WINNER SOUTHWEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2019

ffrom the juror:

     These poems by artist and poet Marilyn Stablein take the reader on an unexpected journey. They’re set first in the Pacific Northwest (with a brief foray into Kashmir), then in New Mexican hot springs; and then—at the heart of the book—in arid New Mexico—the “Milepost 27” of the title. Early poems narrate or describe the concrete or natural: sea lions piling-on, wood ticks “vacuuming under the skin,” poet imagining porcupine love; saving soap ends. The playful quality of those initial poems retreats, though, in the New Mexico section, where Stablein describes the Rio Grande grinding “charnel ground,” being stranded on a desiccated Route 66, and pervading images of fire and ash. That section’s stunning “How to Build a Descanso” takes the reader’s breath away and throws a different-shaded light onto this memorable collection.

​

Vermin: A Traveler's Bestiary

 I

     The first bestiary devoted to the smallest, most unpopular critters. Humorous encounters on the back roads of Egypt, India, Nepal or the kitchen cupboards of small town America. Odd household tips from 19th century health manuals, arcane remedies, superstitions.

​

          Marilyn Stablein is a wonderful writer who knows a vermin when she sees—or meets—one. If I were a Texan I’d say, “Read her book rat now!”                                                                                                                                               — Barry Gifford

—Lice, leeches, roaches, and rats, what people call ‘vermin,’ are fascinating cultures with vivid life styles. Marilyn Stablein, their chronicler, is a non-judgemental and generous writer who watches these non-humans with serene detachment, humor, and uncanny empathy.                       —Andrei Codrescu