How to Pull Apart the Earth

By Karla Cordero

“Cordero guides us to the collective memory found in her own personal history, reminding us that we are rooted in the same familial tenderness.”—O, The Oprah Magazine

HOW TO PULL APART THE EARTH is an homage to the intrinsic thread that weaves the culture of Mexico together with the United States, and the echo of colonization that works to erase it. Cordero skillfully exemplifies the complexity & beauty of growing up in a borderland, and the sacrifices paid for the dream.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Not A Cult
• Release date: Nov 12, 2018
• ISBN: 9781945649455

Book preview

Fragments

i

___________

BORN AT THE CIRCUS

i don’t believe quiet to be a good song.

i know this. how my body whispered into light

the doctor calling each bone a still child

& i go on & on to recreate my creation story.

start from scratch. toss the noiseless pieces of bone

down a flight of stairs. the marrow collapsing a yellowness.

now a yellow tent. the tongue unfolds a wet carpet.

the accent marks un-tame the lion.

the spanish the lion who circles the stadium.

all the seats filled by the strumming notes of uvula

waiting for the grand finale. the wild cat in

all its rolled r’s never jumps