Girlhood x A Haunting

<h3 class=ql-align-center><strong>In Jessica Rae Bergamino's full-length poetry book <em>Girlhood x A Haunting</em> the reader carries Nancy Drew's magnifying glass through a lyrically experimental and visually evocative collection that uncovers the traumas lurking in girlhood.</strong></h3><p class=ql-align-center></p><p>Bergamino is a master of the <strong>persona poem</strong> speaking through the voice of <strong>Nancy Drew</strong> and letting the mask slip to expose the real speaker who is experiencing and surviving <strong>childhood trauma</strong> and the woman who is trying to understand.</p><p></p><p>In this <strong>visually rich</strong> collection <strong>artistic representations</strong> by cover artist Io Wuerich of personal photographs and <strong>concrete and experimental poetic forms</strong> are utilized to encourage the reader to engage in a deeper investigation of the clues laid down by the speaker.</p><p></p><p>This book is also about the complex task of <strong>interrogating memory</strong>. It asks how to make sense of childhood memories and the cultural icons underpinning larger understandings of the <strong>past and gender</strong> by speaking directly to through and about Nancy Drew and other characters in her universe.</p><p></p><p>This book winner of <em>Driftwood Press's </em>Editors' Pick Prize is for fans of Nancy Drew for those who have experienced trauma and for lovers of experimental poetry. <em>Girlhood x A Haunting </em>is a reclamation of the self and of the stories that become linked to identity.</p>