In these poems, Smith opens the reader to a world of desire, longing, and deep mourning that picks up where his brothers Hopkins and Whitman left off. Startling in their formal range and virtuosity, these poems interrogate the ways the body not only inhabits but actually becomes public and private space: …tonight, I am no one’s pet, maybe an animal, wounded & hungry for revenge or sympathy but what’s the difference? Danez Smith lays down the gauntlet for all of us to speak our deepest truths with more elegance, more ferocity, and almost more beauty than a reader can bear.—Gabrielle Calvocoressi, Apocalyptic Swing, Poetry Editor for The LA Review of BooksDanez Smith is the crown prince of innovation and ferocity, a stunningly original voice that chooses not to recognize or respect those vexing artistic boundaries. Here is forte unleashed, an elicit glimpse of poetry's yet-to-be-turned page, a reason to stomp and romp in your church shoes. Hallelujah is an understatement.—Patricia Smith, Shoulda Been Jimi Savannah and Blood Dazzler

    S. Merwin. The book is an intriguing set of variations on the theme of identity. Arnold plays on the idea of the shell as both the dazzling surface of the self and a hard case that protects the self against the assaults of the world. His poems narrate amatory and culinary misadventures. “Friendships based on food,” Arnold writes, “are rarely stable”—this book is full of wildly unstable and bewitching friendships and other significant relations.

    This year's exceptional volume, edited by Robert Creeley, a figure revered across teh wide spectrum of American poetry, features a diverse mix of established masters, rising stars and the leading lights of a younger generation. The pleasure of the poems selected here, Creeley explains in his introduction, is "that they caught my fancy, some almost outrageously, some by their quiet, nearly diffident manner, some by unexpected turns of thought or insight, others by a confident authority and intent." With comments from the poets elucidating their work, a thought-provoking introduction from Creeley, and Lehman's always popular foreword assessing the current state of poetry, The Best American Poetry 2002 will prove as irresistible to new readers as it is indispensable for poetry fans everywhere.

    You paint with words and that is beautiful." "Your words capture a truth some may feel but be unable to word." "Definitely a skilled tongue." Join over 10,000 people who follow and enjoy Andrea Michelle's poetry. Download now for free!

    Although Kathleen Norris’s best-selling Dakota: A Spiritual Geography has brought her to the attention of many thousands of readers, she is first and last a poet.  Like Robert Frost, another poet identified with a particular landscape, she can reveal the miraculous in the ordinary, and she writes with clarity, humor, and deep sympathy for her subjects.

    The poet who drew such unusual attention has a surprising background: for many years he has worked for Brooks Brothers, a fact that lends particular nuance to the title of his collection. The Clerk's Tale pays homage not only to Chaucer but to the clerks' brotherhood of service in the mall, where "the light is bright and artificial, / yet not dissimilar to that found in a Gothic cathedral." The fifty poems in The Clerk's Tale are exquisitely restrained, shot through with a longing for permanence, from the quasi-monastic life of two salesmen at Brooks Brothers to the poignant lingering light of a Miami dusk to the weight of geography on an empty Minnesota farm. Gluck describes them as having "an effect I have never quite seen before, half cocktail party, half passion play . . . We do not expect virtuosity as the outward form of soul-making, nor do we associate generosity and humanity with such sophistication of means, such polished intelligence . . . Much life has gone into the making of this art, much patient craft."

    Engaging with themes of masculinity, racism, love, and joy, Johnson is at once critical and creative. His spoken word performance transfers effortlessly to the page, with poems that will encompass you. This is a book about blackness and survival, and how in American these are inseparable. In a world of individualism, who can you hold close? In a world of danger, what makes you feel safe? From a poem written in the form of a syllabus, to another about the time his grandmother literally saved his life, Johnson's creative expression is constantly enacting the feminist mantra, "the personal is political."

    Within these poems, we see the city as distant lover, we hear "the sound that comes from all / the hurt & want that leads a man to turn his back to the world." We see that and we see each reason why we return to what pains us.

    Doctors believed that Starr would only be a waste in society and behind in everything she did. After losing the love of her life Keylan; Starr loses all compassion and want to have a better life. She returns to Atlanta from Miami and immediately begins to play hard in the streets.Finding love once again in her ex Quad, Starr begins to contemplate doing right again but suddenly truths are revealed, friends becomes foes, and lives are lost. Starr’s ways finally start to catch up to her and someone wants to send her to an early grave. Will they succeed or will she become the Reigning Starr that no one believed she could be?Gun play, lies, and murder isn’t supposed to be a part of a girl’s everyday life. But Starr isn’t your ordinary girl. Walk with Starr as she takes you on a journey where the girls go just as hard as the boys.

     Janelle's dreams are all set to come true when she gets the chance to become the District Attorney of New York City. The only thing making her have second thoughts is the fact that she’s married to the city’s ultimate bad boy, Luke ‘Outlaw’ Murray. With no one around who understands her ambitious goals, she finds a friend in a woman who truly only wants to bring her down. The saying ‘keep your friends close and your enemies closer’ always rings true but once Janelle finally realizes that her enemy is right in front of her, will it be too late? Luke ‘Outlaw’ Murray is the bad boy who no one ever imagined could be tamed. Now that he’s a family man, his reckless lifestyle has changed, but the savage in him is very much alive. With Janelle focused on her own dreams, he turns his attention back to running the streets... only to meet someone he would have never expected: Chloe Harvarty, the sister of Chris Harvarty, a man whose life he ended in order to protect the woman he loved. His guilt plagues him when he sees the way that his actions have utterly devastated her life and, against his better nature, he’s caught up—feeling obligated to help a woman he begins to feel responsible for. When a simple friendship begins to cross the line over into a lane that he knows he shouldn’t explore, will Outlaw stand strong or will he turn back into his old self and fall back into his womanizing ways?

    

    She follows no one’s rules–she makes them. Now, however, it seems as if Lane, her oldest brother and patriarch of the family, wants to rein her in and put an end to her wild ways. Determined to come out on top, she turns to family friend, Maxwell Banks, who also happens to be her brother’s best friend. After several explosive bumps and well constructed roadblocks, they finally come to a breakthrough in the passionate, but complicated, layers of their relationship. Max, however, has secrets of his own that prevent him from being completely honest with Taylor. Any hope of them building on the fragile bond they've formed is shattered once the details of his deception come to light. When the betrayal is discovered, it could cause more than the loss of trust–it could be the end of someone’s life. Being Barron 3 is the third book in the Barron Trilogy. Books 1 and 2 can be found on Amazon as well as other books by S. K. Hardy. Warning: Being Barron 3 contains adult content (language and sexual scenes) not suitable for readers under 18.

    BOXED SET INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING TITLES: Bankroll Squad by David Weaver The Union by Tremayne Johnson The Versace League by Shan Country Girls by Blake Karrington Teflon Mafia by Alicia Howard and Drusilla Mars Ghetto Girl Games by Torica Tymes The Throne by Cole Hart Thug Luv by Jazmyne Truth Hurts, Lies Kill by Raymond Francis The Streets Don’t Luv Me by Alicia Hartley Love and War by Jackie Chanel I see Dead People by Joe Awsum The Real Blockwives of Atlanta by Sevyn McCray Love in the Chamber by Rasheed Carter Hard by Anjela Day Ballad of Bad Bitch by Ms. Bam Kush and Cologne by Envy Seal Handbag Mafia by Chanel Jones

    Raquel and Tae were both born into the hood. Their mothers were both babies having babies, so from the beginning the odds were stacked against them. At an early age Raquel knew that she wanted more for herself, but somehow her circumstances always stood in the way. Tae grew up in an unconventional home, with little to no guidance. With these set of circumstances the two friends attempt to find their way in life. Raquel thinks that she has found solace in Kevin. He’s the one for her, but after a dreadful night their lives are forever changed. Without her backbone, can she really handle this cold cruel world? Tae loses so many close to her, and is afraid to let anyone in, until she meets Eric. Eric is the exact opposite of anything Tae’s ever experienced. So, now that she’s found a real man, can she become woman enough for him? Raquel and Tae may appear to be average hood chicks, but they have an extraordinary story to tell. The good, bad, and ugly is a part of life and just simply The Way It Is.

    Left to raise a baby without the assistance of the married father, she has given up on finding a prince on a white horse to rescue her. Enter Cardiologist and single father, Ford Tucker. Dr. Tucker is all work and no play. He has dedicated his life to work and raising his daughter. When Ford becomes Maya’s Cardiologist, he is instantly smitten with her. Sparks fly and the passion’s hot as ever between the two. But just when Ford thinks he has finally found Ms. Right, and Maya thinks she’s found her prince, a devastating secret is revealed that will rock the core of their relationship. Will their bond survive the terrible secret? Or will Ford end up alone and Maya prince less?