The Desert

Product Description

Poetry. Asian & Asian American Studies. Brandon Shimoda’s THE DESERT, a sequel to his William Carlos Williams Award-winning book EVENING ORACLE, guides us deep into, and then back out of, a rich yet desolate North American landscape. Divided into seven sections–featuring poems, letters, diary entries, and photographs–the desert’s multiplicity emerges through a ranging exploration of its Japanese American incarceration sites, homeless population, flora and fauna, violence, beauty, and how they combine to reflect this poet’s contemporary view of history. Written over three years in the deserts of Arizona, the poet introduces us to the souls of the living and dead, their shadows still residing over the landscape and its mythology.

About the Author

Brandon Shimoda was born in California. He is the author of THE ALPS (Flim Forum, 2008), O BON (Litmus Press, 2011), THE GIRL WITHOUT ARMS (Black Ocean, 2011), PORTUGUESE (Octopus Books, 2014), and EVENING ORACLE (Letter Machine Editions, 2015), which received the William Carlos Williams Award from the Poetry Society of America, and THE DESERT (The Song Cave, 2018). He also co-edited (with Thom Donovan) TO LOOK AT THE SEA IS TO BECOME WHAT ONE IS: AN ETEL ADNAN READER (Nightboat Books, 2014). He lives in the desert.