Between. Not here, not there. Not this, or that. Somewhere but not someplace. Not easy to put your, wrap your, place your—but confidence, and masterful touch with language, is what makes Esteban Rodríguez a credible, incredible even,... Read More

Care, from carry: as happens mysteriously in utero; from what was once her single-selfed existence, the poet assumes the burdens of maternity—a carrier‘s nine-month care package that stretches into motherhood and beyond. In "Each... Read More

A relationship advice podcaster advocating “just break up,” Sierra DeMulder champions the value of those things that exist only briefly: love, life—“every poem is about death / when you are reading to the dying”—music,... Read More

Edginess, unsettlement, a sense of foreboding: what weather can come to bear and a skillful poet with some thoughts on mortality to share. Jeannine Hall Gailey’s ability to turn it up—or down, thankfully—is what makes reading her... Read More

Black women poets matter in ways that poets of other races and ethnicities can’t: “Black girl must write poetry so other black girls can relate.” That Black girl poetry readers matter … do you understand? This debut collection... Read More

Sound. Alise Alousi sounds her words to arrive as cadence, as music, as magic. Sounds easy, until you realize how large her collection of eye teeth would be if she traded her secret with other poets. A Kresge Literary Arts Fellow and the... Read More

In extreme cases, imagination is an affliction, or did we mean addiction? Please stop, says the poet, let’s pause here. But that seems not an option for Courtney Bush: “I would calm down if it weren’t for the risk of dislocating my... Read More

Black music—funk, soul, disco—from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, coupled with the love shared by his parents, set the rhythm and inspiration for this collection, Douglas Manuel’s second after Testify, itself a Benjamin Franklin... Read More