Poetry

London: Hanover Gallery, 1971. Accordion-bound paperback artist's book; gouache drawings by William Scott reproduced as part of the 1970-1970 series A Girl Surveyed exhibited at the Hanover Gallery, March-April 1971; fifty copies were numbered and signed - this copy is not numbered or signed. Light smudges on covers; spine creased; interior clean and bright. G

In his much-anticipated follow-up to The Crown Ain't Worth Much, poet, essayist, biographer, and music critic Hanif Abdurraqib has written a book of poems about how one rebuilds oneself after a heartbreak, the kind that renders them a different version of themselves than the one they knew. It's a book about a mother's death, and admitting that Michael Jordan pushed off, about forgiveness, and how none of the author's black friends wanted to listen to "Don't Stop Believin'." It's about wrestling with histories, personal and shared. Abdurraqib uses touchstones from the world outside--from Marvin Gaye to Nikola Tesla to his neighbor's dogs--to create a mirror, inside of which every angle presents a new possibility.

About: Things of Love, Life, Singleness and Other Stuff is a collection of over 70 poems that helped me navigate through challenges in my life; like the loss of love, finding my purpose, dealing with depression, dating and singleness. It also embraces the joys of love, family, contentment, wholeness and life lessons. It uses humor, sarcasm, hope and introspection to carve out deep emotions that can only be interpreted through poetry. About will take you on a journey to some places that are not always pleasant, but will identify areas of joy, healing, promise and praise. Maybe you will see yourself or someone else in these writings. I hope that it will help you unlock some of the complicated experiences in your own life. The key is to not be afraid to do the work.

About: Things of Love, Life, Singleness and Other Stuff is a collection of over 70 poems that helped me navigate through challenges in my life; like the loss of love, finding my purpose, dealing with depression, dating and singleness. It also embraces the joys of love, family, contentment, wholeness and life lessons. It uses humor, sarcasm, hope and introspection to carve out deep emotions that can only be interpreted through poetry. About will take you on a journey to some places that are not always pleasant, but will identify areas of joy, healing, promise and praise. Maybe you will see yourself or someone else in these writings. I hope that it will help you unlock some of the complicated experiences in your own life. The key is to not be afraid to do the work.

Theresa A. Burrage was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts from Wilberforce University and studied creative writing, art and self-publishing at Lancaster University in Lancaster, England. Her poetry has been published in several anthologies, including Poetic Voices of America and Free to Fly. She was on one of Cleveland’s National Poetry Slam teams, which placed 3rd out of 33 teams. She wrote copy for retail accounts at Liggett-Stashower Advertising and has a gospel rap CD for children titled Lyrics for the Soul.