In “levitate,” after profound line after profound line, we learn of the speaker’s connection to familial loss. Also, through the use of surreal yet serene prose poetry lines, we see the triumph of his family life: “she turned green grass…
In “to witness sunset & not say goodbye,” the speaker searches for something resembling love, only to find “a half-healed wound pealing itself.” Also, through social media interactions or lack-thereof, with a potential suitor, the speaker’s longings only seem to…
In “Another Ode to Detroit,” the speaker praises the mundane squalor and the extraordinary valor of the city of Detroit, Michigan. Never romanticizing, but always keeping it real: Jenkins skillfully paints a realist picture of a resilient city we can…
In “The Stent,” the speaker laments the illness of her father, using fruit as a metaphor for life and hardship. In the end, there is even empathy for the disease: who could resist her father’s heart? The Stent In…
In “Schizo Reads a Tombstone on the Set of a Western,” the speaker experiments with language, imagery, and juxtaposition to create a collage-like poetics. The result of such experiments, behind a beautiful Western backdrop, is avant-garde art, in the lineage…
In “Mackerel,” teenage girls become theologists of the body—transforming a “sweet communion of burning” into their own vivid and direct meaning. We’re excited to publish this new electric work from Khalisa Rae, and to announce as well that she will…
We were so excited when Heather reached out to us to let us know that Chanchala Srivastava wanted to share a translation of her poem into Hindi. We’ve included audio files of the author and translator reading their respective pieces.…
In “Spectacle,” a routine yet invasive medical procedure symbolizes the surveillance we have on women, women of color, and their bodies. With references to the Bible, the speaker in “Spectacle” contemplates a puzzling dilemma of rigidness or modernity: “who consoled…
First, a sincere thank you to all the finalists for partnering with us. All of these poems deserve high praise. For the final Part 3, we’re sharing work by Joshua Nguyen, Remi Recchia, and Sabrina San Miguel. You can read…
First, a sincere thank you to all the finalists for partnering with us. All of these poems deserve high praise. For Part 2, we’re sharing work by Taylor Byas, Taneum Bambrick, Julia Kolchinsky Dasbach. Part 3 arrives tomorrow! You can…
