Anybody: Poems [Paperback]

Ari Baniass[Anybody] is the portrait of an inner life that asks itself steadily how anybody or any body can be said to be anybodygirl, boy, fox&This charming, chattering young self is preoccupied with&poignant absences.This collection takes quick-witted brushstrokes as it tackles societal boundaries, then slows down to meditate on the minutiae of the spaces that define us and the inaccessible spaces, too&[One of the most unique voices I have ever heard in a first book&through all its interstates of narrative, candor, and image, [Im so impressed by the range and grace of Ari BaniasTo speak any truth that can resonate beyond the particularities of their position, a poet must understand every particularity of that position, and all the forces that intersect to determine their view of the world. Banias is such a poet. It is questions about what constitutes the lyric and the universal&that drive his debut collection forward, and his readers into a more expansive, fully considered future.Banias poses questions of identity and belonging in his striking debut&In lines alternately straight-talking and philosophical, Banias asks what it means to be a white dude in our country, to be educated and privileged but still a fake man.Born late in the twentieth century, tutored under the twin suns of Frank OHara and Guillaume Apollinaire, vexed by this set of meanings on my body, Ari Banias is a poet for this hourbewildered, hopeful, and cracklingly alive, a citizen of the possible.Here isAri Banias has written one of the finest first books (OK, any book!) that Ive ever read&These poems stake a claim on the future: they give us a poet who understands to the bone how syntax and line and music embody emotion, and how the integrity of the spirit is the makers integrity.Ari Banias is one of the best living poets, and this book in your hands is our proof.