berkeley fiction review
Issue
42
Cover art by Kristina Kim © Copyright 2022 Berkeley Fiction Review
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MANAGING EDITORS Julia Cheunkarndee Liam Magee Aaron Saliman
LEAD EDITORS Kasandra Tapia Claire Ahn Catherine Ly Noah Hernandez
A S S I S TA N T E D I T O R S
Cassandra Branch
Conrad Loyer Vicky Chong Gillian Gee Fiona Green Julianne Han
Yaz Khajavipour Thompson
Thompson
D E S I G N S TA F F F A C U LT Y S P O N S O R
Kaashvi Agnihotri Jaeyeon Bae
S TA F F Ricardo Cruz
Luciana Benzan Rosa Beschi Abby Borchers Michael Carroll Lynn Chang Coral Chen Miranda Chong Alejandra Cooper Mackenzie Cramer
Trisha Iley Maya Jimenez Leah Johnson
Sophie dela Cruz Nadia Farjami Avery Findsen Ally Flygare Alexandra Garcia Joshua Gentry
Sophia Kennedy John Kenny Austin Kim Candace Kugh Sarena Kuhn Amelia Kyle Kathryn Li Wanchen Li
Pearlin Liu Crystal Lopez Caylee Lyman Sarah Moats Blake Morrison Aliya Nupbay Cameron Opartkiettikul Yulie Park Joyce Ro Sara Robertson
Sophie Rosenblum Rachael Sandoval Anke Shao Ananya Sharma Kailee Sharpe Ramya Sridhar Sage Stanton Alex Stimmel
Ren Venkatesh Grace Wade Bryce Wallace Grace Wen Finnian Whelan Brooklynn Winters
Joanne Sung Lucia Tian Isabella Tong
SPONSORS
Sudthida Cheunkarndee Tia Cheunkarndee Vicky Chong Olivia Colson Alex Luceli Jiménez Reg Lim Victoria Mock Madelyn Peterson Lisa and Scott Saliman Ana Karina Tapia
SPECIAL THANKS TO
Owen Sheard
Jae Park and Sopida Cheunkarndee Lennox Norma Bahena
EDITORS’ NOTE Berkeley Fiction Review
Our online magazine has been publishing book
which has made our online magazine such a vibrant hub
larger goal to establish BFR as a literary institution to be
Berkeley Fiction Review
one managing editor who has been with Berkeley Fiction
Review
Liam Magee
TA B L E O F CONTENTS FICTION Les Chanteurs
3
Michele Alba
Cues
19
Frannie Dove
Coral Street
25
Elias Leake Quinn
Versos de mi Alma
37
Joseph R. Garrett
Homestead
57
Sarena Kuhn
Life on the Water
67
Margaret Lent
A Gallery of Limbs 105 K. James D’Agostino
SUDDEN FICTION J UD GE D BY BEN LO ORY, BET H PIATOT E , AND AN NE NESBET Camp City 88 Torsa Ghosal Snow Legs
92
Abbie Barker
What is There Time For
96
E. P. Tuazon
H ONORARY MEN T ION Every Room 100 Miceala Morano
ART Neighbors
2
Ara Cho
Red Light
18
Julia Jin
Coral Street
24
Charlotte Bunney
Versos de mi Alma: The Voices are Being Heard
36
Siwen Zhang
Recluse
56
Viet Nguyen
Take Us to the Ruins
66
Danielle Tran
Sudden Fiction Cover
86
Urvashi
Fallen Leaves 104 Tannya Tang
THE END Contributor 128 Biographies
Neighbors by Ara Cho
Les Chanteurs by Michele Alba
A
notes pierce the air and the song splinters like a bichon frisé
Alba
the phrase La Révolution is spray painted in an ugly red
Bonjour, madame
4
Les Chanteurs
bichon frisé
Monsieur François
non
oui
Alba
Les Chanteurs
oui
Monsieur François
7
Alba
warms my stomach as I totter through the backyard and
Get
•
take stock in the mirror: sagging breasts and a wrinkled
across my calendar:
•
8
Les Chanteurs
•
The anarchists are having a heavy metal concert at my
Alba
They’re kids having a good time. Try to remember what it was like to let loose back in the dancehall days. Try to remember being young and invincible.
10
Les Chanteurs
Rock step, right, left, right, left, right, left. Or was it: rock step, left, right, left, right, left, right
11
Alba
12
Les Chanteurs
•
February 2: Move to Serenity Care Home
Monsieur François
Alba
“
I return to my kitchen and write Frosty is my dog on
• “Bonjour, madame A young man with a musical note tattooed above
“Ça n’a pas d’importance
14
Les Chanteurs
Monsieur François
•
Bon voyage
Alba
Vous as changé, monsieur You’ve changed, mister
The attendant hooks her arm through mine and tugs
Les Chanteurs
17
18
Red Light by Julia Jin
Cues
by Frannie Dove
T
please sign in.
•
Dove
Our daring director choreographed their exchange and he proposed this play three months ago when inspired
20
Cues
• Good afternoon and welcome to the University’s Blackbox Theater. This afternoon’s performance of Sabine Women will begin at 2 p.m. Sabine Women Yours
theater in Oklahoma picked it up and called him the voice
• Five minutes to places.
21
Dove
•
•
• Standby Lights 10.
A striking image and an intentional gut punch to those
• Light cue 10…Go.
22
Cues
The stage presents a live image that will burn in their
Chair squeaks are a welcome reminder that they are only
24
Coral Street by Charlotte Bunney
Coral Street
by Elias Leake Quinn
T
grates—tck, tck, tunt
Nina: dibble dibble dop, dibble dop dop dop Graves bolted the door and turned to the steps that led
As he turned the corner he thought he heard the splink
Quinn
night ensemble playing to an empty club: the squat
Graves had always loved the city in this hour just before
to trace over memories with a muted trumpet or a long
younger
Coral Street
perhaps today his daughter would sit with him during her
it took its plodding route through these more depressed depositing them discreetly on downtown street corners
retirement just as God had intended it: nothing to do but
thing
Graves leaned back into the bench and put his cap
27
Quinn
he remembered splitting a salami on rye with Nina when
He cocked his head and then gasped with recognition:
claimed to see a deer nibbling on weeds in a vacant lot 28
Coral Street
learned about octopuses back when his daughter was
squishy thing slinking there in the dark—all heart and
good opening with her—“Saw a crazy thing this morning
Quinn
Central American jungle expeditions and underwater
themselves on the couch and duck under the covers while the centipede stalked the ant like they were watching a
The octopus seemed to have decided that Graves was
Coral Street
dibble dop dibble dop dop
club and moved out suddenly—Maya and Nina would have just kept on keeping on with their popcorn and their
and donut shop—when Nina was early in high school and
only served to underscore how little they talked to one
Quinn
anchor in the brick where the electric lines were tethered
Coral Street
Quinn
Graves glanced up at the digital banner over the door
Coral Street