The Space Between Men
Penguin Poets
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The Space Between Men
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Narrated by:
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Mia S. Willis
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By:
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Mia S. Willis
About this listen
A poetic ethnography that creates and documents the vocabulary of the Southern Black queer experience, chosen as a National Poetry Series winner by Morgan Parker
"Willis’ poetic voice is brimming with personality and curiosity, as musical as it is philosophical, and the space between men is a formidable debut.”—Morgan Parker, author of Magical Negro and There Are More Beautiful Things than Beyoncé
These piercing, surprising poems look to familial history, rituals of faith, and the natural world to explore how the intersecting cultures of Blackness and queerness relate to each other. As the collection evolves, the listener is challenged and empowered to seek expansiveness in spaces that have not previously been excavated, reckon with the complexities of interpersonal relationships, and explore memory as a catalyst for self-determination. Mia S. Willis weaves together intergenerational knowledge and personal discovery—not only to define themselves but to articulate a communal identity that transcends language.
©2024 Mia S. Willis (P)2024 Penguin AudioCritic Reviews
“the space between men is some space within everyday and literary language for queer communities of Black bois and femmes. It’s a space Willis helps build with their spilling-over toolkit of poetic forms, including newly canonical African American forms like the kwansaba, the bop, and the eintou. And it’s a space Willis studies with a researcher’s remove and a linguist’s ear for sound and situation.” —Lit Hub
“Here, Willis – a poet, historian and educator – explores culture, Black history and what it’s like to be Black, Southern and queer. When those various experiences come together in poetry here, it invites readers to consider the width and depth of the spaces, and their mere existence.” —Terri Schlichenmeyer, The Philadelphia Tribune
“An energetic and memorable new work that wanders language and its gaps . . . With loving care for language as more than concept, Willis is full of swift and connected moves.” —Poetry Northwest