Boats in the Attic

Boats in the Attic is a collection of poetry that explores what it means to be an individual and a parent in times of crisis, combining lyric flight and prose fragments with metacommentary, nuance, and a sense of humor. It explores the beauty and terror of existential indeterminacy, turning to astronomy, Alice in Wonderland, Millerism, and culinary cruelty to understand the depths and effects of the human appetite for pleasure, power, and escape.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 102 pages
Publication date: 01 September 2022
Publisher: Fordham University Press

"Boats in the Attic" is a profound and poignant exploration of the essence of individuality and, more specifically, the challenges of being a parent to young children in our contemporary era of crisis. Amidst the backdrop of rising sea levels and the presence of wild wolves in the vicinity of Chernobyl, the speaker navigates a myriad of responsibilities, including running errands, listening to the radio, and fulfilling the child's request for a birthday balloon. While these tasks unfold, the speaker also grapples with the looming threat of a cryptography that seems to have been developed to a century beyond our reach.

Through this dynamic collection, Powell seamlessly blends lyric flight and prose fragments with metacommentary, subtlety, and a captivating sense of humor. At the same time, these pieces remain firmly anchored in the realities of being a human in today's world, where children participate in lockdown drills at preschool and individuals resort to platforms like Reddit to fund their quest for cryogenetic preservation. Conversations between the speaker and her children delve into the profound beauty and terrifying uncertainty of existential indeterminacy, raising questions such as, "Will other planets welcome us?"

In a lengthy piece titled "Book of Revelation," the speaker experiences a dream in which "below the bed / is an encyclopedia of lost things," a phrase that aptly captures the vast scope and categorizing nature of the collection. Powell employs a unique and celebratory tone, drawing from astronomy, Alice in Wonderland, Millerism, and culinary cruelty, to delve into the depths and consequences of the human appetite for pleasure, power, and escape. Through this interdisciplinary approach, Powell offers a profound understanding of the human condition and the intricate interplay between our desires, our limitations, and the world around us.

Dimension: 216 x 140 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781531500856