Southern Literary Review

You are here: Home / About ABOUT OUR MISSION The Southern Literary Review is dedicated to honoring southern writers and their impact on American literature. We spotlight both timeless authors like Zora Neale Hurston and William Faulkner, who have shaped the genre, along with contemporary novelists such as Tom Wolfe and Wendell Berry, as well as up-and-coming southern talents like Daniel Wallace and Sue Monk Kidd. With an extensive collection of original articles, we strive to provide insightful content about southern authors and their literary contributions. Explore our in-depth reviews of both new southern novels and classic works that define the genre. Founded in 2004, SLR underwent a significant transformation in the spring of 2009, welcoming new contributors to enrich our content regularly. Notably, New York Times best-selling author Julie Cantrell served as our editor-in-chief for nearly two years, supported by managing editor Adele Annesi. After the release of her novel Into the Free, Julie and Adele stepped down. In November 2011, Philip K. Jason and Allen Mendenhall, who had been committed contributors, took over the leadership of SLR. Phil now serves as the publisher and executive editor, and you can reach him at [email protected]. Allen is the managing editor, and his email is listed below. Donna Meredith joined the editorial team in 2017. SLR has featured reviews and interviews from a range of authors, including John Shelton Reed, Casey Clabough, Ace Atkins, Julia Nunnally Duncan, Karen White, Clyde Edgerton, James Nolan, Moira Crone, Charles J. Shields, Daniel Wallace, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, Paulette Jiles, Steve Yarbrough, Irene Latham, James Lee Burke, John Brandon, Kevin Brockmeier, Mark Richard, Octavia Spencer, Robin Oliveira, and David Bradley.

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Southern Literary Review welcomes Hank Lazer as our new Poetry Editor!

1 week ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

Hank Lazer has published thirty-six books of poetry, including most recently Abundant Life: New & Selected Poems (Chax Press), As We Vanish from Public View (7 Points Press), and field recordings of mind in morning (BlazeVOX, with 15 music-poetry tracks with Holland Hopson on banjo – available on YouTube). In 2025, Lavender Ink published What Were You Thinking: Essays 2006-2024.
Read of the Month: “The Bright Years” by Sarah Damoff

2 weeks ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

The Bright Years (Simon & Schuster 2025) by Sarah Damoff shimmers as an exquisite, poignant portrait of a family crumbling as their painful pasts push their way into the present. It is a story of addiction and recovery. Of love and loss. Of forgiveness and redemption. Set in Texas, The Bright Years takes readers on a journey with the Bright family using three points of view. First, we get a glimpse of Ryan as a child witnessing his parents’ abusive marriage in a prologue.
“Boomerang” by Robert Bailey

2 weeks ago | southernlitreview.com | Claire Matturro

This question, asked by Eli James, the protagonist in Robert Bailey’s newest political thriller, The Boomerang (Thomas and Mercer May 2025), reflects the central conflict in a riveting, suspenseful, and gloriously bold novel.
“Docile: Memoirs of a Not-So-Perfect Asian Girl” by Hyeseung Song

2 weeks ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

Hyeseung Song lays bare the difficulties she encountered trying to fit into American culture as a girl of Korean descent in Docile: Memoirs of a Not-So-Perfect Asian Girl (Simon & Schuster 2024). Throughout her young life, Hyeseung longs to be seen for who she really is. She feels she is either invisible to White Americans or appreciated only when she is perfectly obedient and super-achieving.
“Distant Relations” by Cheryl Whitehead

1 month ago | southernlitreview.com | Claire Matturro

Cheryl Whitehead is both a gifted poet and a gifted storyteller—and these can be two distinct, albeit complimentary talents. In Distant Relations (Loblolly Press 2025), Whitehead weaves these dual talents together into an always engaging, often uncanny collection of poetry rich with family, nature, culture, and transcendency. Her verses reverberate with turmoil and grace, all carefully captured in stunning images and potent phrases.
Claire Hamner Matturro interviews Cheryl Whitehead, author of the poetry collection “Distant Relations”

1 month ago | southernlitreview.com | Claire Matturro

Claire Hamner Matturro: Thank you, Cheryl Whitehead, for being willing to share a bit of yourself with Southern Literary Review. First, congratulations on your very fine book, Distant Relations (Loblolly Press 2025), which is an engaging, evocative collection of poetry involving nature, family, farms, and much more. Your poems are exquisitely detailed in such beautiful ways.
“Dressing the Saints” by Aracelis Gonzalez Asendorf

1 month ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

Aracelis Gonzalez Asendorf’s Dressing the Saints (Black Lawrence Press 2024) is a collection of nine short stories that vividly explores the lives of Cuban Americans. The book, which won the Gold Medal for Fiction at the 2025 Florida Book Awards, brings to life the close-knit immigrant communities of South Florida and the rich cultural heritage they carry with them. Vivid Sense of PlaceAsendorf’s writing engages all the senses.
2025 Word of South Music and Literary Festival April 4-6

1 month ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

Tallahassee’s beautiful Cascades Park will host the tenth This FREE event will feature music, authors, food and fun all weekend. The only paid event is the Violent Femmes and Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra on Friday, April 4. You can buy tickets here. Everything else is free. A few of the authors appearing are Kristen Arnett, Chris Bohjalian, David Campbell, James Kimbrell, David Kirby, Mark Mustian, Diane Roberts, Jeff VanderMeer, and M.O. Walsh. Here’s a list of all the artists appearing.
“Boy With Wings” by Mark Mustian

1 month ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

Is Johnny Cruel an angel or a demon or just an ordinary boy with an unusual birthmark? In Mark Mustian’s literary novel Boy With Wings (Koehler Books 2025), characters often struggle to make sense of Johnny Cruel’s unusual wings—and readers may feel the same. At times, Johnny is heroic; at others, vengeful. In this novel of magical realism, religion, and morality, the lines between good and evil blur.
“The Best That You Can Do” by Amina Gautier

1 month ago | southernlitreview.com | Donna Meredith

Amina Gautier’s The Best That You Can Do (Soft Skull, 2024) is a powerful, multi-award-winning collection of short stories centered on characters from the Puerto Rican and African diaspora. The book has received numerous accolades, including the Midwest MLA Book Award, the Florida Book Awards Silver Medal, and the 2023 Soft Skull-Kimbilio Publishing Prize. It was also longlisted for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize and The Story Prize.