"Perfect deadpan marks the opening of Ali Simpson’s The Monster'" writes Susan Merrell of The Southampton Review in her introduction to this issue of Recommended Reading. "[It's] an elegant take on the best kind of horror story—one that Shirley Jackson or Neil Gaiman might tackle, one that makes you laugh even as it scares you, that turns the imagined monsters we fear in the dark into the very real monsters that inhabit our own internal darkness."

"The Monster plays with the conventions of the horror story, and is as much an allegory about a nervous breakdown as it is a metaphorical description of the transition to adulthood, and of the writing process itself."

About the Author:
Ali Simpson received her MFA in creative writing and literature from SUNY Stony Brook Southampton. In addition to The Southampton Review, her work has been published or is forthcoming in The First Line and Carrier Pigeon. She is currently working on a collection of speculative fiction, When Meat is Given a Second Chance. She works as a publishing assistant and lives in the forest.

About the Guest Editor:
Dedicated to publishing fine fiction, non-fiction, plays, screenplays, poetry, literary cartoons, photography and art, The Southampton Review opens its pages to writers from across the globe whose work is compelling. Our pages are equally devoted to emerging and established writers and artists.

About Recommended Reading:
Great authors inspire us. But what about the stories that inspire them? Recommended Reading, the latest project from Electric Literature, publishes one story every week, each chosen by a great author or editor. In this age of distraction, we uncover writing that's worth slowing down and spending some time with. And in doing so, we help give great writers, literary magazines, and independent presses the recognition (and readership) they deserve.