{"product_id":"flyover-country-poems-paperback","title":"Flyover Country: Poems - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eAustin Smith\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA new collection about violence and the rural Midwest from a poet whose first book was hailed as \"memorable\" (Stephanie Burt, \u003ci\u003eYale Review\u003c\/i\u003e) and \"impressive\" (\u003ci\u003eChicago Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e)\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eFlyover Country\u003c\/i\u003e is a powerful collection of poems about violence: the violence we do to the land, to animals, to refugees, to the people of distant countries, and to one another. Drawing on memories of his childhood on a dairy farm in Illinois, Austin Smith explores the beauty and cruelty of rural life, challenging the idea that the American Midwest is mere \"flyover country,\" a place that deserves passing over. At the same time, the collection suggests that America itself has become a flyover country, carrying out drone strikes and surveillance abroad, locked in a state of perpetual war that Americans seem helpless to stop. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn these poems, midwestern barns and farmhouses are linked to other lands and times as if by psychic tunnels. A poem about a barn cat moving her kittens in the night because they have been discovered by a group of boys resonates with a poem about the house in Amsterdam where Anne Frank and her family hid from the Nazis. A poem beginning with a boy on a farmhouse porch idly swatting flies ends with the image of people fleeing before a drone strike. A poem about a barbwire fence suggests, if only metaphorically, the debate over immigration and borders. Though at times a dark book, the collection closes with a poem titled \"The Light at the End,\" suggesting the possibility of redemption and forgiveness. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBuilding on Smith's reputation as an accessible and inventive poet with deep insights about rural America, \u003ci\u003eFlyover Country\u003c\/i\u003e also draws profound connections between the Midwest and the wider world.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAustin Smith \u003c\/b\u003egrew up on a family dairy farm in northwestern Illinois. He is the author of a previous poetry collection, \u003ci\u003eAlmanac \u003c\/i\u003e(Princeton), and his work has appeared in the \u003ci\u003eNew Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePoetry\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePloughshares\u003c\/i\u003e, and many other publications. He teaches at Stanford University and lives in Oakland, California.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 128\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.5 x 9.1 x 6.1 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 02, 2018\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47384513642674,"sku":"9780691181578","price":20.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/3891\/1666\/files\/1de2f364c22a1e6eac0e93b13da62239.webp?v=1777887436","url":"https:\/\/box.dadyminds.org\/products\/flyover-country-poems-paperback","provider":"DADYMINDS BOX","version":"1.0","type":"link"}