A December APA Poetry Companion: Warm Books for Winter

An APA Poetry Companion: December 2020. Cover images of MON by Mina Khan, FUGITIVE ATLAS by Khaled Mattawa, WOMEN IN THE WAITING ROOM by Kirun Kapur, PINK MOUNTAIN ON LOCUST ISLAND by Jamie Marina Lau, FABLESQUE by Anna Maria Hong, SOME GIRLS WALK INTO THE COUNTRY THEY ARE FROM by Sawako Nakayasu, PHONE BELLS KEEP RINGING FOR ME by Choi Seungja (trans. Won-Chung Kim and Cathy Park Hong), SALAT by Dujie Tahat
New and notable APA poetry books for December 2020

As it gets deeper into winter, here are some exciting new and forthcoming releases to warm your spirit.

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FEATURED PICKS

Anna Maria Hong, Fablesque (Tupelo Press, Sep 2020)

Anna Maria Hong’s second poetry collection, Fablesque, was the winner of Tupelo Press’s 2017 Berkshire Prize. The book connects old animal fables with women of the modern world, weaving in trauma and rebirth in the context of the #MeToo era. We’re delighted to see this collection on the shelves and hope you’ll look for it, too. 

Sawako Nakayasu, Some Girls Walk into the Country They Are From (Wave Books, Oct 2020)

Another book we’re excited about is Sawako Nakayasu’s first poetry collection in seven years. Some Girls Walk into the Country They Are From follows a cast of “girls” who embody various representations of the female diasporic subject. We can’t wait to dive into the pages of this book and hope you’ll check it out as well. 

Dujie Tahat, Salat (Tupelo Press, Jan 2021)

Issue 7.1 contributor Dujie Tahat brings us a new collection, Salat, for the start of the new year. In it, he takes prayer as form. Hanif Abdurraqib writes that Tahat’s poems add “history, image, and narrative flair. [The poet] weaves all of these things together like a song, summoning people to a holy space.” If you’ve enjoyed Tahat’s work in the past as we have, you’re sure to enjoy this upcoming release as well.

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MORE NEW AND NOTEWORTHY TITLES

Kirun Kapur, Women in the Waiting Room (Black Lawrence Press, Oct 2020)

Mina Khan, MON (monuments monarchs & monsters) (Sputnik & Fizzle, Oct 2020)

Jamie Marina Lau, Pink Mountain on Locust Island (Coffee House Press, Sep 2020)

Khaled Mattawa, Fugitive Atlas (Graywolf, Oct 2020)

Choi Seungja (trans. Won-Chung Kim and Cathy Park Hong), Phone Bells Keep Ringing for Me (Action Books, Oct 2020)

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We hope you’ll enjoy some of these picks—and even share them with friends and family—this winter. What else is on your reading list? Share your recommendations with us in the comments or on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram (@LanternReview).

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Cover image of KONTEMPORARY AMERIKAN POETRY by John Murillo

ALSO RECOMMENDED

John Murillo, Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry (Four Way Books, 2020)

Please consider supporting an indie bookstore with your purchase.

As an APA-focused publication, Lantern Review stands for diversity within the literary world. In solidarity with other communities of color and in an effort to connect our readers with a wider range of voices, we recommend a different collection by a non-APA-identified BIPOC poet in each blog post.

An October APA Poetry Companion: Books to Curl Up With for Fall

An APA Poetry Companion: October 2020. Cover images of MAPS FOR MIGRANTS AND GHOSTS by Luisa A. Igloria, RAIN IN PLURAL by Fiona Sze-Lorrain. BESTIARY by K-Ming Chang, THIS IS THEN THAT WAS NOW by Vijay Seshadri, STRIP by Jessica Abughattas, THE VOICE OF SHEILA CHANDRA by Kazim Ali, WHAT HE DID IN SOLITARY by Amit Majumdar, and UNDERWORLD LIT by Srikanth Reddy
New and notable APA poetry books for October 2020

As the leaves change colors and fall, here are a few September and October books by APA poets and writers we’re excited to dig into. 

FEATURED PICKS

Kazim Ali, The Voice of Sheila Chandra, (Alice James Books, Oct. 2020)

We’re excited to see that Kazim Ali has a new poetry collection out, The Voice of Sheila Chandra. Named after a singer who lost her voice, the book weaves three long poems together to make a central statement that Ilya Kaminsky says is “far larger than the sum of its parts.” Sam Sax describes the collection as “part research document, part song, part deep excavation of the soul.” With that kind of ringing endorsement, this book is certain to be one we’ll enjoy. 

Luisa A. Igloria, Maps for Migrants and Ghosts, (Southern Illinois University Press, Sep. 2020)

Two-time contributor Luisa A. Igloria, who was recently named poet laureate of Virginia, also has a new book out this fall. Maps for Migrants and Ghosts explores the diasporic experience and brings in the poet’s own personal history, from the Philippines to her immigrant home in Virginia. We’re big fans of Igloria’s work here at LR, and we look forward to reading her latest.

Srikanth Reddy, Underworld Lit, (Wave Books, Aug. 2020)

Wave Books describes Srikanth Reddy’s Underworld Lit as “a multiverse quest through various cultures’ realms of the dead.” A serial prose poem, the book takes readers on a “Dantesque” tour from professor’s classrooms to Mayan underworlds and beyond. We’re excited to dip into this epic journey in verse and hope you’ll check it out, as well.

Fiona Sze-Lorrain, Rain in Plural, (Princeton University Press, Sep. 2020)

Issue 6 contributor Fiona Sze-Lorrain’s fourth book of original poems, Rain in Plural, just hit shelves last month. In this collection, she uses language to uncover questions of citizenship, memory, and image. We love Sze-Lorrain’s lush, musical sensibilities and have covered several of her previous books on the blog. If you’ve enjoyed her work in the past, you’re sure to enjoy Rain in Plural, too!

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MORE NEW AND NOTEWORTHY TITLES

Jessica Abughattas, Strip, (University of Arkansas Press, Oct. 2020)

K-Ming Chang, Bestiary, (Penguin Random House, Sep. 2020)

Amit Majmudar, What He Did in Solitary, (Penguin Random House, Aug. 2020)

Vijay Seshadri, That Was Now, This is Then, (Graywolf Press, Oct. 2020)

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We hope you‘ll curl up with some of these picks this upcoming fall. What else is on your reading list? Share your recommendations with us in the comments or on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram (@LanternReview).

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ALSO RECOMMENDED

Cover image of EVERY DAY WE GET MORE ILLEGAL by Juan Felipe Huerrara.

Every Day We Get More Illegal by Juan Felipe Huerrera (City Lights Publishers, 2020)

Please consider supporting an independent bookstore with your purchase.

As an APA–focused publication, Lantern Review stands for diversity within the literary world. In solidarity with other communities of color and in an effort to connect our readers with a wider range of voices, we recommend a different collection by a non-APA-identified BIPOC poet in each blog post.