New HorizonsBy Kani KrishnanUnrestricted Editions, 2022 Review by Clara Otto The feeling of reaching out is a familiar one; we stretch out a hand, a fingertip—we whisper a word. In Kani Krishnan’s debut chapbook, New Horizons, Krishnan sends out...
Interview by Renee Cronley Jennifer Mariani’s debut poetry chapbook, All Forgotten Now (Off Topic Publishing, 2022), is an exploration of grief after leaving Zimbabwe at the age of seventeen to pursue a career in ballet in England and later...
Antonyms for DaughterJenny BoychukVéhicule Press, 2021 Review by Stella Cali Antonyms for Daughter, Jenny Boychuk’s unflinching debut collection, explores Boychuk’s mother’s addiction and the author’s complex grief after her mother’s death. Like the seasons, this debut collection changes, decays,...
You Better Be LightningAndrea GibsonButton Press Poetry, 2021 Review by Cynthia Sharp You Better Be Lightning from Button Press Poetry, an independent publisher of performance art, is Andrea Gibson’s eighth overall book in a collection that spans full-length individual...
Abacus of Loss: A Memoir in VerseSholeh WolpéUniversity of Arkansas Press, 2022 Review by Elmaz Abinader Loss rumbles through one’s life—reverberates in every stage of our growth. We lose innocence, lose country, lose time, lose parts of ourselves; lose...
Saturn PeachLily WangGordon Hill Press, 2020 Review by Clara Otto CW: Brief mention of rape Lily Wang’s Saturn Peach oscillates between the ethereal and the feral. The poems in this collection are filled with quiet longing, grief, and intimacy....
Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her HeadWarsan ShirePenguin Random House, 2022 Review by Stella Cali Multiple voices ripple through this collection, music winding through words—the grainy sound of cassette tapes from home, whispers of lyrics and...
Imagine Us, The SwarmMuriel LeungNightboat Books, 2021 Review by Lou J. Baker On a page filled almost entirely with lines of ellipses, a single phrase stands alone: “I think it’s funny that the book is not about bees at...
Truth OMGImane BoukailaUnrestricted Interest, 2021 Review by Catherine Harris Brimming with tumbling language, tactile sound, and vivid emotion, Imane Boukaila’s chapbook Truth OMG is a blend of sound and motion—a reading experience you can both hear and feel. Boukaila...