Centipede

<p>It is rather fitting I think that <em>Centipede</em> is a collection of poems which takes its title from a small creature known and named for its many legs; this is a book with all manner of instruments on display each of which contributes to its elegant forward propulsion. The text is a bestiary filled with creatures both tame and untamed: all of them roaming unfettered unabashed totally free. -from the Introduction by Joshua Bennett 2022 Maine Chapbook Series Judge</p><p><br></p><p>Sasha Goodwin's language is memorable and muscular-it's like listening to a great storyteller at a bar. Her imagination is dazzling; it leaps and alights in the most surprising ways. The speaker bewildered and bewitched by the world utters 'The trees agree / that everything is temporary. I dictate / a letter to a bigger sea.' In these poems linguistic pleasures resonate delight. -Eduardo Corral author of <em>Slow Lightning</em> and <em>Guillotine</em></p><p><br></p><p>These poems braid images of the natural world - animals insects plants and weather - around a strange almost sardonic dime-store surrealism. There's a similarly divided sense of the self in the world a speaker caught between complete susceptibility to the moment and a Zen-like devotion to observation - as well as quicksilver associations back and forth resulting in compelling angles of insight. This is a highly original voice and an excellent first collection. -Joseph Millar author of <em>Dark Harvest: New and Selected Poems</em></p><p><br></p><p>Like Joseph Cornell's shadow boxes these poems pack a lot into their small lyric frames. Or think micromosaics like the faceted eyes of a horsefly: an assemblage of seemingly random shards coalescing into a unified vision. Such is Sasha Goodwin's artistry in <em>Centipede</em>: Line by line her startling juxtapositions-always intriguing sometimes unsettling-entice us to circle back reread and ponder and ultimately see the world anew. I applaud this poet. -Richard Foerster author of <em>With Little Light</em> and <em>Sometimes None at All</em></p><p><br></p><p>Sasha Goodwin's poems are elegantly constructed. Her images are continually shifting juxtaposing the world humans have built with a profound sense of nature. Every moment is closely observed and every detail is evocative. These poems possess a gritty resilience. I find myself surrounded by the unexpected and welcoming a new way of seeing. -Stuart Kestenbaum Former Maine State Poet Laureate and author of <em>things seemed to be breaking</em></p>