Table of Contents
Introduction xi
Ars Poetica
Break My Heart Joy Harjo 5
Delivery Martha Rhodes 7
The Uses of What Is Hollow Eleanor Wilner 8
Ars Poetica Mai Der Vang 9
The Lights Burn Blue Alan Michael Parker 10
Mother (of Poetry) Allison Seay 11
The Invention of the F-hole Kimberly Johnson 12
Ars Poetica Cornelius Eady 14
Litanies, Catalogs, & Lists
For Out People Angela Jackson 17
Political Poem Joy Ladin 21
From the Word Go Anna Leahy 23
Descendent Quraysh Ali Lansana 24
Waiting for Greece's Fate on Serifos Aliki Barnstone 25
The Afterlife of American Poets Billy Collins 27
Litany Christina Pugh 28
Select an Answer Oliver de la Paz 29
Titles from Harold's Shelf, A Portrait Kimiko Hahn 30
Questions for Google Elizabeth Spires 31
Things I Find in Abuela's Bathroom Closet Rigoberto González 32
Epistles & Postcards
Our Fault Is We Love Too Much Ira Sukrungruang 37
With Love from Ainezalandia Elizabeth Macklin 38
Dear Art Cynthia Atkins 39
From In the Field Between Us Molly McCully Brown Susannah Nevison 40
Postcards to Etheridge Knight Todd Fuller 44
Letter to Hillary on the Radical Hospitality of the Body Erika Meitner 47
After the Dragonflies Chris Green 49
Postcard: Morning Window, Venice Donna Masini 50
Poems in Form
The Crux Rosanna Warren 53
How To: Jordi Alonso 54
Reckoning Jeanetta Calhoun Mish 55
Haiku Molly Peacock 56
The UFO Incident Tony Trigilio 57
Villanelle of Margaritas Allison Joseph 59
Ballad of the Bronx Zoo's Beloved Judith Baumel 60
The Summer Before the Student Murders Randall Mann 61
Departures Emma Bolden 62
Vivid Isolation: A Ghazal Tina Chang 63
World Gone Wrong William Wadsworth 64
From Frolic and Detour Paul Muldoon 66
Persona Poems
Buckle and Wash John A. Nieves 71
From My Lord's Estate, I Pass High Mountains, Winding Streams, Rocky Torrents, Thick Forests, and Tall Bamboo Sebastian Bitticks 72
Sole Heiress Joan Houlihan 73
Laloo, the Handsome, Healthy, Happy Hindoo Ravi Shankar 74
Pity Eyed Marilyn Nelson 76
This River Elizabeth Macklin 77
Sparrow January Gill O'Neil 80
The Language of the Bomb Kimberly Grey 82
Rescue Annie Laura Kasischke 83
One Hundred Umbrellas David Yezzi 84
Myth Poems
The Love Song of the Kraken Martin Espada 93
Assos Christopher Bakken 94
Sleeping Woman Duane Niatum 95
Composition John A. Nieves 96
Transit of Venus Stefanie Wortman 97
Made / Maeve 1 Leah Umansky 98
The Damned Kevin Prufer 100
Shade Richard Tillinghast 103
At the Expulsion Edward Hirsch 105
Eve Speaks Grace Schulman 106
Ekphrasis
Vanitas Mary Jo Salter 109
Laundry Kwame Dawes 110
Terra Nova: Juno Gemes Forrest Gander 111
Photograph of Two Young Couples with One Person Missing Michael Collier 112
Ascension Grace Schulman 114
Titian's Marsyas Lloyd Schwartz 115
The Flaying of Manyas David Yezzi 116
Notes on a Diebenkorn Tess Taylor 117
Shirt Noise Christina Pugh 118
Allowing That Karl Kirchwey 119
Hie Adelfia Clarissima Femina Judith Baumel 120
Aubades & Nocturnes
Aubade with Wolf Spider Aimee Nezhukmatathil 123
At Dawn David Baker 124
Aubade Elizabeth Scanlon 125
Canebreak Love and Water Maurice Manning 126
Music for Attack Helicopter Andrew Zawacki 127
Nocturne for the Bereft Mai Der Vang 128
The School of Night Edward Hirsch 130
Expectation Nocturne Lisa Russ Spaar 132
With Weather Stanley Plumly 133
Rock Star Calvin Forbes 134
Eclogues
Eclogue Dan Beachy-Quick 137
Forage Sophie Cabot Black 139
3 Skies Joanna Klink 142
River Channeling in the Ear Carey Salerno 143
Eclogue in Orange & White Elena Karina Byrne 144
Lines at Tongdosa Temple Christopher Merrill 146
Earthly Love Nathaniel Perry 148
Yellow Time Maurice Manning 149
Aphorisms
Intelligent Design Jeff Martin 153
Aphorisms Jake Young 154
The Handbook of Risk Sophie Cabot Black 155
Island Music David Baker 158
After the End Emma Bolden 159
Last Poem Chris Green 160
Drinking Together Chris Green 161
Pax Americana Karl Kirchwey 162
Prose Poems
One could say the train is resting Mary Jo Bang 165
The Salvation of America Michael Collier 166
Like a Polaroid / Faded Erika T. Wurth 167
My body does not belong to me Gary Young 168
Jefferson, Midnight Sandra Beasley 169
Smoke When You Can't See What's on Fire Cynthia Marie Hoffman 170
Stop Me If I've Told You This Kimiko Hahn 171
Pathetic Fallacy Laura Kasischke 172
Mirror Poems
Echolalia one Quraysh Ali Lansana 175
What Happens When We Die Oliver Baez Bendorf 176
An Action Kimberly Grey 177
Thread a Pin Through Every Door, Drop the Line Suzannah Spaar 178
Come, Slumberless Traci Brimhall 182
Bloom January Gill O'Neil 183
The Birch Swamp Helen Spica 184
Seventy Marilyn Nelson 185
Studio with Blackened Windows Alexandra Teague 186
The Last Gardener of Aleppo Valerie Wallace 187
Concrete Poems
Before Our Eyes Eleanor Wilner 190
Hong Kong Crane Phillip Cozzi 191
Obit Victoria Chang 192
Apollinaire's Ex-Girlfriends in the Snow Chris Green 193
Skyscraper Robin Reagler 194
A Brief History of Writing Ellen Rachlin Georgiy Zhikharev 195
A Is for Arbor Ravi Shankar 196
Collage Poems
Checkpoint David Baker 199
Things I Am Beginning to Forget Kimiko Hahn 200
Wolf Cento Simone Muench 201
The Cloistered Life of Nuns Major Jackson 202
Lesson III: The Divisions, Illustrated Elizabeth Bradfield 203
We Listen We Pray Martha Collins 205
Found Poem: The Couple Who Lived at the Mall Elizabeth Spires 207
Hog Kaput Kevin Prufer 209
Statements about the Poems by the Poets 213
Biographical Notes on the Authors 265
Index 275
Acknowledgments 281
