In this Book
- Karankawa
- Book
- 2015
- Published by: University of Pittsburgh Press
- Series: Pitt Poetry Series
summary
Winner of the 2014 Donald Hall Prize for Poetry
Selected by Joy Harjo
Karankawa is a collection that explores some of the ways in which we (re)construct our personal histories. Rich in family narratives, myths, and creation stories, these are poems that investigate passage—dying, coming out, transforming, being born—as well as the gaps that also reside in our stories, for, as Rocha suggests, the opportunity to create myths is provided by great silences. Much like the Karankawa Indians whose history works in omissions, Karankawa reconfigures such spaces, engaging with the burden and freedom of memory in order to rework and recontextualize private and public mythologies. First and last, these are poems that honor our griefs and desires, for they keep alive the very things we cannot possess.
Selected by Joy Harjo
Karankawa is a collection that explores some of the ways in which we (re)construct our personal histories. Rich in family narratives, myths, and creation stories, these are poems that investigate passage—dying, coming out, transforming, being born—as well as the gaps that also reside in our stories, for, as Rocha suggests, the opportunity to create myths is provided by great silences. Much like the Karankawa Indians whose history works in omissions, Karankawa reconfigures such spaces, engaging with the burden and freedom of memory in order to rework and recontextualize private and public mythologies. First and last, these are poems that honor our griefs and desires, for they keep alive the very things we cannot possess.
Table of Contents
Download Full Book
- I.
- The Impossible You
- pp. 4-5
- Coming Out
- p. 11
- Creation Myth
- p. 12
- Leaving El Campo, TX
- p. 13
- A Body Becomes Less
- p. 14
- Departure/Aperture
- p. 15
- Wharton, TX
- p. 16
- II.
- After I Lost You
- p. 21
- Creation Myth (1985)
- pp. 22-23
- Victoria, TX
- p. 26
- La Beautiful Street
- p. 27
- Big Bend, TX
- p. 28
- Coming Out
- p. 29
- Parts of a Flower
- p. 32
- III.
- Creation Myth (1981)
- p. 35
- Parts of the Alphabet
- pp. 37-38
- Looking at Women
- p. 39
- Learning the F Word
- p. 40
- A Study of You, Love
- p. 41
- Women Go Missing
- p. 43
- Wharton, TX
- p. 45
- IV.
- La Estrella
- p. 52
- Nothing Sticks (2011)—Excerpts
- pp. 53-55
- Trying to Anchor You, Father
- pp. 56-57
- La Beautiful Street
- p. 59
- Creation Myth
- p. 60
- Self-Portrait with Headphones On
- pp. 61-62
- Acknowledgments
- pp. 73-74
Additional Information
ISBN
9780822981107
Related ISBN(s)
9780822963844
MARC Record
OCLC
915134917
Pages
84
Launched on MUSE
2015-08-26
Language
English
Open Access
No
Copyright
2015
Project MUSE Mission
Project MUSE promotes the creation and dissemination of essential humanities and social science resources through collaboration with libraries, publishers, and scholars worldwide. Forged from a partnership between a university press and a library, Project MUSE is a trusted part of the academic and scholarly community it serves.
