In We Are Bad and Good, the mystique of Appalachian womanhood is Òpunching your sons in the backyard,Ó splinters at the Drive-In theater, and grannies baking chickens plucked down to corroded skin. With emotional honesty delivered in spades, there is a gut punch of philosophy, of wisdom in every rhetorical questionÑÒWho decides the death sentence / of a minnow?Ó or ÒWhat am I owed?ÓÑa tenacious gaze at the self whose miracle is magnified by epiphany: Òeverybody else pumps / something like trash / into me.Ó In this incredible collection, I am stunned stupid and amazed by a tapestry of a life made hallowed not just by resilience, but by cherishing. By the end, I too am Òready for / better days, cleaner water.Ó Ñ Sara Henning, author of Burn, Terra Incognita, and View from True North
These poems are an honest, ironic telling of coming of age in Appalachia, speaking things that by agreement cannot be spoken, juxtaposing tragedy with transcendent truth and beauty in the unique way that characterizes the best Southern writers. With gifts for fresh image and quiet vernacular, I get the sense that Loudermilk is just getting started. I canÕt wait to read more! Ñ Erin O'Neill Armendarez, Editor, Aji Press, Poetry, Appalachia, Appalachian, , Heather Loudermilk| | 32PAGES