More Sure

(Paperback)

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A book of poems and augmentations, recording instances of love, self-realization, and recovery in non-binary, queer, and autistic lives.

In their stunning debut collection, A. Light Zachary draws power from a vision of life especially queer and neurodivergent life as a journey of continuous self-realisation. These poems record the experience of locating oneself over and over again, within gender, language, family, labour, sexuality, fear, and love. Reaching back to claim queer space in the oldest Western canon, Zachary interrupts famous quotations from ancient Greek and Roman thinkers, asking: what advice might Juvenal or Seneca have handed down to non-binary citizens Elsewhere, in concise and fluid verses that draw from punk rock and quantum physics, they ground the work firmly in the present. Come: invade the alien. Evade with the coyote. These poems propose a certain supremacy: in these unending journeys of discovery and alienation, "we become more sure of who we are than you."

Reviews

"Amazing - vivid, disturbing. Zachary does this so well: moves language
into a space that's both political and intimate. Powerful and tightly
crafted, work." Eduardo C. Corral, author of Guillotine and Slow Lightning
"In this beautiful debut collection, A. Light Zachary alchemizes a philosopher's intellect with the soul of a poet. Weaving deftly through classic texts and pop culture references, from sharply political to deeply personal, More Sure is a haunting love song to those who live in the shadows. Zachary is a master of their craft and a virtuoso talent, and they balance acute emotion with subtle wit. These are poems that will make you think and feel for a long time." Kai Cheng Thom, author of a place called No Homeland

Author Bio

A. Light Zachary is a writer, editor, and artist who was recently awarded fellowships for their poetry by the Lambda Literary Foundation and the Banff Centre for the Arts. Their previous publications include a novella, The End, by Anna (Metatron, 2016). More Sure is their first book of poems.