James Wright Archive

Revisiting James Wright’s Shall We Gather at the River at Fifty-One

Author: |
May
15
2023
 Categories: Longform No comments

Blue cover with a spiral and the outline of a person within the spiral, reading "Shall We Gather at the River" by James Wright

It is an understatement to say that Wright’s fourth collection had its work cut out for it, and it is no surprise the reception of the book was dramatically and passionately mixed.

Therefore

Author: |
Sep
19
2018
 Categories: Personal Essays No comments

An image of a rural path in the fall, with red, orange, and yellow leaves scattered on the ground and in the trees.

Spic, Richie said in the cafeteria, and I don’t remember why. After, as we walked back to our fourth grade classroom, I pushed him down when he turned his back.

Lying in a Hammock

Author: |
Sep
26
2016
 Categories: Reading No comments

Reader, I am having a bad day. I am having a bad day, and I can’t seem to write anything worth your time, and so I have flipped through my books and settled on James Wright’s “Lying in a Hammock at William Duffy’s Farm in Pine Island, Minnesota.”