Chrome Valley

Poems

7 February 2023

Territory Rights — Worldwide.

Description

Best Books of 2023: TIME, Electric Literature

From Lincoln Center’s inaugural poet-in-residence comes this unflinching collection that intricately mines the experience of being a Black woman in America.

Boldly lyrical and fiercely honest, Mahogany L. Browne’s Chrome Valley offers an intricate portrait of Black womanhood in America. “We praise their names / & the hands that write / Praise the mouth that speaks,” she writes in tribute to those who came before her.

Browne captures a quintessential girlhood through the pleasures and pangs of young love: the thrill of skating hip to hip at the roller rink, the heat of holding hands in the dark, and, sometimes, the sting of a palm across the cheek. Friendship, too, comes with its own complex yearnings: “you ain’t had freedom / ’til you climb on bus 62 / & head to the closest mall / for a good seat at the girl fight.”

Reflections of Browne’s mother, Redbone, bolster the collection with moments of unwavering strength: “give me my mother’s bone structure / & her gap tooth slaughter / give me her spine—Redbone got a spine for the world.” Other moments explore the inherent anxieties shared among Black mothers, rhythmically intoning names like the tolling of a church bell: “Because Kadiatou Diallo / Because Sybrina Fulton / Because Valeria Bell / Because Mamie Till.”

The characters in Chrome Valley grapple with the legacies of inherited trauma but also revel in the beauty of the undaunted self-determination passed down from Black woman to Black woman. Transcendent and grounded, funny and furious, Chrome Valley brings depth to a movement, solidifying Mahogany L. Browne as one of the most significant poetic voices of our time.

Reviews

"This collection dives deep into the experience of Black girlhood and womanhood in America, with Browne reflecting on everything from her own maternal lineage to the yearning-laden pleasure of young friendship to the true meaning of inherited trauma and the power that it can hold to shape our lives." — Emma Specter, Vogue

"Raging and bountiful and humming with irresistible music, this is a powerful new collection from a prolific cross-genre writer." — Laura Sackton, BuzzFeed News

"From a palindrome to prose poems, this electric and much-anticipated collection by Browne, a prolific writer, examines Black girlhood and womanhood, desire, friendship, and migration. My mind keeps circling “Stumble Lovely,” a title so beautiful I envision it tattooed obvious and tender places to be carried close always." — Connie Pan, Book Riot

"Generous and expansive—a decidedly full work. Across her poems, Browne deftly creates atmosphere through juxtaposition and pacing." — Nick Ripatrazone, The Millions, "Must-Read Poetry: Winter 2023"

Hardback

9781324092278

147 x 221 mm • 160 pages

£20.99

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Standalone Ebook

9781324092285

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