"For seasons I was faceless // trying to swallow constellations, / to roll a star-map on my tongue," recounts Rajiv Mohabir's speaker in "Boy with Baleen for Teeth." As formally visionary and acoustically attuned as ever, Mohabir has composed an interspecies opera in Whale Aria . This collection examines the humpback whale as a zoomorphic analog of the queer, brown, migratory speaker breaching these pages; just as a person navigates postcolonial queerness across geopolitical boundaries, traveling from India to Guyana to ...
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"For seasons I was faceless // trying to swallow constellations, / to roll a star-map on my tongue," recounts Rajiv Mohabir's speaker in "Boy with Baleen for Teeth." As formally visionary and acoustically attuned as ever, Mohabir has composed an interspecies opera in Whale Aria . This collection examines the humpback whale as a zoomorphic analog of the queer, brown, migratory speaker breaching these pages; just as a person navigates postcolonial queerness across geopolitical boundaries, traveling from India to Guyana to London to New York to Honolulu, these singular cetaceans wander through disparate waters. Undersea, whales call to one another through their marine music, and, using the documented structure of humpback vocalizations, Mohabir translates the syntax of their songs into poetry. In our search for meaning, in our call and response, kinship resonates; "the echo is amniotic." "Once you immerse yourself in unending strains / the tones will haunt you: // ghosts spouting sohars you've called / since childhood." Fluid and inexorable as the ocean, Whale Aria articulates the confluence of ecological fate and human history. In "Why Whales Are Back in New York City," Mohabir notes the coincidence of current events: humpback migration returns to Queens for the first time in a century while the state expedites deportations of undocumented people in the same burrough. The language shared by human and marine creatures in these poems, however, promise that the tides will turn. "Our songs will pierce the dark / fathoms," Mohabir underscores the eternity of water. "Behold the miracle: // what was once lost / now leaps before you."
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Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $21.26, new condition, Sold by Ingram Customer Returns Center rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from NV, USA, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $21.28, good condition, Sold by SurplusTextSeller rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MO, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
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Good. Ships in a BOX from Central Missouri! May not include working access code. Will not include dust jacket. Has used sticker(s) and some writing or highlighting. UPS shipping for most packages, (Priority Mail for AK/HI/APO/PO Boxes).
Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $21.65, good condition, Sold by Book Culture Inc. rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from New York, NY, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
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Good. All pages and cover are intact. Possible minor highlighting and marginalia. Ships from an indie bookstore in NYC. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 116 p.
Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $26.95, new condition, Sold by Russell Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Victoria, BC, CANADA, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $21.24, new condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
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New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 116 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $21.27, like new condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
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Fine. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 116 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Add this copy of Whale Aria to cart. $21.27, good condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Four Way Books.
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Good. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 116 p. May show signs of wear, highlighting, writing, and previous use. This item may be a former library book with typical markings. No guarantee on products that contain supplements Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed. Twenty-five year bookseller with shipments to over fifty million happy customers.
