What is the wilderness, and where do we find it? These questions were central in all the work we read for Issue 9. In poetry and prose, we found the wilderness to be alluring, frightening, and mystifying. We learned that wilderness was “out there,” but it was also “in here,” and it expanded and contracted into the spaces in between. Issue 9’s three authors found hope, self, and longing in their work. These writers also reminded us that the wilderness might be best experienced through the eyes of children.

When read together, these three pieces enter and exit childhood and our most wild years. That’s our 3cents, enjoy.