Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Yearning Feed
    The Yearning Feed
    The Yearning Feed
    Ebook139 pages1 hour

    The Yearning Feed

    By Manuel Paul López

    4.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    The poems in Manuel Paul López's The Yearning Feed, winner of the 2013 Ernest Sandeen Prize in Poetry, are embedded in the San Diego/Imperial Valley regions, communities located along the U.S.-Mexico border. López, an Imperial Valley native, considers La Frontera, or the border, as magical, worthy of Macondo-like comparisons, where contradictions are firmly rooted and ironies play out on a daily basis. These poems synthesize López’s knowledge of modern and contemporary literature with a border-child vernacular sensibility to produce a work that illustrates the ongoing geographical and literary historical clash of cultures.

    With humor and lyrical intensity, López addresses familial relationships, immigration, substance abuse, violence, and, most importantly, the affirmation of life. In the poem titled "Psalm," the speaker experiences a deep yearning to relearn his family's Spanish tongue, a language lost somewhere in the twelve-mile stretch between his family's home, his school, and the border. The poem “1984” borrows the prose-poetics of Joe Brainard, who was known for his collage and assemblage work of the 1960s and 1970s, to describe the poet’s bicultural upbringing in the mid-1980s. Many of the poems in The Yearning Feed use a variety of media, techniques, and cultural signifiers to create a hybrid visual language that melds “high” art with "low." The poems in The Yearning Feed establish López as a singular and revelatory voice in American poetry, one who challenges popular perceptions of the border region and uses the unique elements of the rich border experience to inform and guide his aesthetics.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherUniversity of Notre Dame Press
    Release dateAug 28, 2013
    ISBN9780268085759
    The Yearning Feed
    Author

    Manuel Paul López

    Manuel Paul López is a Canto Mundo fellow, and his work has been published in Bilingual Review/La Revista Bilingüe, ZYZZYVA, Hanging Loose, and Rattle, among others, and anthologized in Roque Dalton Redux. He is the author of Death of a Mexican and Other Poems, which was awarded the Dorothy Brunsman Prize.

    Related to The Yearning Feed

    Related ebooks

    Literary Criticism For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Five Poems

      Nov 1, 2020

      The American linden sways nonplussed by the storm,a bounce here, a shimmy there, just shaking like musicleft over from the night’s end wafting into the avenues before sleep.I remember once walking down Clinton Street, and singingthat line returning,

      4 min read

    • Article

      Mexico City

      Jun 3, 2021

      Mexico City
      2 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems by Jesse Nathan

      Jun 8, 2021

      Young gray cat puddled under the boxwood,Only the eyes alert. Appressed to dirt. That hissThe hiss of the grasses hissing What shouldWhat should. Blank road shimmers. On days like this,My mind, you hardlySeem to be.On days like these. No, no. See tha

      1 min read

    • Article

      George Bradley

      Jun 8, 2021

      Penicillin was discovered in a moldy petri dishin 1928 and by the forties was called a miracle drugand by the fifties had become both widely availableand cheap, which is to say that penicillin arrivedin time for me, who without it would have dieda ch

      1 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems

      Jan 1, 2022

      Two Poems
      2 min read

    • Article

      It’s The Remix

      Feb 8, 2022

      Covid-19 and its unwelcome variants have managed to transform the very landscape of our current whiskey imbibing frontier. It has made dining out and whiskeysponsored happy hours more cumbersome as patrons fumble for vaccination cards, or try to reca

      3 min read

    • Article

      Taste of Prison

      Jun 1, 2022

      Taste of Prison
      11 min read

    • Article

      Tribal Surfers

      Oct 2, 2019

      Tribal Surfers
      7 min read

    • Article

      Must-Read Poetry: November 2020

      Nov 5, 2020

      Stop obsessively refreshing the New York Times's elections page, and check out these new books of poetry by Alice Quinn, Margaret Atwood, Yi Lei, Karina Borowicz, Valzhyna Mort, and Paul Celan. The post Must-Read Poetry: November 2020 appeared first

      6 min read

    • Article

      Tracing Literary Lineage

      Oct 15, 2021

      first corresponded in 2016, after an essay by Shah appeared in Brevity’s special issue on race, racism, and racialization. Boyd, then coeditor of the Crux series in literary nonfiction at the University of Georgia Press, wrote to ask if Shah had a ma

      18 min read

    • Article

      The Profound Comfort Of Kimchi

      Oct 5, 2020

      Several years ago on a drive home with my mom, my physical being and existence came into question when an unsecured jar of tongbaechu kimchi in the back of her 1995 Chevrolet Astro van was jostled loose by an abrupt stop. The gallon-sized glass jar,

      8 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems

      Jan 1, 2022

      Maybe every choice is in some way false,like whether to wonder or worry,or feel alive or alone in Clevelandor Memphis or any standard double queentrying to unwrap a tiny hotel soap.There’s always another one waitingin the dish like a stale communion

      2 min read

    • Article

      Matthew Zapruder

      Jun 8, 2021

      finally the hour has comeit is time for the long journeyI say to my wife and child a last farewell and click the blue buttonmy face appears across from my faceit is the day we will virtually discuss the unpredictable resolutions I am sureobscurely wi

      1 min read

    • Article

      Letter from Lafayette Square

      Dec 7, 2021

      One Sunday in February my mom telephones at eight in the morning to remind me that the bishop of Maryland is coming to Saint James at Lafayette Square, the African American Episcopal church where I was baptized and confirmed. There will be a single s

      15 min read

    • Article

      Three Poems

      Mar 1, 2022

      i look like someonehealing from an accidentbecause i am someonehealing from an accidentthe book of actsscales falling from saul’s eyesremembering my capacityfor stillnesshow long can i sitwithout looking awaythe fear of god escapingi desperately need

      3 min read

    • Article

      Stir It Up

      Aug 1, 2021

      Stir It Up
      1 min read

    • Article

      A River Runs Through It

      Apr 14, 2020

      A River Runs Through It
      1 min read

    • Article

      Negative

      Sep 1, 2021

      Of course it’s not.Were you angry, wereyou sad? Are youa disgruntled former employeeof the earth? Youhave company. I knowsome walks can getyou nowhere. I’ve seenone child take awaya toy from anothernot because they wantedthe lamb or trainor drum, but

      1 min read

    • Article

      Younger Than War

      Nov 9, 2023

      Younger Than War
      1 min read

    • Article

      The Shape Of The Mountain

      Mar 15, 2018

      The Shape Of The Mountain
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Bear God Revisited

      May 3, 2020

      The Bear God Revisited
      18 min read

    • Article

      Strange As The Rules Of Grammar

      Dec 7, 2021

      The two or three times I saw Lil Waynehanging out at the Praline Connection in New Orleans he had a mouth full of blingcovered in forkfuls of greens or green beans or white rice & red beans on a tongueof strange lucrative grammar The answer will be t

      1 min read

    • Article

      Silvia Guerra

      Jun 9, 2020

      The dry, black branches of winter seen in flight run singing. Come here to drink translucent drops on fresh leaves. Come over here, and try to light that wick. If you descend from the summit, humming, perhaps I can see you, perhaps at the river’s cur

      1 min read

    • Article

      On Bach

      Dec 1, 2022

      On Bach
      13 min read

    • Article

      Diaspora Sonnets

      Sep 1, 2022

      The old men drink their spritzers and gossipunder awnings. Red hued and blustery, like two roosters on the side of a road.Skyward they crane their necks and laugh, sometimes they wonder about kings and future kingsand how the muscles peer from their

      2 min read

    • Article

      Veneers

      Nov 1, 2021

      Like all good conquerors, the Burmese had the foresight to leave picturesque ruins. Americans find ruins fascinating because we fear being laid low, our great monuments atomized & tossed to the wind, our lawns left unruly, unkempt, untrimmed. The bud

      1 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Yearning Feed

    4.5/5

    2 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      The Yearning Feed - Manuel Paul López

      The Ernest Sandeen Prize in Poetry

      Editors

      Joyelle McSweeney, Orlando Menes

      2013   The Yearning Feed, Manuel Paul López

      2011   Dream Life of a Philanthropist, Janet Kaplan

      2009   Juan Luna’s Revolver, Louisa A. Igloria

      Editor, John Matthias (1997–2007)

      2007   The Curator of Silence, Jude Nutter

      2005   Lives of the Sleepers, Ned Balbo

      2003   Breeze, John Latta

      2001   No Messages, Robert Hahn

      1999   The Green Tuxedo, Janet Holmes

      1997   True North, Stephanie Strickland

      The Yearning Feed

      MANUEL PAUL LÓPEZ

      University of Notre Dame Press

      Notre Dame, Indiana

      Copyright © 2013 by Manuel Paul López

      Published by the University of Notre Dame Press

      Notre Dame, Indiana 46556

      All Rights Reserved

      E-ISBN 978-0-268-08575-9

      This e-Book was converted from the original source file by a third-party vendor. Readers who notice any formatting, textual, or readability issues are encouraged to contact the publisher at ebooks@nd.edu

      for Mandie Nicole

      &

      for my parents, Margaret and Manuel López

      CONTENTS

      Acknowledgments

      The Interview

      I

      The Yearning Feed

      The Desert Series

      Madre

      The Hay Bales

      II

      Homeland Security

      The Nods: A Heavy Loop Sonnet

      Cherub Cherubim

      How to Live with Rudy

      Poem

      The Sweats

      The Stoners

      The Lecture

      The Naming

      Mona’s Manner

      III

      The Xoco Letters

      IV

      Psalm

      The Fences

      Phantom Limb

      Variable Feet

      The Yearning Feed

      You Say I Look Like Gollum from Lord of the Rings

      The Yearning Feed

      The Boo Report

      The Towels

      V

      1984

      Notes on the Poems

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      The author gratefully thanks the following publications in which some of these pieces first appeared:

      Antique Children: The Stoners

      The Bitter Oleander: The Yearning Feed

      Blind Pen: The Boo Report and "You Say I Look Like Gollum from Lord of the Rings and Variable Feet"

      Huizache: The Naming

      Palabra: The Hay Bales and How to Live with Rudy

      Puerto del Sol: The Sweats

      The Red Fez: The Interview

      The Seattle Review: The Lecture

      Swink: Psalm

      Cherub Cherubim was originally published in my poetry collection Death of a Mexican and Other Poems (Bear Star Press, 2006).

      An earlier version of 1984 was published in the chapbook 1984 (Amsterdam Press, 2010).

      A version of 1984 was drawn and animated by the Brothers Cram for KCET’s Artbound, based on an article by Amy Sanchez entitled A Year in the Life: Manuel Paul López’s 1984.

      I offer a huge and heartfelt thank you to the judges of the Ernest Sandeen Prize for Poetry, Orlando Menes and Joyelle McSweeney.

      I am indebted to the following individuals and organizations for providing space, financial support, and belief in my work:

      Seema Sueko and the Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company

      The San Diego Foundation’s Creative Catalyst Fellowship

      Dorland Mountain Arts Colony

      The Canto Mundo Family

      A special thank you to Laura Sue for permission to use her beautiful artwork for the cover of this book.

      A proper and appreciative thanks to the University of Notre Dame Press editorial staff.

      Thank you to my wife, Mandie Nicole, for her patience and incredible spirit.

      Thanks eternally to my family, Manuel and Margaret López, Janina, Javi, Robert, and Lindsey.

      Thanks also to my extended family, too many to name here, but all of you are beautiful and cherished beyond words.

      And my gratitude to the following individuals who read earlier versions of this work or supported me through their guidance and/or words of encouragement:

      Millicent Borges Accardi, Matt Amar, Francisco Aragón, Brent Beltrán, Oscar Bermeo, Bill Caballero, Joan Carey, Eduardo Corral, Diana Marie Delgado, Julio Delgado, Misael Díaz, Terry and Pam Fellows, Laurie Ann Guerrero, Patrick Holder, David Jean, Sheryl Luna, Maceo Montoya, Juan J. Morales, Bill Memo Nericcio, Margaret Noble, Luivette Resto, Alejandro Romero, Amy Sanchez, Paul Guerra Sanchez, Angel Sandoval, Rebecca Schumejda, Beth Spencer, Van Truong, Javier Zamora.

      And finally, an immense hug and kiss for my grandmother, Martha López, who hasn’t stopped reciting verses after so many glorious years.

      In loving memory of Guadalupe (Mama Lupe) Escalera. You are missed, Grandma.

      Like a story

      Let me tell you what I saw, listen to me

      You must be, you are the beginning of the day

      —Bernadette Mayer

      THE INTERVIEW

      Q: Can you share with us a unique story about your hometown in the Imperial Valley?

      A: I heard a story once about a sheep—it’s actually a story about a flock of sheep, but I’ll get to that in a minute. This infamous sheep that’s now eternally ingrained in Imperial Valley folklore committed suicide one day when it decided to climb a ditch bank near an alfalfa field just outside of El Centro. Long story short, when it reached the top, this rebellious creature that will forever remain nameless, descended the other side without one bit of hesitation. A real chingón, man—stoically, it marched into the abyss as if Charles Bronson had costumed himself in sheep’s clothing is what I’m trying to tell you. But it didn’t take long before it quickly lost its footing and tumbled into the water, the current, like a crazed washing machine cycle churning and sucking simultaneously, as the borrego left behind a tiny dust storm of hoof and wool kicked up in its wake, limbs splashing feverishly as it raised its little lips toward an orange sky that sizzled above to shout one last declaration in sheep.

      (If you’ve grown up in the Imperial Valley, you know to tread carefully around various waterways because of the vigorous undercurrents that can yank you underwater faster than you can cry O shit.)

      The group left behind stared blankly with eyes like dark, tender buttons; but it didn’t take long, you know, before they followed suit, climbing, fatefully reaching that same dire immensity as their beloved comrade.

      In ranks, a large flock of wooly sheep drowned themselves by following that first sheep’s desire to see what was on the other side; or to sip from that mythical Colorado River water that has quenched the Imperial Valley desert for over a century; or to protest poor labor conditions that have assaulted their backs like electrified machetes; or simply, to

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1