Although Pittsburgh is not the subject of most of the essays in this issue, the writers are bound by their affinity for the written word and their collective fondness for Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh has always been--despite its industrial reputation--a great city in which to be a writer. Its active, close-knit writing community has seen the rise of several luminaries with Pittsburgh connections, such as Annie Dillard and Stewart O'Nan, and the caliber of Pittsburgh's writing community today is better than ever. Lee Gutkind has assembled a reunion of sorts with writers from across the nation, as well as the up-and-coming stars on the local scene--each of whom has a Pittsburgh connection. Many grew up in the region, others attended college here: all of them have an association with the city. The resulting collection of essays is both gentle and jarring, eclectic and persuasive, covering a range of topics-from a stripper's work ethic to West Virginia's famed Matewan shootout, Atlantic City's Boardwalk before Donald Trump, and the uses of poetry to better understand one's own life.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

From The Editor: Leaving Home
Lee Gutkind

Notes for Young Writers
Annie Dillard

Notes from the Catwalk - read it online
Elissa Wald

My Mysteries of Pittsburgh: An Alphabet
Stewart O'Nan

We Fish
Omari C. Daniel and Jack L. Daniel

The Conjurer's Profession
Lester Goran

In the Woods
Leslie Rubinkowski

That Sweet Anarchy We Call Youth
Chuck Kinder

Passing Through Pittsburgh
Hilary Masters

Lessons in Persuasion - read it online
Kathleen Veslany

Who Am I to Speak
Natalie L. M. Petsch

A Way to Make Some Money
Lea Simonds

Language at Play
Diane Ackerman

Skin Deep
Megan Foss

The Preacher Says
Malcolm Cash

The Poor People's Campaign
Peter S. Beagle

How Butterflies Grew Wings
Keely Bowers

As I Was Walking Down Carson Street: A South Side Childhood
Richard F. Peterson

Ghost Story
Jan Beatty

306 pages