About Us

Belletrista is a not-for-profit, bimonthly web magazine which seeks both to encourage cross-cultural understanding through international literature written by women and to increase the visibility of that literature.

Originally the brain child of Lois Ava-Matthew, Belletrista has been developed and honed with the assistance of a remarkable international group of readers who came together as our Board of Advisors, each bringing to the magazine special skills, talents and education. Our initial group of writers and reviewers come from the US, UK, continental Europe, Canada, Ireland, Australia and South Africa, a list that is expanding.

We approach our mission as readers, not as academics or book industry professionals. Belletrista hopes to bring its unique view of women-authored, global literature to a broad audience of international booklovers, from the seasoned fan of world literature to the passionate reader who is just venturing beyond familiar literary shores.

A majority of our content is freelance-written. Writers should note that we do not accept submissions of original fiction or poetry. We do not accept unsolicited material of any kind; however, if you think you have something to contribute to our magazine please feel free to contact us and inquire.

Belletrista acknowledges the early and continuing support, financial and otherwise, of the Matthew family, The Toadstool Bookshop of Milford, NH, USA; and the generosity of many of its writers and advisors.


Contributors in this Issue

Kathleen Ambrogi is an American who has spent most of her life abroad, in Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia. After earning her M.S. in English Education, she taught English, Social Science, Art and Information Technology in schools around the world. Today she is a professional writer, sharing her impressions of cultural forces through fiction and nonfiction.

Andy Barnes lives in Bristol in the United Kingdom. He is an avid reader on a mission to discover great writing from as many parts of the globe as possible. Andy works in one bookshop, and volunteers in another, and when he isn't reading or selling books, he is usually talking or writing about them.

Anders Duus is a playwright and dramaturg, and occasionally a translator too. He was born and raised in the woods of western Sweden, close to the Norwegian border, but now lives in Stockholm with his wife and child. He wishes his daily commute to the theatre where he works was slightly longer, as that's the only coherent reading time he has.

Ceri Evans lives amidst the green green grass of North Wales. She is a family lawyer who prefers reading to anything else. She would secretly love to drop everything and open a second hand book shop.

Caitlin Fehir is an English teacher living in southern Ontario, Canada. Her reading tastes change daily, and she is constantly adding to her never-ending list of books to explore. Her new-found love is traveling, an expensive hobby that is supplemented by seeing the world through literature.

Akeela Gaibie-Dawood lives in the beautiful city of Cape Town, South Africa. She enjoys nature and is a keen hiker. She loves books and the written word, and has a Masters degree in journalism. Her current reading challenge is to visit as many countries around the world, via books, as possible.

Rachel Hayes is a Brit living in Belgium. She reads a variety of mainly contemporary fiction, and enjoys seeking out translated fiction from areas of the world her literary travels haven't taken her to before. She attributes her interest in books written by women to an early obsession with Little Women, What Katy Did and The Chalet School.

Jane Anderson Jones has been a community college professor of Literature and Humanities for over 25 years. A resident of Sarasota, Florida, she has edited an anthology of Florida poetry and has done the usual academic writing and paper presenting. She's beginning to think about retiring to have more time to read and travel.

Tim Jones is an author, poet, editor and anthologist who lives in Wellington, New Zealand. He is currently working on his second novel and third collection of poetry. As a reader, he especially enjoys Russian and South American literature in translation, poetry from New Zealand and around the world, and science fiction – plus everything from Elizabeth Jane Howard novels to Buffy comics.

Amanda Meale is a music teacher who loves to read. She lives near Sydney, Australia.

Tui Menzies lives in south central Ontario, Canada. She reads in a peripatetic and meandering way, which includes everything from books shoved into her hands with a "you have to read this" to reading over people's shoulders in public places. She has a M.A. in English literature with a specialisation in fantastic literature, having done her thesis on Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast.

Deborah Montuori teaches English at a Pennsylvania university. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan with a specialization in Early Modern British literature, and most of her professional writing focuses on defining the self. In addition to reading, she enjoys attending plays, watching independent films, listening to Celtic or classical music, and cooking healthy gourmet meals. She lives with one cat and thousands of books that help to keep her sane.

Darryl Morris is a pediatrician who lives in Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Half of his days are spent taking care of hospitalized children, and he uses his time off to travel in the US and abroad, and to attend jazz and classical music concerts, plays, museum exhibits, and author readings, whenever he isn't reading.

Joyce Nickel is a corporate writer from Vancouver, Canada. When she's not reading or traveling, she can be found enjoying the outdoor lifestyle of the Pacific Northwest.

Belinda Otas is a London-based journalist, writer and blogger. She is interested in Africa, and is passionate about theatre. As a journalist, she has contributed to the BBC Online, BBC Focus on Africa, New African Woman and Arise magazines, the UK Guardian newspaper, Global Comment, and Arab Comment, among others, and she has worked at the BBC World Service as a researcher and broadcast journalist. Belinda is working on her first stage play and so, will start calling herself a playwright when it is completed. She reads a lot of poetry and writes poetry too.

Jean Hughes Raber teaches college English and journalism in Michigan. She has a master's degree with a concentration in medieval literature from Central Michigan University. The first book she ever read by herself was "The Cat in the Hat. In 50 years of enthusiastic reading, she has never found a more profound parable of totalitarian authority (Fish) vs. joyful anarchy (Cat). Her heroes include Harpo Marx, Mother Jones, Dorothy Day, Studs Terkel, and, of course, Dr. Seuss. She lives with her husband, son, and three joyfully anarchistic cats, all of whom just stepped in on the mat one day and never left.

Charlotte Simpson lives in London. She reads a wide range of classic and contemporary fiction written by women and is currently focusing on Africa. She has a Masters degree in Modern British Women's History.

Dorothy Dudek Vinicombe has had careers in teaching, bookselling, publishing and writing. Now that she is a freelancer she can do all four at the same time. Living in Auckland, New Zealand, she can see three volcanoes (hopefully all extinct) from her office window. Books are her favourite gift—to receive and to give—and she is thrilled that all three of her children are voracious readers.