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Flight: Sunken Garden Poetry Prize
Poetry. African & African American Studies. Winner of the Sunken Garden Chapbook Award, chosen by Major Jackson. FLIGHT gives testament to the struggle of skin color in contemporary America. Utilizing both innovation and tradition, Chaun Ballard's poems give voice to the silenced, proof to the disenfranchised, and life to the gone.
"The poems in FLIGHT unspool a rich and charmed history of survival into songs that celebrate the miracle of endurance in a country defined by the peculiar phenomenon of race; many of the poems in this collection explore (or allude to) the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson with a brilliance that is underscored by the poet's extraordinary sense of sound to etch a new reality in our ears."--Major Jackson
"The poems in FLIGHT unspool a rich and charmed history of survival into songs that celebrate the miracle of endurance in a country defined by the peculiar phenomenon of race; many of the poems in this collection explore (or allude to) the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson with a brilliance that is underscored by the poet's extraordinary sense of sound to etch a new reality in our ears."--Major Jackson
- GenresPoetry
56 pages, Paperback
Published July 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 2, 2021
Every poem fits the theme of this book, belongs together in this volume, even as their meanings and topics diverge. A very well put together collection.
December 30, 2018
These are stunning poems. Ballard explores forms elegantly, but these pieces aren’t just remarkable for the technique and craftsmanship.
September 24, 2019
A nice discovery based on the publication of the first title “Midway” in the New Yorker. Nice rhythm and clever word choices. “Laws of Motion” makes perfect sense. Many like Ghazal deserve a re-read to better discover intent. Collection is too short, need more from this astute voice.
August 25, 2018
These are candid poems of strength. They make the heart ache with both sadness and hope.
December 30, 2018
As Major Jackson writes:
“The poems in Flight unspool a rich and charmed history of survival into songs that celebrate the miracle of endurance in a country defined by the peculiar phenomenon of race; many of the poems in this collection explore (or allude to) the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson with a brilliance that is underscored by the poet’s extraordinary sense of sound to etch a new reality in our ears. Here the poet employs the perennial powers of poetic forms (pantoum, ghazals, and sonnet, not to mention the Stevens imitation of 13 Ways of Looking at a Blackbird) to refresh staid conversations and to lyrically give voice to the good fortune of travel and language. Whether reveling in having reached middle-age or recalling that fateful day, September 11th, Flight issues its own battle cry and imaginatively addresses one of the great complexities of our time.”
“The poems in Flight unspool a rich and charmed history of survival into songs that celebrate the miracle of endurance in a country defined by the peculiar phenomenon of race; many of the poems in this collection explore (or allude to) the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson with a brilliance that is underscored by the poet’s extraordinary sense of sound to etch a new reality in our ears. Here the poet employs the perennial powers of poetic forms (pantoum, ghazals, and sonnet, not to mention the Stevens imitation of 13 Ways of Looking at a Blackbird) to refresh staid conversations and to lyrically give voice to the good fortune of travel and language. Whether reveling in having reached middle-age or recalling that fateful day, September 11th, Flight issues its own battle cry and imaginatively addresses one of the great complexities of our time.”
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September 1, 2022Flight is beautiful and sad, a multilayered protest hymn. More: https://essentiallyanerd.wordpress.co...
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February 15, 2024Dog-eared:
"How I Survived"
"Pantoum"
"How I Survived"
"Pantoum"
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews