Deepstep Come Shining

C.D. Wright

Rebellious and fiercely lyrical, the poems of C.D. Wright incorporates elements of disjunction and odd juxtaposition in their exploration of unfolding context. “In my book,” she writes, “poetry is a necessity of life. It is a function of poetry to locate those zones inside us that would be free, and declare them so.”

ISBN: 9781556590924

Format: Paperback

Don’t touch that dial…

Don’t touch that dial. Here’s the rest of the story: These three ladies they had been into all manner of wrongdoing. They were wearing the evil one’s varsity jacket. They were hot for god and they were on fire. That night they were thrown to the ground under the power. That night the glory cloud filled the church. The prayer line stayed open that night. A real hard light, sharp, cold as a nail, split right through the boards. Angels went to banging around in the rafters like barn swallows. We’ll pick up at the next chapter, dearly beloveds…

About the Author

C.D. Wright (1949–2016), one of her generation’s most popular, formally restless, and influential poets, was recognized with scores of major awards including fellowships from the MacArthur, the Lila Wallace, the Lannan, and the Guggenheim foundations. She received a fellowship from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts which, after her death, honored her by launching a new award in her name. Wright was raised in the Ozarks and came to live with Forrest Gander in San Francisco, Eureka Springs, Dolores Hidalgo, Mexico, …

Read more

Reviews

Deepstep Come Shining is an incredible narrative… A brilliant, beautiful book.” —Judges’ citation, Paterson Poetry Prize

“This unusual verse novel [is] an unholy marriage of Kerouac’s bop prosody and Flannery O’Connor’s Southern gothic sensibility.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Expertly elliptical phrasings, and an uncounterfeitable, generous feel for real people, bodies and places, have lately made Wright one of America’s oddest, best and most appealing poets.” —Publishers Weekly