books

IEDOMU ĢEOGRĀFIJAS

How do you trace a life? For Latvian-American poet Ryan Dzelzkalns, one horizon at a time. From Riga to Tokyo, Shanghai to New York, Dzelzkalns interrogates queerness, intimacy, and memory, in his distinctive polyphonic voice. Through Ivars Šteinbergs’ thoughtful and nuanced translation, “Imaginary Geographies” makes for an astonishing Latvian debut.

anthologies

IT CAME FROM THE CLOSET

Edited by Joe Vallese

Ryan’s essay, “A Working Definition of the Monstrous,” appears in this collection. More about the project:

“Through the lens of horror—from Halloween to Hereditary—queer and trans writers consider the films that deepened, amplified, and illuminated their own experiences.

Horror movies hold a complicated space in the hearts of the queer community: historically misogynist, and often homo- and transphobic, the genre has also been inadvertently feminist and open to subversive readings. Common tropes—such as the circumspect and resilient “final girl,” body possession, costumed villains, secret identities, and things that lurk in the closet—spark moments of eerie familiarity and affective connection. Still, viewers often remain tasked with reading themselves into beloved films, seeking out characters and set pieces that speak to, mirror, and parallel the unique ways queerness encounters the world.

It Came from the Closet features twenty-five essays by writers speaking to this relationship, through connections both empowering and oppressive. From Carmen Maria Machado on Jennifer’s Body, Jude Ellison S. Doyle on In My Skin, Addie Tsai on Dead Ringers, and many more, these conversations convey the rich reciprocity between queerness and horror.”