Poetry. "IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF BONE is the spirit of Armenia streaming through the mnemonic of Semerdjian's family and their abode. This 'evidence' exists by means of its words inscribed on a blank beatific hide. And this hide co-respirates as a biography of exile while lingering in the cells of language. Scenic registrations, interior postings via a vivid singularity. Semerdjian condenses the 'undertow' and the droning of the Armenian Diaspora through a stark imaginal thriving. IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF BONE is a book brimming with marvelous seepage and recollection"—Will Alexander. "Alan Semerdjian's IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF BONE reads like a long poem cycle that pulls the reader into an open field in which Semerdjian weaves his explorations of language and art, Armenian history and family. These dynamic poems mingle the ghosts of the past with the pace of contemporary life. This talented, young poet is well worth your reading"—Peter Balakian. "The poems shuttle between the tender and the fantastic...at the core of the poetry is a kind of politic—though he isn't what I would easily call a political poet. Adrienne Rich wrote, 'the moment a feeling enters the body is political.' Alan is that kind of political poet"—Michael Klein.

In the Architecture of Bone

Literature & Fiction

Semerdjian, Alan

Poetry

GenPop Books

Poetry. LGBT Studies. A 2011 Lambda Literary Award Finalist for Gay Poetry. "In these roughly whispered poems, Klein somehow—miraculously—manages to evoke a past of empty suitcases, of ghosts, while being fully present in the moment, in the now. In this way each phrase, each utterance, is completely weighted—their music enters us deeply, even as they seemingly drift past"—Nick Flynn. "Every once in a great while, someone writes a book that changes the way I read poems. Michael Klein's is one of those books. Its language is so close to the bone, there's nothing to interfere with or soften the intimate transactions between reader and poem. When the subject is death, or love, or the great metaphysical questions asked by the soul—and every poem in the book is on that scale—we see that meaning and language are one and the same"—Chase Twichell. "Everything in this book is terrifying and beautiful and necessary and there isn't one syllable that isn't absolutely required by the times we live in. This is a wholly original and essential book"—Lynn Emanuel.

then, we were still living

Klein, Michael

Poetry. Jewish Studies. Judith Baumel's third book of poetry, THE KANGAROO GIRL, detects religion at the scene of many crimes: from the great disasters of the past to the small calamities of Jewish American life in the ethnic neighborhoods of New York City. THE KANGAROO GIRL is also a personal book, a meditation on being a daughter and a mother, and what it means to survive loss. "Judith Baumel's new poems are inspiring.... Sophisticated and subtle prosodic effects find their match in the poet's intellectual alertness.... An important achievement by a remarkable poet"—Wayne Koestenbaum. "I love Baumel's poems, their restless bravura intelligence, their verbal pyrotechnics leavened with sorrow and the wisdom they've earned in sorrow. THE KANGAROO GIRL is interested in everything historical, from the medieval persecution of the Jews to the toys of technology, to the stories of our bodies. She charts the inexorable changes that choose us, and those we choose"—Gail Mazur.

The Kangaroo Girl

Baumel, Judith

Fiction. In simple, rhythmic, nail-sharp prose, the cast of unnamed characters in THE STATE OF KANSAS survive a flood, brush their teeth, drink, attend a sinister dinner party, try to love others, think a lot about death (animal and human), and weigh the confusion of trying to and a place—decent or otherwise—in a big, beautiful, and often unforgiving America. "THE STATE OF KANSAS is such an amazing book that I was already recommending it to people before I finished reading it. Spallholz utterly nails the way we find and create menace in apparently innocuous or homey things like bricks or piles of dishes or who really owns the cat. Her pithy pointed tales show that we're all, despite our efforts to play nice, domestic terrorists. This book is awesome."—Rebecca Brown "I'm guessing that Lydia Davis and Diane Williams fans will be the most excited, but only because no one is waiting on new Hemingway or Carver, and Spallholz is something like the love child of all four. Don't ask me how that works, or how Spallholz does what she does, but the end result is an astonishing debut."—Christian Peet

The State of Kansas

Spallholz, Julianna

Contemporary

Poetry. During the European witch trials, over one hundred thousand people were prosecuted for maleficia. The vast majority were women. Many were unmarried. Many owned property. Some were midwives who counseled village women about their health, their pregnancies, and their marriages. Others were simply nonconformists. MALEFICAE tells the story of one so-called witch: a woman who, like many others, was once seen as her village's savior, but became the focus of the villagers' fear and rage when disaster struck. This book-length series of poems seeks to re-create the terror and inhumanity of the trials. Incorporating language from trial records to papal bulls to incendiary theological documents, these poems explore the intersection of forces that led to the persecution of people who were deemed different and therefore dangerous—forces alarmingly similar to those still operating today. At the center of all of this is the woman who was called a witch: her story, her wail from the center of the flames. In allowing her new testimony, in allowing the dead to speak, MALEFICAE gives voice to the voiceless victims of the trials. "In this incantatory series of lyric poems Emma Bolden finds a new way to write about an old (though still current) subject. This book speaks in many tongues, many vivid, and living tongues."—Thomas Lux "Emma Bolden's MALEFICAE is an ambitious and powerful accomplishment. Informed by historical records of European witchcraft trials, it is wholly contemporary in its layered complexity and poetic craft. Incantatory rhythms, shifting perspectives and voices, and vividly rendered dream/nightmare imagery make these poems hypnotic and haunting. The contrast between historical content and contemporary form—between fact and imagination—intensifies the dramatic impact and reminds us that the past is, in one form or another, always present."—Eric Nelson "Lust, freedom, repression, sin, shame. The fearful, oppressive denial of female empowerment and agency. MALEFICAE has all the conceptual intelligence of a Feminist study, but it makes its argument via artful imagined experience. This is a poetry 'possessed' of a musical and rhetorical mastery that cast their own incantatory spell, compelling us to feel the thin membrane between modernity and our past, between pragmatism and inner mystery. It made me think of those Anne Sexton poems that utilize and transcend her confessionalism, speaking not just for herself, but for all women."—Mark Cox

Maleficae

Bolden, Emma

During the European witch trials, over one hundred thousand people were prosecuted for maleficia. The vast majority were women. Many were unmarried. Many owned property. Some were midwives who counseled village women about their health, their pregnancies, and their marriages. Others were simply nonconformists. Maleficae tells the story of one so-called witch: a woman who, like many others, was once seen as her village's savior, but became the focus of the villagers' fear and rage when disaster struck. This book-length series of poems seeks to re-create the terror and inhumanity of the trials. Incorporating language from trial records to papal bulls to incendiary theological documents, these poems explore the intersection of forces that led to the persecution of people who were deemed different and therefore dangerous—forces alarmingly similar to those still operating today. At the center of all of this is the woman who was called a witch: her story, her wail from the center of the flames. In allowing her new testimony, in allowing the dead to speak, Maleficae gives voice to the voiceless victims of the trials. "In this incantatory series of lyric poems Emma Bolden finds a new way to write about an old (though still current) subject. This book speaks in many tongues, many vivid, and living tongues." -- Thomas Lux "An ambitious and powerful accomplishment. Informed by historical records of European witchcraft trials, it is wholly contemporary in its layered complexity and poetic craft. Incantatory rhythms, shifting perspectives and voices, and vividly rendered dream/nightmare imagery make these poems hypnotic and haunting." -- Eric Nelson "Lust, freedom, repression, sin, shame. The fearful, oppressive denial of female empowerment and agency. Maleficae has all the conceptual intelligence of a Feminist study, but it makes its argument via artful imagined experience. This is a poetry 'possessed' of a musical and rhetorical mastery that cast their own incantatory spell, compelling us to feel the thin membrane between modernity and our past, between pragmatism and inner mystery." -- Mark Cox

In simple, rhythmic, nail-sharp prose, the cast of unnamed characters in The State of Kansas survive a flood, brush their teeth, drink, attend a sinister dinner party, try to love others, think a lot about death (animal and human), and weigh the confusion of trying to find a place -- decent or otherwise -- in a big, beautiful, and often unforgiving America. "The State of Kansas is such an amazing book that I was already recommending it to people before I finished reading it. Spallholz utterly nails the way we find and create menace in apparently innocuous or homey things like bricks or piles of dishes or who really owns the cat. Her pithy pointed tales show that we're all, despite our efforts to play nice, domestic terrorists. This book is awesome." -- Rebecca Brown "I'm guessing that Lydia Davis and Diane Williams fans will be the most excited, but only because no one is waiting on new Hemingway or Carver, and Spallholz is something like the love child of all four. Don't ask me how that works, or how Spallholz does what she does, but the end result is an astonishing debut." -- Christian Peet

Short Stories & Anthologies

Fiction. Women's Studies. LGBTQIA Studies. If luck is on an author's side, a book reaches its audience at the right time. Elena Georgiou's THE IMMIGRANT'S REFRIGERATOR can confidently make this claim. Populated with a cast of characters that shine the light on what it means to be an outsider in the early part of the 21st century, this story collection takes its reader into the private lives of those who have entered a country legally, others who were forced to enter illegally, and the rest who call a country home as a result of birth; characters searching for what they need to sustain them on their journeys towards a future that will not only be a place of refuge, but also one of hope. "Quiet, yet powerful stories...Shows characters' shared humanity and the compassion and kindness that can help overcome differences. Georgiou's timely collection will appeal to any reader interested in immigration issues."--Booklist "Exquisite...At a moment when America's political response to The Other is triggering a national crisis of conscience, these poignant stories remind us of the vital role that human compassion plays in bridging ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic divides. Sustenance acquires profound meaning in these tales of endurance, hope, and the abiding power of quiet generosity."--Aimee Liu "Devastating...and still, it is a celebration of life in all of its scars and joys, chance and invention, awe and longing to be seen, and, over and over, a testament to the tender, transformative power of acceptance and love."--Rahna Reiko Rizzuto "Dazzlingly good...I loved this collection."--John McManus

The Immigrant's Refrigerator

Georgiou, Elena

Featuring essays by Kyle Bass, Deborah Brevoort, Rebecca Brown, Jan Clausen, Darrah Cloud, Kenny Fries, Beatrix Gates, Elena Georgiou, Bhanu Kapil, Susan Kim, Michael Klein, Aimee Liu, Micheline Aharonian Marcom, Douglas A. Martin, Rogelio Martinez, John McManus, Victoria Nelson, Keenan Norris, Richard Panek, Rahna Reiko Rizzuto, and Paul Selig. "Whether you're a young beginner or a veteran writer like me, you'll get support from reading Alchemy of the Word. These authors' thoughts are mystical and practical, political and inspiring and funny. I've found companions on this lonely journey." --Maxine Hong Kingston, National Book Award Winner and author of China Men, The Woman Warrior, and Tripmaster Monkey "Alchemy of the Word is a smart, exhilarating collection--a true literary conversation, filled with wit, heart, and insight. Every writer with the ambition to create meaningful work will treasure this book." --Kim Addonizio, author of What Is This Thing Called Love, Lucifer at the Starlight, and Tell Me, a finalist for the National Book Award "Alchemy of the Word is a profoundly moving and incredibly incisive collection of essays. The authors, all of them outstanding educators, write with passion, beauty and humor, their work is the best possible example of the old writing school adage 'show don't tell.' It is one of the best books I have read about the trade." --Cara Hoffman, author of So Much Pretty "Any time writers take what little time they have away from their creative process to share the insight and wisdom gleaned from years of practicing their craft, we should all take notice. These are the kinds of lessons you don't learn in school, but instead, from life. Artists mentoring artists is a very good thing." --Gary Garrison, Executive Director, Creative Affairs of the Dramatist's Guild, author of The New, Improved Playwrights Survival Guide

Alchemy of the Word: Writers Talk About Writing: 2nd Edition

Liu, Aimée

Essays & Correspondence

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the GenPop Books publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by GenPop Books

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the GenPop Books publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

In the Architecture of Bone

then, we were still living

The Kangaroo Girl

The State of Kansas

Maleficae

Maleficae

The State of Kansas

The Immigrant's Refrigerator

Alchemy of the Word: Writers Talk About Writing: 2nd Edition