Gracious: Poems from the 21st Century South

by John Poch (Editor), Bryan Giemza (Introduction)

John Poch’s newly curated collection, Poems of the 21st Century South, spotlights both emerging and notable voices from this poetry-rich region. This book promises to be the best and most influential anthology of Southern poetry published in over thirty years. Gracious steers away from stereotypical mockingbird-and-magnolia verse and instead amplifies a variety of lyric voices covering a wide breadth of Southern experience. Bryan Giemza’s timely introduction situates the anthology among the current discourse in Southern studies. Gracious features the work of some of our best-known poets alongside those who have just published their first books. In all, there are eighty-four poets included whose work moves both the heart and the intellect. Gracious is, in the end, a new poetic geography, a book that strives to define Southern poetry for a generation to come. It is a book intended not only for the classroom; it aims to capture the imaginations of readers of all ages and backgrounds.

Genres: Poetry

256 pages, Paperback

Published October 27, 2020

Reviews

[Alicia (PrettyBrownEyeReader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The American South is known for its history, characters and tales. This poetry anthology edited by John Pock brings all of the lure of the South into poetic form.

The poets in this collection use a variety of poetic devices in their poems. Rhyme, imagery, sound, repetition and humor are a few of those devices. A wide range of topics/themes related to the South are explored: family, romantic relationships, the land, racism, hangings, country western songs. One of my favorite poems in the anthology, Michael Jordan by Austin Hummell. Jordan was reared and educated in North Carolina, a Southern state and played sports, a revered Southern activity.

Of course there could not be a poetry book about the South without including church, God and religion. Several of the poems retell Biblical stories, incorporate Biblical language and interpret what religion means to daily life.

I was introduced to many poets I was not familiar with when reading this anthology. I was also excited to read familiar and new to me poems by poets I have read before like Ansel Elkins, Terrence Hayes, Sean Hill, Frank X. Walker, Jericho Brown, Erica Dawson, Natasha Tretheway and Patrick Phillips.

Lovers of poetry will savor this anthology as well as readers who enjoy the language and culture of the Southern United States.