John Godfrey Saxe (1816–1869) was a New England poet and comic wit — of the kind much invited to be an after-dinner speaker. James Thomas Fields remains the model of such figures in that era (and so ...

Last week, Ian Segal, of the poetry department, exchanged e-mails with Barbara Ras, whose poem "Washing the Elephant" recently appeared in the magazine. Ras's new collection, "The Last Skin," will be ...

The morning of the first day of kindergarten Lining up by last name (of course I’m last) I feel sick (I cut my own hair the night before) My mom kneels down and comforts me Telling me I am confident, ...