First published 2016
A first generation American woman moves between two worlds, carrying stories that blur the line between folklore and lived experience. She walks from the Dominican Republic's borderlands to New York City's crowded streets, discovering how certain bodies are marked as different, as other, as beast-like in the eyes of those around her. These are not gentle fairy tales but origin stories rooted in the earth of her homeland and the concrete of her adopted city. Each poem becomes a map of transformation, showing how ancient myths live inside modern skin. The collection reveals how forgotten stories can become both burden and gift, how the same heritage that marks someone as outsider also grants them power. Through verses that pulse with the rhythm of two languages and two lands, she claims the beast-girl identity as her own, transforming what others see as monstrosity into a source of strength and belonging.
Genres: mythology, poetry, folklore, cultural, cultural-studies
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, outsider
Setting: Dominican Republic, New York City
42 pages · Paperback · YesYes Books