Local Woman

by jzl jmz

A pulpy, mytho-poetic dispatch from an “anarchist jurisdiction” that explores the liberatory possibilities of community and womanhood.


Local Woman, an archetypal figure, fresh from the forest into the streets of Portland, Oregon. She is a Black trans woman, seeking survival and satisfaction, giving seduction, disenfranchisement, and the contradictions of femme womanhood a face, body, and soul. In sensual, evocative lyrics, Jzl Jmz documents Local Woman’s movement through natural disaster, anti-fascist protest, romantic engagements, and an expanding sense of personal autonomy.

Genres: Poetry, LGBT, Queer

96 pages, Paperback

First published April 29, 2025

Reviews

[Audrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books of poetry I've read in a looooooooooooooooooong time.

[Tutankhamun18 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This poetry collection centres around a local woman, a Black trans woman. The poetic voice is at times vunerable, erotic, concise and playful. The word choice blends vulgarity with internet slang and sacred cadence to produce poems that feel both not quite NSFW and also like they should reaide alongside classical literature. Similies are used that capture the presence of emotions, rumours and gossip. Many of these poems explore being a woman, being perceived as a woman and fear and desire of a woman, while others capture transition. I really enjoyed this one!

“Desire Is in the eye of the beholder, but I live in the empty Hands of discombobulated bastards.”

“Secrets of entitled dust settled in the corner of each townsperson's mouth.”

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best poetry book I've read in a long time. Resonated with me on multiple levels--also underscores how much anarchy, pleasure, and transsexuality connect and overlap. Beautiful.

[Avery Marley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Local Woman is a fiercely lyrical and quietly radical work that refuses to sit comfortably within any single genre. Jzl Jmz writes with a voice that is fluid, sensuous, and emotionally charged, allowing the text to move like a living current between myth, body, and political reality.

Local Woman herself feels less like a constructed character and more like a force. shaped by vulnerability, desire, precarity, and self-invention. The prose carries a rhythmic, almost incantatory quality, where moments of intimacy coexist with unrest, protest, and survival. The language is vivid without excess, sharp without losing its softness.

What makes the book particularly compelling is how it explores womanhood, autonomy, and community without reducing them to slogans. Identity here is dynamic and embodied, unfolding through experience rather than explanation. The result is a work that feels both deeply personal and structurally aware.

A striking, memorable book that lingers in tone and texture long after reading.

[Dawn F Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any words I try and put together to describe this book will pale in comparison to the lyricism of Jzl Jms. The collection is composed so that each piece is both distinct from and connected to the next.

Amd yet, as I was reading this I told my Husband I'm not sure this one was my "bag", but I cannot negate the deep appreciation and praise it deserves.

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely incredible collection. All of it from first page to final acknowledgements had me ready to stand up in my seat like yesssssss 😩 👏🏾🙌🏾 it’s everything you want from poetry: personal, precise, powerful. can’t wait to read more from this author.

[bibliophagy · Rating 3 out of 5]

some pieces were stunning; others fell flat.