You Don't Have What It Takes to Be My Nemesis: And Other (Soma)tics

Ocean Vuong's Radical, Tracy K. Smith's Psychotropic, Ralf Webb's Deeply informed by love, Eileen Myles' Queer, and Joelle Taylor's Captivating are all examples of somatic poetry that calls for an embodied, unfettered creative practice. These poems are rooted in the Sanskrit soma and the Greek-derived somatic, and reach out from electrifying, esoteric rituals. They meditate on ecology, queerness, and grief, and invite us to engage with the essence of things. This new selection is a testimony to poetry's capacity to reconnect us with the present moment and put an end to the alienation we feel.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 25 May 2023
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

A colossal ball of fire explodes into the depths of our world, a radical invitation from Ocean Vuong to become an agent in a collective act of recovery. Tracy K. Smith's psychotropic, visionary songs of love and defiance transport the reader into a realm of profound introspection. Ralf Webb's deeply informed poetry, infused with love and a tender understanding of the complexities and turmoil of existence, resonates with a profound empathy. Eileen Myles' queer and gorgeous work captivates with its stunning beauty. Joelle Taylor's captivating call for creative freedom from one of the most singular poets of our time sparks a revolutionary spirit within.

Since their inception in 2005, Conrad's (soma)tic poems have served as an urgent plea for an embodied, unfettered creative practice. Rooted in the Sanskrit soma, meaning "to press and be newly born," and the Greek-derived somatic, relating to the body, Conrad's (soma)tic poetry extends its reach from electrifying, esoteric rituals. Their methods are intricate, and the outcomes are unexpected: one might begin by witnessing the poet inundate their body with the field calls of extinct animals, only to find themselves contemplating survivor's guilt and the devastating destruction of ecosystems, but also experiencing an exhilarating sense of the presence, close at hand, of the many friends and lovers they lost to AIDS.

Conrad harnesses these rituals to enter a political, physical, and spiritual state of consciousness, meditating on ecology, queerness, and grief in powerful, dreamlike poetry that beckons us to engage with the essence of things. This new selection serves as a testament to poetry's remarkable ability to reconnect us with the present moment and alleviate the alienation we feel: from our bodies, our surroundings, and our planet.

Weight: 235g
Dimension: 197 x 154 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781802062458