"Between My Body and the Air" is a collection of poems by young voices from the Bay Area and beyond pushing us to think deeply about our COVID-clad world and the structural violence impacting our communities even before the pandemic hit.
Between My Body and the Air
We chose the title, "Between My Body and the Air" because it reflected a question that each of these young authors addresses in their own way: what does it mean to navigate the world in this body, where even the air has finally turned against me? We believe in the power and necessity of youth voice. That is why, in addition to reading the text of each piece, this anthology allows you to access a recording of each poem so you can hear the authors speak it from their own mouths. Some of these poems are songs! Some of these poems were recorded from a phone propped up on a counter with their bedrooms unfurling around them. And some are mural decorated, their voices mixing with the bustle of their cities, as captured by family or friend's loving hand. However you choose to crack this anthology open, promise to listen close because the next generation speaks for itself.
Praise for Between My Body and the Air
“Between My Body and the Air is the kind of anthology you get when a generation of young writers choose honesty, resilience and hope as the foundation on which they assemble their futures. This body of work evokes the true spirit of this moment, sitting in the intersection of a global pandemic, a worldwide uprising in response to a continued tradition of police murders of Black people, and the amplified uncertainty that almost always comes with adolescence. These writers use form, tension, language and voice beautifully, extinguishing the boundaries of what a poem can be and do for both the writer and their audience. This collection is truly a gift from one of the most drastically impacted populations of today’s sociopolitical climate and will be invaluable to the archiving this unprecedented time.”
