Carnival

by Alyesha Wise

Carnival is a book of poems that serve as a testimony of the author's fears and how they have shaped her. Throughout the book Wise reveals pieces of herself and the life she's surrounded by, using very raw, honest content, while attempting to incorporate just a bit of humor. Wise compares most of the world, or what she knows of it, to a circus carnival - the clowns and masked people, the rides and attractions, the hoping and pretending that we are all happy.

Genres: Poetry

82 pages, Paperback

Published March 17, 2017

About the author

Alyesha Wise is a Poet, Teaching Artist, & TEDx Speaker from Camden, NJ. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Alyesha is the Los Angeles (Get Lit) Youth Slam Team Co-coach and Hollywood (Da Poetry Lounge) Adult Slam Team Head Coach. She is also the 2014 Hollywood Grand Slam Champion, a 3-time member of the Hollywood Slam Team, & a 2-time Women of the World Poetry Slam Finalist. Alyesha has been featured on different platforms and publications such as Huffington Post, Bustle, Afropunk, WHYY, POPSUGAR, Buzzfeed and more. Some additional highlights include a 2012 interview with Ron Howard, a 2014 inclusion in the Google Interstellar Project in conjunction with the film Interstellar, and being told by co-founder of Essence Magazine Russell Goings, “In all, you are awesome.” Her first book, Carnival, is now available.

Reviews

[Gervanna Stephens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wise is beautifully blunt

Some of the best material I have read in awhile. Wise is blunt and beautiful in her language use and her narrative. She shares herself in a print that casts itself as a shadow onto the reader as a part of you that you didn’t even know existed. Thank you.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

These are really beautiful poems, wonderfully put together. They cover a range of topics but share a strong core that brings life to the pages. I’ve seen the poet perform a number of times and was please to discover new things in the pieces I’d heard before.