Peter Never Came

Ashley Cowger’s Peter Never Came won the 2011 Autumn House Fiction Prize. Ashley holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and a BA in English from Northern Arizona University. Her short fiction has appeared in several literary journals and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She teaches college English and is the editor and co-founder of the online journal, MFA/MFYou. She has divided her life fairly evenly between Alaska, Arizona, and California.

"Ashley Cowger writes about childhood with a striking blend of cynicism and innocence. Each piece surprises in its fresh approach, its recasting of fairytales and childhood memories into fresh new shapes—a wonderfully realized debut by a young writer on the rise." —David Crouse "This finely crafted set of stories steers us through the disturbed waters where childhood and adulthood converge. Here we encounter children pushed headlong into adulthood, and adults holding fast to childhood, engrossing characters caught up in the stories that they tell themselves or that others force onto them. There’s no cuteness here. Rather, this collection presents an engrossing exploration of what maturity might truly mean." —Gerri Brightwell