I’m so grateful to Nicole Yurcaba for the kind words about Department of Elegy over at Sage Cigarettes. Here’s a snippet:

“Savoring sadness but never giving in to it completely, the poems in Mary Biddinger’s seventh poetry collection Department of Elegy transport readers into the cracks and crevices of youth’s hot insanity and adulthood’s mundanity. Eager for experience and hungry for life, the poem’s speaker consistently examines the fine line between adolescence and adulthood and how those few years we spend standing on the cusp of adulting truly do shape us for the rest of our lives. That’s not to say the speaker doesn’t allow wiggle room for change—they do, but, if anything, the poems remind readers that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with quietly standing for a moment, breathing, and reminding oneself why those late nights in clubs with fake IDs are worth remembering.”

Thank you so much, Nicole!

Big thanks to Jeannine Hall Gailey, as well, for the kind words in her latest blog post. Jeannine describes Department of Elegy as, “a wonderfully nostalgic/anti-nostalgic, goth, reminiscence on a Gen-X childhood and young adulthood punctuated by midwestern vacant lot landscapes and marvelously bad decisions. I am loving it – it might be my favorite book of hers yet, so if you are on the fence, get it.”

If you would like a review copy of Department of Elegy, Black Lawrence Press would be happy to provide one–check out this page.