{"title":"Blue Oak Press","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"blood-transparencies-1","title":"Blood Transparencies","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eBlood Transparencies: An Autobiography in Verse\u003c\/i\u003e is a brutally honest narrative of coming-of-age in a unique American family. Told in a series of poetic vignettes it details life with a father who believes John Muir's words more essential than the Bible often leading his \"tribe\" on harsh quests into America's wildernesses. The tale is both humorous and heart breaking. Imagine Odysseus returned from WWII to teach his son the subtle art of bone breaking before sharing hot cocoa and opera. This is a family as at ease with nurturing abandoned wild animals as around a campfire rapt to ancestral stories of cannibalism. Throughout the book there is an occasional photographic relic or Neolithic scrawl to memorialize the breadth of this human story. There are echoes here too like the \"transparencies\" of the title of mythology and tall tales an oral tradition transcendent of the printed page. \u003ci\u003eBlood Transparencies \u003c\/i\u003eis a stunningly fresh glance back far back from whence we've all come.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRandy White\u003c\/b\u003e a California writer and educator has won several writing awards including the Bazzanella Literary Award for poetry. His work has appeared \u003ci\u003ein Sulfur From These Hills: Stories and Poems of The American West News From Native California \u003c\/i\u003eand other magazines and anthologies. His book-length poem \u003ci\u003eMotherlode \/ La Veta Madre\u003c\/i\u003e written while still a teenager was influenced by ethnopoetic theory and described by historian Cornel Lengyel as \"a multi-dimensional documentary \u0026amp;hellip one of the finest celebrations of California since 1776.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHis simple lyrical style most notably in \u003ci\u003eBlood Transparencies: An Autobiography in Verse\u003c\/i\u003e masks strata of neo-tribalist philosophy mythology and ancestral storytelling. The writing is innovative and genre bending drawing comparisons with Derek Walcott and Anne Carson. \"White is a story teller his poems enact a timeless ceremony of creation as they wrest images from a past and reassemble them in a master poet's imagination\" notes the introduction.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eBlood Transparencies\u003c\/i\u003e by Randy White is an eloquent and poignant look at a life drawing forth emotion and resonant memory from the reader. There were times I had to stop reading I was so overcome. 'Counted in Sheep Years ' for example was a lovely commentary on the nature of our relationship with one of our earliest domesticates encapsulating millennia before detailing one family's effort in raising sheep. Highly recommended. White is a masterful artist painting both beauty and loss with words. These poems will draw out your own memories bringing tears of joy tears of pain tears of remembrance for a history now past.\" -\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e San Francisco Book Review \u003c\/em\u003eSeptember 6 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"This collection of poems explores themes of childhood family and growing up often making ancient connections with the natural world.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhite (\u003ci\u003eMotherlode\/La Veta Madre\u003c\/i\u003e 1977) whose work has appeared in several literary magazines uses the metaphor of a slideshow in the title poem to link the author's personal history with the outdoor landscape. In it family snapshots ethereally illuminated and projected on a bedsheet screen are as eternal as fossils the father's narration gives substance to the passing moments captured in the photos. The author links this powerful image to the flickering light that illuminates cave art and to Oklahoma red-dirt furrows 'full of sunset.' Yet darkness waits in 'the pause between slides'-a darkness that is like a lightbulb-battering moth 'drawn to the brief incandescence \/ of our lives.' One could also see the slideshow as a metaphor for poetry which similarly captures moments through illumination and language-often with darkness in the pauses. This poetic autobiography relates a childhood in the Pacific Northwest where wild nature granted blessings but could be harsh-like the game-warden father in 'Wrestling Odysseus' who teaches his son how to wrestle: 'My mother leaves the room my sisters begin to cry.... \/\/ There is no honor no prize of arms to win in this \/ no lesson here but fury.' Yet he's also the man who brings his son 'a cup of \"Don't-tell-your-mother coffee.\"' Other poems explore children's egotism the importance of imagination stories and family and how innocence becomes experience. Some especially strong poems describe three seasons of service on a fire crew a coming-of-age process in which the speaker learns the job develops camaraderie dreams of women and begins to know his profession. White's fresh images resonate such as this description of aspen trees carved by generations of Basque shepherds: 'The body at burial should be like this scarred wound in song \/ our pitiful histories scratched on paper thin as light.' Family photographs tie in with the title poem's themes giving the book another layer of meaning.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWell-crafted verses with strong images and good storytelling.\"- \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e (starred review)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Choosing verse to write his autobiography \u003ci\u003eBlood Transparencies\u003c\/i\u003e as opposed to prose was both interesting and risky. When writing an autobiography in verse it can be difficult to grasp the concepts and life of this person. This was the case for me. I enjoyed reading individual poems by White such as 'Wearing the Bear', 'Dante's Children' and 'I Dream of Jeanie'. They formed a visual picture from the author's past to the mind's eye. This book is one that really needs to be read in one sitting so that readers can appreciate the story of his life. I found the times I was able to read for longer periods I enjoyed the book more. Despite having difficulty following this book as a true autobiography it is obvious that White is a gifted writer. Overall an intriguing way of writing an autobiography.\"\u003cstrong\u003e- Amy Synoracki Manhattan Book Review Sept. 8 2016\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Blue Oak Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41321569878166,"sku":"9780997504002","price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0477\/8731\/1254\/products\/img_proxy_b9d9da14-e4a9-4583-b495-c96be2d3bbfe.jpg?v=1642157020"},{"product_id":"karst-mountains-will-bloom-the-collected-poems-of-pos-moua-1","title":"Karst Mountains Will Bloom: The Collected Poems of Pos Moua","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWith a Foreword by Gary Snyder, a personal essay by the poet, and contributions from the Hmong American Writers’ Circle, this open-hearted book is the gorgeous collection of a visionary Hmong poet whose radiant language and natural eloquence has offered us the dark and light of his soul. Moua’s poems sing that we will never satiate the sorrows of our dead and displaced, where grief, for the Hmong, knows no season. Here, we find ourselves nursed into strange health, contending always with decisions that may “dismember or consume” our people. It is a revelation that every person should read. \u003cem\u003eKarst Mountains Will Bloom\u003c\/em\u003e is a landmark achievement: ascendant, transcendent, visionary. This poet is a treasure and a light. What an important collection for Asian American literature.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePos Moua\u003c\/strong\u003e lives in Merced, California, with his wife and five children.  He is a language arts teacher who has taught Hmong and English at Merced High School and Merced College for about twenty years. \u003cem\u003eKarst Mountains Will Bloom \u003c\/em\u003e(Blue Oak Press, 2019) is his first book giving an account of love and family and identity in the poet’s new land.  His poems have appeared in the anthologies \u003cem\u003eTilting the Continent: Southeast Asian American Writing\u003c\/em\u003e (New Rivers Press, 2000) and \u003cem\u003eHow Do I Begin?: A Hmong American Literary Anthology\u003c\/em\u003e (Heyday Books, 2011).\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Blue Oak Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41321642950806,"sku":"9780997504026","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0477\/8731\/1254\/products\/img_proxy_ceadb5fd-5d44-48bf-a751-d69d523c7c88.jpg?v=1642160586"},{"product_id":"they-rise-like-a-wave-an-anthology-of-asian-american-women-poets","title":"They Rise Like a Wave: An Anthology of Asian American Women Poets","description":"\u003cp\u003eAt a time when institutional policies have sought to silence, marginalize, deport, or otherwise erase the existences of women of color, our poets have never been less silent. This anthology aims to spotlight the voices of Asian American women and non-binary poets writing through these difficult times. Our contributors range from established poets who are widely published, such as Marilyn Chin, Franny Choi, Victoria Chang, Devi S. Laskar and Bhanu Kapil, to emerging voices such as Paul Tran, Ryka Aoki, Hyejung Kook, and Monica Sok. In \u003cem\u003eThey Rise Like A Wave\u003c\/em\u003e, we've chosen to foster a poetics of breaking boundaries, experimenting with language, and revitalizing a historically narrow and oppressive Western canon. In our selections, we endeavor to show that there is no single style, topic, or theme that defines an Asian American poetics At this time of reckoning and renewal, let us remember that our poetry can be both a reflection of lived experience as well as a call to imagine how to build a better world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eChristine Kitano\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of the poetry collections \u003cem\u003eSky Country\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eBirds of Paradise\u003c\/em\u003e, and co-author of the oral history collection \u003cem\u003eWho You: The Issei\u003c\/em\u003e. She is an associate professor at Ithaca College where she teaches courses in poetry and Asian American literature. She also teaches in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlycia Pirmohamed\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of \u003cem\u003eAnother Way to Split Water\u003c\/em\u003e, as well as two chapbooks, \u003cem\u003eHinge\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eFaces that Fled the Wind\u003c\/em\u003e, and the collaborative inter-genre work, \u003cem\u003eSecond Memory.\u003c\/em\u003e She is a teaching associate at the University of Cambridge, where she teaches on the creative writing MSt, and she has held postdoctoral positions with the University of Liverpool and with IASH, University of Edinburgh.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSandeep Parmar\u003c\/strong\u003e was raised in Southern California and later earned an MA from the University of East Anglia and a PhD from University College London. She is the author of the poetry collections \u003cem\u003eThe Marble Orchard\u003c\/em\u003e (2012) and \u003cem\u003eEidolon\u003c\/em\u003e (2017), which won a Ledbury Forte Prize. With James Byrne, she collaborated on the chapbook \u003cem\u003eMyth of the Savage Tribes, Myth of Civilised Nations\u003c\/em\u003e (2014). \u003cem\u003eThreads\u003c\/em\u003e, a collaborative pamphlet with Nisha Ramayya and Bhanu Kapil, was published by Clinic in 2018. Parmar's scholarship focuses on British and American Modernism, particularly women's autobiographical writing by lesser-known writers such as Hope Mirrlees, Nancy Cunard, and Mina Loy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAllison Albino\u003c\/b\u003e is a Filipina American poet and French teacher who lives and writes in Harlem. Her work has appeared with \u003cem\u003eThe Rumpus\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Lantern Review\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePigeon Pages\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePoetry Northwest, The Oxford Review of Books, The Alaska Quarterly Review, The Common\u003c\/em\u003e, and elsewhere. She has received fellowships from The Community of Writers at Squaw Valley, The Fine Arts Work Center and Tin House. Her chapbook, \u003cem\u003eMy Mother's Prufrock\u003c\/em\u003e, was a finalist for YesYes Books' 2019 Vinyl 25 Chapbook Contest. She studied creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College and has an MA in French literature from NYU. She teaches French at an independent school in New York City.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRyka Aoki\u003c\/b\u003e is a Japanese American poet, composer, and teacher. She is the author of \u003cem\u003eSeasonal Velocities\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eHe Mele a Hilo (A Hilo Song)\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWhy Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Great Space Adventure\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cem\u003eSeasonal Velocities\u003c\/em\u003e was a finalist for the award for transgender nonfiction in the 25th Lambda Literary Awards in 2013. \u003cem\u003eWhy Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul\u003c\/em\u003e was a finalist for the 28th Lambda Literary Awards. For her work with youth, Ryka was named an Outstanding Volunteer by the LGBT Center's Children, Youth and Family Services. She has an MFA in Creative Writing from Cornell University and is currently a professor of English at Santa Monica College. Her next novel, \u003cem\u003eLight from Uncommon Stars\u003c\/em\u003e, is forthcoming from Tor Books in Fall 2021.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Blue Oak Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41681192026262,"sku":"9780997504033","price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0477\/8731\/1254\/products\/img_proxy_ce3fbcf2-e10d-41e9-b4db-e1118eba62f0.jpg?v=1650378029"}],"url":"https:\/\/itascabooks.com\/collections\/blue-oak-press.oembed","provider":"Itasca Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}