An Inspired Time for American Poetry

Maybe William Carlos Williams was wrong: it is possible to get the news from poetry. The following fifteen debut collections address the injustices that dominate our headlines and define our cultural moment. Whether it’s the racism that does violence to black and brown bodies, the patriarchal power structures that restrict the rights of women, the homophobia that breeds hostility toward the LGBTQ community, the xenophobia that promotes hatred toward immigrants, the opioid crisis that plagues neighborhoods in need, or the pollution that imperils our oceans, these emerging poets are united in highlighting the most pressing concerns of our time, and they employ a diverse range of techniques to do so. Some respond to specific news stories, while others tap into the emotional climate that surrounds them. Some relay personal narratives, while others rely on the metaphorical. Some utilize traditional forms, while others tend toward an unbounded lyricism. And some shatter dichotomies altogether.

These books of poetry remind us that loss is a natural part of life, but some deaths are preventable; that the human condition is one of vulnerability, but certain individuals are more vulnerable than others. Each of these poets sings in a different key. Each has something urgent to share.

gospel of regicide—Eunsong Kim (June 2017)

How does political change take place? Through incremental progress or radical upheaval? Eunsong Kim’s debut suggests that “the only way to move the revolution / forward is to / have a man kiss you / and take you to your enemies.” A scathing critique of entrenched powers and lily-livered centrism (“there is no voting white supremacy out of anything!”), punches back against a racist, capitalist patriarchy. Reflecting on the story of Judas, the poet considers betrayal in a new light: “The traitor isn’t misunderstood ok? / She’s deranged / She’s in love the wrong way.” Christianity, ethnicity, and family all intersect in these poems, as the speaker recalls “hand copy[ing] pages of the Korean bible” under her mother’s watchful eye. Kim/ ”). In both instances, this striking collection insists that “betrayal moves our worlds forward.”