance-loving heroine endures insult after injury with dauntless optimism. The equally optimistic heroine of “Glass Apples,” will be less fortunate. Despite her best intentions and admirable resilience, the prevailing tropes of her era drive her inexorably toward the stereotype of a vain and wicked (and not incidentally powerful) woman. Finally, “Sing a Song of Flaco,” examines Flaco, a real-life owl who escaped the New York City Zoo, from multiple viewpoints including mothers, zookeepers, rats, and fellow birds. Collectively, these stories invite readers to challenge accepted narratives.