{"product_id":"be-easy-new-and-selected-poems","title":"Be Easy: New and Selected Poems","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eLiterary Hub\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e• “Most Anticipated Poetry of 2026”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A poetics of magic and experience, of submission and resistance, of saying and seeing who and what we are in stereo.” ―Terrance Hayes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRevered for his “patient, clever, controlled, [and] visionary” (Hanif Abdurraqib) poems, Adrian Matejka has been a mainstay of contemporary American poetry for over two decades. Gathering hits from six extraordinary collections, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eBe Easy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e showcases his singular sonics and narrative vision in fresh, dynamic poems that lyrically complicate place, race, and identity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTraversing the Midwest from Indianapolis to Chicago, new poems explore the twitchy unease of unintentional migration and economic instability as the country faces a future every bit as unsettling and circus-like as parking lot carnivals of the poet’s childhood. Selections from \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eMixology\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e (2008)―“a post-soul tour de force” (Kevin Young)―reverberate with the rhythm of ’80s hip-hop, while “revelatory” (Gabrielle Calvocoressi) odes from Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Big Smoke\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e (2013) reimagine the legacy of prizefighter Jack Johnson and transcendent poems from \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eMap to the Stars\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e (2017) brim with cosmic jazz.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMatejka’s smooth lyricism flows into a singular, indispensable collection of memories lost and found again. Tracing the continuum of a “rocket-powered” (Campbell McGrath) writer, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eBe Easy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e affirms Matejka as one of the most exciting voices of our time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Adrian Matejka","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45498756694192,"sku":null,"price":29.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0528\/6821\/9056\/files\/81yuGSPeRBL._SL1500.jpg?v=1785754002","url":"https:\/\/www.umojabooks.com\/products\/be-easy-new-and-selected-poems","provider":"Umoja House ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}