If Men, Then

by Eliza Griswold

First published 2020

The character "I" moves through a world filled with SUVs, CBD oil, and go bags. Her inner chaos mirrors the external landscape around her. She attempts to wrestle with herself as tragedy unfolds. The ego collapses. The world fractures. Through this spiritual journey, "I" navigates between her tumultuous thoughts and the concrete objects that define modern life. These talismans of our time become markers in her radical transformation. The poems shift between searing honesty and hope, between humor and tension. Griswold writes with forthright intimacy as her protagonist confronts catastrophe. The soul struggles to find meaning amid the wreckage of both inner and outer worlds.

Genres: literary-fiction, contemporary, poetry, 21st-century

Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking

Tropes: inner-conflict, spiritual-transformation

Period: 21st-Century

96 pages · Hardcover · Farrar, Straus and Giroux

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