Publisher's Synopsis
Poetry. Women's Studies. Tanya Grae's UNDOLL is a debut poetry collection that explores the ways we can be confined--by image, society, tradition--how we often play roles for ourselves, for others. Experimenting through form and rhythm, Grae's brave quartet examines how damage has an origin often lost along the way. Part coming of age, part battle cry, UNDOLL, whether viewed as a noun, an adjective, or a verb, points to nonconforming, that the received role can be unzipped and left behind.
In this deft and restless oeuvre on the enigma that is woman, Tanya Grae displays an expressive narrative mastery that's unusual in a debut. These resolute stanzas are alternately fierce and tender, served up with an addictive skill that inspires awe and roots the reader in stories so many of us are afraid to tell.--Patricia Smith In UNDOLL, Tanya Grae draws on a multitude of clear images and cultural references to steady the roiling emotional drama underlying her poems. For her fortunate readers, the result is a mixture of literary artistry and human cries of desire, disappointment, and anger. This poet has found a new way to combine a lively, educated mind with the naked reality of the body.--Billy Collins
