I hope this finds you well : poems

I hope this finds you well Poems

Kate Baer

Book - 2021

"I'm sure you could benefit from jumping on a treadmill" "Women WANT a male leader . . . It's honest to god the basic human playbook" These are some of the thousands of messages that Kate Baer has received online. Like countless other writers--particularly women--with profiles on the internet, as Kate's online presence grew, so did the darker messages crowding her inbox. These missives from strangers have ranged from "advice" and opinions to outright harassment. At first, these messages resulted in an immediate delete and block. Until, on a whim, Kate decided to transform the cruelty into art, using it to create fresh and intriguing poems. These pieces, along with ones made from notes of gratitud...e and love, as well as from the words of public figures, have become some of her most beloved work. I Hope This Finds You Well is drawn from those works: a book of poetry birthed in the darkness of the internet that offers light and hope. By cleverly building on the harsh negativity and hate women often receive--and combining it with heartwarming messages of support, gratitude, and connection, Kate Baer offers us a lesson in empowerment, showing how we too can turn bitterness into beauty.

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2nd Floor 811.6/Baer Due Oct 12, 2023
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Subjects
Online hate speech > Poetry.
Internet and women > Poetry.
Internet > Social aspects > Poetry.
Poetry.
Genres
Poetry
Published
New York : Harper Perennial [2021]
Language
English
Main Author
Kate Baer (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
xii, 81 pages ; 19 cm
ISBN
9780063137998
Contents unavailable.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Baer (What Kind of Woman Are You) offers an earnest and original sophomore collection of erasure poems. Baer collected the countless responses to her blogs and social media posts, which ranged from obscene attacks to ardent appreciation. Treating pieces authored by those she calls "Strangers on the Internet" as raw material, the poet used a "black out" technique to remove words and discover hidden poems therein. A misogynist rant (e.g., "women WANT a male leader") is reduced to "read a book." A letter from a fan ("thank you for your emotional labor and for your words") gives rise to "women have a life to live. I want that for you." The transcript of Trump's notorious pussy-grabbing comment becomes "women--don't wait. You can do anything. You can do anything." Some readers will delight in wordplay that twists an opinion into its opposite or enhances a fully formed idea. Others may grow restless, longing for more invention. (Nov.)

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