In “North Coast Chorus,” the speaker empathizes with the rampant imperfections of nature; like the poet’s flailing body, nature, waves and wind, crash and yet manage to resemble rebirth. North Coast Chorus Somewhere near Trinidad on the coast road…
In “Camellia,” a mother teaches a daughter the quiet mysteries of womanhood; the speaker is taught to hold on to Seoul, to sing without a mouth, to listen to the mournful river. Camellia The first thing a mother teaches…
In “HEMINGWAY COUNTRY,” the speaker describes the difficulties of growing up Latinx, or non-white, in a world of whiteness and suspicion. Always a target, the speaker learns to navigate a world where love seems foreign or violent and the only…
In “Smokescreens,” the speaker skillfully juxtaposes harsh realities from around the world; “we are all animals” the speaker announces, capable of being both “broken, bruised,” but also capable of song, like the deer in the mist. Smokescreens In this…
Congratulations to Abby Johnson, winner of the 2021 Frontier Digital Chapbook Contest, selected by Kazim Ali, and a sincere thanks to everyone who submitted. Thank you, also, for your patience while we reviewed all the extraordinary work this year. We’ll…
In “Violin with Nipple Grafts,” the speaker compares their human body to the configuration of a violin; similarly, the intricacies of their composition are always on display for a skeptical audience. Violin with Nipple Grafts The significance of inheriting a…
In “The Last Summer of Innocence,” the speaker remembers the fickle nature of youth; the intricacies of those summers, however, never dies in the speaker’s ardent memory. The Last Summer of Innocence …
Here’s a short selection, from our own Jose, of some of the best new prose poems that hit the web this June. These five poets, both established and emerging, deserve your attention and support—featuring work from Ellen June Wright in…
In “After Learning of the Affair,” we learn of the speaker’s deep hurt following the betrayal of a lover; what follows is exquisite line after line of their delicate yet fierce suffering. AFTER LEARNING OF THE AFFAIR, I DOWN…
In “National Parks I Visited While Grieving the Death of My Mother: Yellowstone,” the speaker gains insight into life and death while visiting nature’s treasures and hearing of a man’s fall; importantly, also, through witnessing the mundane yet complex beauty…
