Islandport Press: Thank you for taking the time to chat today, Rylan! Let’s start with your book, Grafting. Tell us a little bit about your book, what’s your elevator pitch? Rylan Hynes: Okay, so Grafting is a novel that follows two men, Chris and Eben, over the course of their relationship, from when they meet and fall in love on an orchard in high school to 10 years later when they reconnect. It is a lot about being queer in a rural space, and also explores themes like inhe

Jen and Katie talk friendship, disability, advocacy, and the release of Jen's new memoir, SLOW MOTION ABOUT SLOW MOTION At twenty-one, Jen Dupree is working as an Activity Director in a nursing home when she meets Marcel—a man twenty-five years her senior who has cerebral palsy. Despite the physical limitations of his disability, Jen sees in Marcel a magnificent spark: endless curiosity, infectious humor, and an unshakeable propensity for joy. When a doctor tells Marcel to "g

In Other Words, Leadership by Shannon A. Mullen is now available for the first time in paperback. Dear Islandport reader, Campaign season always rattles my nervous system—the clutter of yard signs, the strident ads, the ever-present toxicity. It's tempting to tune it all out. But we can't, because we know what's at stake. We vote hoping our elected officials will represent our values and protect our collective well-being. We may disagree on what that looks like, but the pa

An excerpt from Christi Elliott's Always Game ---out now! All photos by Mat Trogner DURING THE SPRING AND summer, I go clamming. You can dig clams all year, but I’m too busy with hunting and fishing. Clamming is gathering—a kind of mingling, in this case, between hunting and fishing. Unlike hunting and fishing, I’m guaranteed to succeed, to always bring home dinner. I find it methodical, peaceful, and relaxing. One day last summer, I gathered my gear to dig clams for Travis

An excerpt from Always Game by Christi Elliott Blowing a duck call Photo credit: Melissa Goodwin I DON'T CONSIDER MYSELF a good duck hunter, but I don’t let that stop me from chasing ducks. The only sound I can make through a duck call is a single "quack," and I hunt with a Brittany, not a retriever. Then again, I’m not your average hunter. One early morning, my headlamp dangled around my neck, because the moon shone so brightly, I didn’t need it as I walked across a marsh

When I heard that Jim had slipped the mortal coil, flying free at last, I was surprised by how hard it hit me.