SmokeLong Quarterly

An isopod menagerie. Name, if you can, five dreams weirder than that one.

An isopod coterie, an isopod abagerie, an isopod boulangerie, an isopod gerbiterrie, and dreams about contact paper.

How did you come to know cymothoa exigua?

A story about parasites on This American Life.

What do you miss about Texas?

Mexican food.

What’s going on at the Universitaet van Amsterdam, besides frequent trips to the red light district and to the local Starbucks hash bar?

Mostly string theory.

The titles of the stories in this issue wowed me and got me thinking about the value of the great title. What are some great titles—for novels, stories, movies, albums, CDs, and the like? And what is the worst title you’ve ever encountered?

Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death is a pretty bad title. Or maybe it’s a good title. I’m not sure. I think that Gottes Werk & Teufels Beitrag is a very good translation of the title The Cider House Rules.