Christopher Reese is the president and founder of Uncle Grumps, LLC and the nonprofit Matthew Projects, Inc. He is also employed as a consultant for SightSound Technologies., where he was once General Counsel. SightSound helped pioneer the movie and music download business. Chris also managed Bill Deasy’s former band, The Gathering Field, worked at a large law firm, was a federal prosecutor in Washington D.C., and clerked for a federal judge. He lives near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Reviewer's Essay:
I have no idea who said that if you took an infinite number of monkeys pounding on an infinite number of typewriters for an infinite amount of time that they would eventually produce all of the great works of literature. But I do know that my take on “Ulysses” by James Joyce is that they gave two monkeys three weeks. It took me years to be okay with that.  more...

Jane McCafferty is author of the novel, One Heart, as well as short story collections Thank You for the Music and Director of the World. She was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship for a section of One Heart. Her stories have appeared in Glimmer Train, Story, Witness, and other publications. Director of the World was awarded the 1992 Drue Heinz Literature Prize. She teaches at Carnegie Mellon University and lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Reviewer's Essay:
I envy the little reader I was in the beginning—the purity of attention, the way the world vanished, the way each story so easily seemed to expand my imagination and my heart. The characters in these simple books—Bobbsey Twins, Carolyn Haywood books, were friends of mine. I felt that no matter what happened in life, life would be basically good, since I could read, and go on reading, as long as I kept my eyes, and even if I lost them, there was always Helen Keller as a mind-blowing role model.  more...

Bill Deasy is the former lead singer/songwriter of the Gathering Field, whose regional hit "Lost in America" led to a deal with Atlantic Records. His first novel, "Ransom Seaborn" was just published. His latest CD, "Chasing Down a Spark" is the follow-up to his 2003 release, "Good Day No Rain." In addition to plugging his book, Bill has been touring the country both acoustically and with his new band and has also appeared as an opening act for artists such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Patty Griffin, John Mellencamp and Norah Jones  His songs have been recorded by a wide array of artists including The Clarks, Michael Stanley, Kim Richey, British pop star Howard Jones and country star Martina McBride. Deasy has also been featured on national television singing his own song, "Good Things Are Happening," in a national promo for ABC's Good Morning America program. Bill lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Reviewer's Essay:
I think it was through television commercials that I first became aware of Elvis Presley -- some type of “you can’t get it in stores” collection of his hits. Though my parents didn’t order it for me, my interest was sparked and I asked for (and received) an Elvis record for my birthday that year. Six years old, first grade, and the course of my life altered forever with the sound of a song, “That’s All Right, Mama.”  more...

Neema Bipin Avashia grew up in Cross Lanes, West Virginia, received her bachelor's degree in Professional Writing and Anthropology at Carnegie Mellon University, spent 2 years learning to be a policy wonk at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and now teaches middle school English and Social Studies in Boston.

Reviewer's Essay:
In the beginning, reading was an act of vengeance for me. My mother will be horrified if she reads that statement. She thinks I became a voracious reader because she read to me while I was still in the womb. She thinks I pretty much came into the world a reader. And maybe I did.  more...

Julie Bogart is currently enrolled in the Creative Writing MFA program at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. Before moving to the northeast, she worked for four years as an editor at the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) in Alexandria, Virginia. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English and Creative Writing at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri.

Reviewer's Essay:
I threw a lot of temper tantrums when I was younger. (Some might argue that I still throw them, but I will insist that my tantrums have grown more sophisticated with age.) For reasons unknown to everyone but me--my shirt was too tight, my hair too curly, my sock didn’t feel right--I would seep to the floor in agony, the kitchen tiles cool against my hot, soaked cheek. After my mom’s attempts to pacify me proved unsuccessful,  more...