Sainted

by Lisa Zimmerman

Lisa Zimmerman’s, Sainted is a wondrous book, a composite of vignettes tendered to fashion a contemporary perspective on ancient figures. A feminist bravado, awakens voices to reclaim agency and power over one’s own body and soul— “What did God know about the uterus?” —These poems are timely, lyrical, meditative, and inventive. The poet excavates holy terrain, fleshes out Saint Veronica, Saint Clare, and Saint Bernadette, to remind us of the ache and splendor of living. The poet skillfully casts a wide net on the morality of the ages, invoking the many incarnations of greed, lust, loss and despair. Each poem marvels with luminous details of small moments, leading to the complex filaments of life: “No man would ever own me.” These fiercely evocative and revelatory poems, allow us savory glimpses under the seams, “the midwives came and went like weather.” A crucible, hot to the touch, Sainted could not be timelier in pathos, tone and tenacity. “I saw tears drop onto his tunic small moons of grief.” A stunning book that holds its heart out, Sainted is profoundly radiant and indelible for how poems can astonish, inform and shape our lives. ~Cynthia Atkins, author of Still-Life with God

28 pages, Paperback

Published October 12, 2021

Reviews

[Hannah VanderHart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another tender collection from poet Lisa Zimmerman—beautiful to sit with these Saints in poetry.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deserving of every book award for which she's been nominated and earned, I cannot recommend this chapbook highly enough. I've clasped it to my chest on more than one occasion. I will re-read this, probably multiple times a year, for the way it moves my heart and opens me to the grace of winged words.