The Madness Vase

Andrea Gibson's second book of poems, TITLE, offers a breathtaking continuation of the poet's most tender and honest work. Her fist book, Pole Dancing to Gospel Hymns opened the door to Gibson's unapologetic voice, yet TITLE manages to take an even more intimate look at the subjects of family, war, spirituality, gender, grief and hope.  The poems' topics range from hate crimes to playgrounds, from international conflict to hometowns, from falling in love to the desperation of loneliness.  Gibson's work seizes us by the collar and hauls us inside some of her darkest moments, then releases out the other side.  Moments later, we find ourselves inhaling words that fill us with light.   Her luminous imagery is a buoy that allows us to resurface from her world clutching new possibilities of our own. Throughout her career, Gibson's poems have always been a call tosocial justice.  But this collection goes beyond awareness. Her images linger in our psyches and entreat us to action.  They challenge us to grow into our own skin.  The journey may be raw at times but we are continuously left inspired, held, and certain we are not alone.   By the time you finish reading TITLE, you too will believe, "Folks like us/We've got shoulder blades that rust in the rain/But they are still G-sharp/Whenever our spinal chords are tuned to the key of redemption/So go ahead world/Pick us/To make things better.

My name is Andrea Gibson. I'm a spoken word poet who can't stop quoting my therapist. I travel around the world speaking my poems out loud on stages. I’m the Poet Laureate of Colorado. I write about love, mental health, and social justice. I am queer and non-binary and write poems about that too. I have published seven books and recorded seven albums and my books have won Independent Publishers Awards and been Good Reads Choice Awards finalists. I have three rescue dogs who boss me around. I cry in public at least once a week. I collect political t-shirts, panic attacks, and poems about the moon. In the end, I want my heart to be covered in stretch marks.