Author: Cliff

I am the author of three novels--THE LAST BIRD OF PARADISE, OLIVER'S TRAVELS, and THE SHAMAN OF TURTLE VALLEY--and three story collections--IN AN UNCHARTED COUNTRY, HOUSE OF THE ANCIENTS AND OTHER STORIES, and WHAT THE ZHANG BOYS KNOW, winner of the Library of Virginia Literary Award for Fiction. I am also the co-founder and former editor of Prime Number Magazine and the editor of the award-winning anthology series EVERYWHERE STORIES: SHORT FICTION FROM A SMALL PLANET.
March 7, 2016

Heifetz International Music Institute: Keyboard Journeys

Sunday afternoon I attended a special benefit concert in support of a scholarship fund for the Heifetz International Music Institute. The Institute, which provides an…
March 6, 2016

On Stage: The Sea Voyage by Fletcher and Massigner

Yesterday I saw a play I’ve never seen before–Fletcher and Massigner’s The Sea Voyage–as part of the American Shakespeare Center‘s Renaissance Season. Based on The Tempest, which…
March 3, 2016

And West is West by Ron Childress

And West is West by Ron Childress Winner of the Pen/Bellweather Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, this novel tells the story of two Americans who…
February 22, 2016

The Tears of Dark Water by Corban Addison

The Tears of Dark Water by Corban Addison Thomas Nelson, 2015 Having read Addison’s first novel, A Walk Across the Sun, I had an idea of…
February 16, 2016

Why the Right Went Wrong by E.J. Dionne Jr.

Why the Right Went Wrong: Conservatism-From Goldwater to the Tea Party and Beyond by E.J. Dionne Jr. Simon & Schuster, January 2016 This book is…
February 12, 2016

Two if by Sea by Jacquelyn Mitchard

Two If by Sea by Jacquelyn Mitchard Simon & Schuster, March 2016 I read this book because the author is part of a panel I…
February 10, 2016

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

A Prayer for Owen Meany: A Novel by John Irving William Morrow, 1989 I can’t believe it took me this long to get to this…
February 8, 2016

Happy (Lunar) New Year!

Happy New Year! February 8 marks the start of the new year, according to the lunar calendar. This year is the Year of the…
February 7, 2016

Return to Life by Jim B. Tucker, M.D.

Return to Life: Extraordinary Cases of Children Who Remember Past Lives by Jim B. Tucker St. Martin’s Press, 2013 This book has been on…
February 5, 2016

On Stage: Women Beware Women by Thomas Middleton

I saw the American Shakespeare Center’s production of Thomas Middleton’s Women Beware Women at the Blackfriars Playhouse last night. The third show mounted in this year’s…