Friend

Poetry. "'With every curse a little blessing,' Pauletta Hansel quotes in her chapbook FRIEND, a collection of epistolary poems written during the first six months of the pandemic. The centerpiece of this collection is a collage that encompasses botany, science, and the history of an invasive species. This is a masterful collection that moves from the wildlife markets of Wuhan to the streets of Ohio. It isn't easy to find affirmation in the midst of loss, and yet Hansel finds blessings by recognizing the things that we have always had--friends, family, and 'the ordinary miracle of rhizome and bulb.'"--Cathryn Essinger