Victoria Chang’s Poetic Memoir: Obit

Description

Copper Canyon Press (paperback, 04/07/2020)

*New & Noteworthy: How does a chair die? Why does a voicemail die? Or a father’s gait? When do civility and memory meet their ends? Predominantly rendered in the long, justified strips immediately recognizable to those familiar with a newspaper’s obituaries page, Victoria Chang’s lyrical study of grief, Obit, makes way for a sustained yet startling and exquisite personal history: one written in the wake of her mother’s death, interspersed with tankas featuring moments of teaching her children. Near the beginning of Obit, perhaps in lieu of a foreword, Chang writes: “It is strange to help someone / grow while helping someone die.” So though this moving and brilliant book deals resoundingly with death, Chang successfully injects humor, joy, and hope when and where they’re needed the most.

Explore more from our collection.