Read The Frozen Zoo, a short story that made the long list (out of 1400 entries) for the 2019 Disquiet Literary Contest. Coincidentally, it was published in The Fourth River at the same time.
Contest readers describe it as “quiet, violent, and ethereal.” One reader states that the “sensation of being lost in a familiar place is palpable,” especially appreciating “the image of the frozen zoo itself, this strange knot at the center of the journey. The framing method of the introduction, of the story as found object and speculative fiction, provides a critical lens that allows for a deeper look at its cultural and political messages.” Another reader calls it “a sad, wandering story told with taut prose and anchored by a compelling central metaphor of the taxidermic zoo. The dialogue is natural and poignant, as the story asks the reader only to bear witness to a tired
man trying to find his way home.'”
Kevin Richard Kaiser 