Poetry. Gay and Lesbian Studies. A gay son's troubled homage to his father, ONE HAND ON THE WHEEL is also the first book in the new California Poetry Series by Roundhouse Press a new imprint of Hayday Books. In a series of linked poems, a gay son at his father's deathbed (no accident/ it's me, Dad, your mortal enemy and friend . . . ) uncovers his family's past and his own passage from childhood to raising a son. Singular, fresh . . . [Dan Bellm] is an American artist of enormous gifts and discipline - June Jordan. Dan Bellm's courageous and human poems are a strong inauguration for the California Poetry Series. A very fine book - Adrienne Rich.

One Hand on the Wheel

Literature & Fiction

Bellm, Dan

Poetry

Roundhouse Press

Poetry. Whether describing the Devil reciting poetry in Hell, the faith of uprooted mice, or a last encounter with a doomed friend, Steve Kowit's poetry has chosen, in the manner of certain Sufi tales, a disarmingly earthy presence. Rhapsodic and hilarious by turns, this poetry is as engaging and accessible as vivid prose. Steve Kowit is the author of several collections of poetry and IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND: THE POET'S PORTABLE WORKSHOP; he has also translated Pablo Neruda's INCITEMENT TO NIXONCIDE AND PRAISE FOR THE CHILEAN REVOLUTION and edited THE MAVERICK POETS anthology. The recipient of an NEA and other awards, he has published work in numerous anthologies and journals including The Los Angeles Times and The New Yorker. He teaches at Southwestern College in Chula Vista.

The Dumbbell Nebula (California Poetry Series, 3)

Kowit, Steve

Poetry. A rich and varied body of work form an accomplished poet, through which runs the dark thread of incest, a leavening humor, and the deep solace of the natural world. Delineated with sharp visual detail and emotional complexity, this book breaks new ground. It is sure to be noticed, talked about, and remembered. Jane Hirschfield says of LISTENING TO WINTER, Molly Fisk brings to her readers a poetry of great emotional power, linguistic invention, and courage. She looks long and hard at the world, and speaks to what she sees with both clarity and depth.

Listening to Winter (The California Poetry Series, Vol. 4)

Fisk, Molly

Poetry. Asian American Studies. A fascinating, eclectic mix of tongue-in-check laughter and heartbreak,Wishbone is a reflection on life, at first seen through the eyes of achild forced to grow up before her time, and later, by a woman facingher past. These courageous poems chronicle the life of an Asian American woman at the crossroad of two cultures, transforming her conflictingexperiences into self-acceptance, strength, and a wild, free, happiness.

Wishbone (California Poetry Series)

Lee, Priscilla

United States

Poetry. African American Studies. Forrest Hamer's first book, CALL &amp; RESPONSE (Alice James, 1995; also available) won the Beatrice Hawley Award. Now, his newest book is the seventh selection in the new California Poetry Series. These poems speak from Hamer's memories of his Southern childhood, weaving that time into the daily dreams and insights of his life in northern California in a continuing series of vignettes. 'A man writes his dark body,' one poem tells us, and in fact this book inscribes exactly that: a full, breathing voice, muscular intelligence working in language that both startles and satisfies --Mark Doty.

Middle Ear (California Poetry Series, 7)

Hamer, Forrest