Hydra Medusa

Hydra Medusa is a book of poetry that explores the psychic detritus of living in the US-Mexico borderlands, combining coping mechanisms, magical acts, and encounters with the ghosts of Japanese American ancestors, friends, children, and bodies of water. It asks what the desert is and how people contend with our inherited present and live within it.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 144 pages
Publication date: 10 August 2023
Publisher: Nightboat Books

A captivating collection of poetry, dreams, and speculative talks, curated from the psychic detritus of living in the vibrant US-Mexico borderlands, emerges in the form of "Hydra Medusa." This remarkable work serves as a multifaceted coping mechanism, intertwining elements of magic and introspection. Composed amidst the demanding responsibilities of working five jobs and raising a child, Brandon Shimoda crafted "Hydra Medusa" during his bus commutes, before bed, and even at sunrise. Through its pages, he encountered the haunting ghosts of Japanese American ancestors, dear friends, cherished children, and the serene bodies of water that surrounded him. Inquisitively, the book ponders: what truly constitutes the desert? Is it merely a desolate expanse where people have met their demise, are currently perishing, or are interred, unburied, memorialized, or erased? Rather, it emerges as a profound site of human struggle, where individuals confront their inherited present and strive to navigate its tumultuous energy. "Hydra Medusa" invites us to explore the complexities of existence, challenging us to confront the past, embrace the present, and forge a path toward a future that is both fraught with uncertainty and brimming with possibility.

Weight: 238g
Dimension: 139 x 216 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781643621715