Trailer Park Psalms: Poems

Trailer Park Psalms explores the journey of the speaker beyond his boyhood trailer park, through an American landscape marked by violence, searching for sources of awe that might inspire us in a compromised world.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 72 pages
Publication date: 12 September 2023
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press

Trailer Park Psalms is a poetic exploration of the speaker's journey beyond his boyhood trailer park, traversing a landscape marked by violence in America. From the devastating gas line explosion in his hometown to his father's war memories and the enduring scars of colonialism etched in place, language, and ecology, the speaker seeks sources of awe that can inspire us, even in a compromised world.

Along the way, he discovers the everyday miracle of eyesight, the courage of the Voyager spacecraft, and the "clumsy kindness" of family members striving to mend the wounds of the past. In the end, what he finds is not faith but the hope that "if there is a heaven, we will bend / to examine our old selves / and wonder how something so delicate / was ever allowed."

This poetic journey offers a profound reflection on the human experience, reminding us of the resilience and wonder that can be found even in the darkest of times. It encourages us to look beyond our own lives and recognize the interconnectedness of all things, seeking awe and inspiration in the world around us.

Weight: 128g
Dimension: 152 x 203 x 8 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780822967125