The winner of the 2011 Sonora Review Essay Contest is Julie Buntin for “You Never Asked Me.” It was selected by judge Ander Monson, and for the issue, the essay was turned into its own chapbook that is part of Issue 60. (See the picture below and the Editor’s introduction for information on this issue’s progressive style. ) Other nonfiction contributors for Issue 60 include: Marya Hornbacher, Melissa McCrae, and Joshua Wheeler. You can order this issue above by clicking on the button Order.
Here’s a section from the winning essay:
I often went up for New Years Eve too. For that holiday Lea’s entire family filled the cabin, which had started seventy years ago as a single room. It expanded as they did, extra bedrooms, bathrooms, and closets attached so quickly the most recent additions had slivers of space between the wood planks that made up the walls. If you pressed your hand over a crack, cold air whistled against your palm. From the outside, the cabin twisted like a snake through the woods. I loved walking through the house, climbing the occasional splintery ladder into a loft piled with blankets or books so ancient tiny mushrooms sprouted between the pages.
Congratulations, Julie. And much appreciation to all those who submitted to the contest, and to our judge, Ander Monson. Please check back for next year’s essay contest in a few months.
