Photo by Joshua Mensch
May has arrived and it’s finally spring in the Czech Republic. Glints of green have given way to clumps of young leaves of tender grass, and a sun that finally has some heat to it. Amongst all the months, May is a B O D Y favourite.
The insects of summer are making their sudden annual appearance in the parks and yards, the first bees, the first mosquitoes, the first dragonflies, which hover like “a quiet comma in the air … holding to a single point.”
Spring is, after all, when the buzz starts.
It’s hard not to find echoes of the weather, of the world you see for yourself, in the poems and stories you read. It’s in stories and poems where the world can finally make sense.
The quote above is from a poem by renowned German poet Christian Lehnert in Joshua Weiner’s superb new translation. We could find a dozen such examples from the work we’ve collected, lines and images that exquisitely describe a moment we find ourselves in.
We’ve assembled an incredible selection of poetry and prose from writers the world over, which we’re now proud to present in our 2026 Spring issue, which, as usual, we’ll be rolling out daily throughout May, and possibly into the beginning of June. One writer per day, as we always do. So, check back daily to read fresh new writing from all over the world.
— The Editors