We are a new literary magazine publishing poetry and visual art. Our name is not only an homage to the little gray birds that populate our beloved New England woods; it also defines our mission. The word itself is a dichotomy, an amalgamation of a predator and its prey, the hunter and the hunted. The real catbirds are aptly named: they are birds that mew like cats. Their voices are surprising, wondrous, and yet familiar. After all, the catbird is common, an everyday visitor. For all that it is special, it is also ubiquitous.

Like this namesake, Catbird Review searches for voices that are unique, yet relatable. We are fascinated by dichotomy, by the unexpected beauty of two different things, seen together. By setting these distinct works side by side, we hope to illuminate new elements in each one. We are looking for poems that rattle the bones and inspire the spirit, art that speaks to the individuality of experience and the universality of existence. We want the known made strange, and the strange made known.