Today's flash briefing poetry reading is from Julia Bloch's collection of poems, "Valley Fever." I read the very first poem, "Welcome Abroad." Part of what I love about this piece is how the tone has a distinct swerve to it, so that just as the reader might be tempted to settle into the steady cadence of all of the "wa" words, there are these jolts into dissatisfaction. It is a poem of "a feeling wanting to protect my joint." Or, as Laura Wetherington has written of Valley Fever: “Bloch’s poetry foregrounds the unexpected with a sonic nod to the word we thought would be there. Her poetry’s asking us to attend to our ears and listen beyond the surface of words.” Plus, feminism! For more on Julia Bloch: (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/julia-bloch) ● The Poetry Vlog is a YouTube Channel and Podcast dedicated to building social justice coalitions through poetry, pop culture, cultural studies, and related arts dialogues. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to join our fast-growing arts & scholarship community (youtube.com/c/thepoetryvlog?sub_confirmation=1). Connect with us on Instagram (instagram.com/thepoetryvlog), Twitter (twitter.com/thepoetryvlog), Facebook (facebook.com/thepoetryvlog), and our website (thepoetryvlog.com).
