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With this issue we celebrate not one but two literary milestones: The Louisville Review’s 50th Anniversary and the 35th Anniversary of the Affrilachian Poets Collective, the longest running predominantly African American writing group in the United States. Founding member of the Affrilachian Poets Frank X Walker serves as Guest Editor for a special section showcasing new work by members of the collective, some who are returning contributors and others who appear in our pages for the very first time. Walker’s introduction narrates
the beginnings of the Affrilachian Poets and reflects on the group’s significance and legacy.
On the cover we feature work by Elizabeth Catlett (1915–2012), Three Women of America, courtesy of E&S Gallery in Louisville, Kentucky. Curator Cathy Smith Shannon’s essay gives readers a
closer look at Catlett’s life and work, illustrating how Catlett was a trailblazing artist who represented Black people with dignity, humanity, and strength in the face of Jim Crow era laws and racism.
In this issue you’ll find a range of fiction, including Diane Hinton Perry’s short story engaging the complexities of elder care for a Black family in DC; Xu Xi’s transnational romp set in 2016; Fabiana Elisa Martínez’s tale of childhood hardship set in Slovakia; Kelly Talbot’s flash fiction delightfully skewering the contemporary experience, Rush Smith’s meditative exploration of loss set in Fiji; and Gary James Erwin’s affectionate depiction of a group of die-hard middle-aged ice hockey enthusiasts, just to name a few.
the beginnings of the Affrilachian Poets and reflects on the group’s significance and legacy.
On the cover we feature work by Elizabeth Catlett (1915–2012), Three Women of America, courtesy of E&S Gallery in Louisville, Kentucky. Curator Cathy Smith Shannon’s essay gives readers a
closer look at Catlett’s life and work, illustrating how Catlett was a trailblazing artist who represented Black people with dignity, humanity, and strength in the face of Jim Crow era laws and racism.
In this issue you’ll find a range of fiction, including Diane Hinton Perry’s short story engaging the complexities of elder care for a Black family in DC; Xu Xi’s transnational romp set in 2016; Fabiana Elisa Martínez’s tale of childhood hardship set in Slovakia; Kelly Talbot’s flash fiction delightfully skewering the contemporary experience, Rush Smith’s meditative exploration of loss set in Fiji; and Gary James Erwin’s affectionate depiction of a group of die-hard middle-aged ice hockey enthusiasts, just to name a few.
Since 1976, The Louisville Review has published nearly 5,000 individual poems, stories, essays, plays, and book reviews. This would not be possible without the continuing support of our Guest Genre Editors, who bring their expertise and talent to every issue of The Louisville Review.
Guest Editor Frank X Walker holds the endowed C.R. Lezius Professorship in the Arts at the University of Kentucky and is the first African American writer to be named Kentucky Poet Laureate. A Cave Canem Fellow and co-founder of the Affrilachian Poets, he is the author of the award-winning children’s book, A Is
for Affrilachia and thirteen collections of poetry, including Load in Nine Times, winner of the 2025 Pen/Voelcker Award for Poetry, Turn Me Loose: The Unghosting of Medgar Evers, winner of the NAACP Image Award, and Buffalo Dance: The Journey of York, winner of the Lillian Smith Book Award. The recipient of honorary doctorates from University of Kentucky, Transylvania University, Spalding University, and Centre College, he was voted one of the most creative professors in the South. He is the originator of the word Affrilachia and is dedicated to communicating how literacy and the arts impact our quality of life.
Guest Fiction Editor Rosanna Staffa is an Italian-born playwright and author. Her debut novel, The War Ends at Four, published by Regal House Publishing, is a winner of the International Impact Book Award, Storytrade Awards, Person of the Year, and Regal Summit Book Award 2024. Her essay “Holy” is a winner of The Southhampton Review’s Nonfiction Prize and was nominated for Notable in Best American Essays. Her work is included in the Best Small Fictions Anthology. Rosanna is a recipient of an Honorable Mention for The Tiferet Writing Contest. She is a Short Story Finalist for The Masters Review Anthology and for the 47th New Millennium Writing Awards and a Pushcart Prize nominee. Most recently, her work was in The Sun, Story, Gargoyle Magazine, Brevity’s Nonfiction Blog, The Examined Life Journal, and JuxtaProse. Her plays have been produced Off-Broadway, across the country, and internationally. She is a recipient of a McKnight Advancement Grant, a Jerome Fellowship, and an AT&T/On Stage Grant. Rosanna holds a PhD in Modern Foreign Languages from Università degli Studi in Milan and an MFA in Fiction from the Naslund-Mann School of Creative and Professional Writing. She is an alumna of the Hedgebrook Writer-in-Residence Program. Rosanna is a licensed acupuncturist from the California Acupuncture College in Los Angeles and The Zhejiang College of Acupuncture in Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China.
for Affrilachia and thirteen collections of poetry, including Load in Nine Times, winner of the 2025 Pen/Voelcker Award for Poetry, Turn Me Loose: The Unghosting of Medgar Evers, winner of the NAACP Image Award, and Buffalo Dance: The Journey of York, winner of the Lillian Smith Book Award. The recipient of honorary doctorates from University of Kentucky, Transylvania University, Spalding University, and Centre College, he was voted one of the most creative professors in the South. He is the originator of the word Affrilachia and is dedicated to communicating how literacy and the arts impact our quality of life.
Guest Fiction Editor Rosanna Staffa is an Italian-born playwright and author. Her debut novel, The War Ends at Four, published by Regal House Publishing, is a winner of the International Impact Book Award, Storytrade Awards, Person of the Year, and Regal Summit Book Award 2024. Her essay “Holy” is a winner of The Southhampton Review’s Nonfiction Prize and was nominated for Notable in Best American Essays. Her work is included in the Best Small Fictions Anthology. Rosanna is a recipient of an Honorable Mention for The Tiferet Writing Contest. She is a Short Story Finalist for The Masters Review Anthology and for the 47th New Millennium Writing Awards and a Pushcart Prize nominee. Most recently, her work was in The Sun, Story, Gargoyle Magazine, Brevity’s Nonfiction Blog, The Examined Life Journal, and JuxtaProse. Her plays have been produced Off-Broadway, across the country, and internationally. She is a recipient of a McKnight Advancement Grant, a Jerome Fellowship, and an AT&T/On Stage Grant. Rosanna holds a PhD in Modern Foreign Languages from Università degli Studi in Milan and an MFA in Fiction from the Naslund-Mann School of Creative and Professional Writing. She is an alumna of the Hedgebrook Writer-in-Residence Program. Rosanna is a licensed acupuncturist from the California Acupuncture College in Los Angeles and The Zhejiang College of Acupuncture in Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China.
Founding Editor: Sena Jeter Naslund
Editor and Executive Director: Flora K. Schildknecht
Associate Editor: Robin Lippincott
Assistant Editor: Jonathan Weinert
Guest Editor: Frank X Walker
Guest Fiction Editor: Rosanna Staffa
Cornerstone Editor: Betsy Woods
Director of Operations: Ron Schildknecht
University of Louisville Intern: Alex G. Stuckey
Bellarmine University Student Ambassadors: Jena Hogue, Roseanna Peterson
Editor and Executive Director: Flora K. Schildknecht
Associate Editor: Robin Lippincott
Assistant Editor: Jonathan Weinert
Guest Editor: Frank X Walker
Guest Fiction Editor: Rosanna Staffa
Cornerstone Editor: Betsy Woods
Director of Operations: Ron Schildknecht
University of Louisville Intern: Alex G. Stuckey
Bellarmine University Student Ambassadors: Jena Hogue, Roseanna Peterson
