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Synopses & Reviews
Dynamic poems that celebrate the Black vernacular and engage with the world through the lens of Hip Hop as well as America's vast reserve of racial and gendered epithets — from an award-winning author and poet.
fin-na /ˈfinə/ contraction: (1) going to; intending to. rooted in African American Vernacular English. (2) eye dialect spelling of "fixing to." (3) Black possibility; Black futurity; Blackness as tomorrow.
A lyrical and sharp celebration, these poems consider the brevity and disposability of Black lives and other oppressed people in our current era of emboldened white supremacy. In three key parts, Finna explores the mythos and erasure of names in the American narrative; asks how gendered language can provoke violence; and finally, through the celebration and examination of the Black vernacular, expands the notions of possibility, giving us a new language of hope.
Review
"Marshall's poems rip language open and reassemble it as an homage to its impact and potential." Booklist
Review
"Simply outstanding poetry." Roxane Gay, author of Hunger and Bad Feminist
Review
"In Finna, I hear Etheridge Knight, I hear Terrance Hayes, but most vividly, I hear Nate Marshall naming his many selves as some flee, others linger, and one in particular threatens to hunt him down. And yes: 'I feel you Nate Marshall. / i've left places & loves / when they told me they loved / a Nate Marshall / I didn't recognize.' Don't be fooled by the calm and assured clarity of this poet's voice; there is a trip wire hidden in damn near every line break." Saeed Jones, author of How We Fight for Our Lives and Prelude to Bruise
Review
"Finna is a hip millennium blues song shot through with bolts of joy and humor, an innovative homage to home, and a trenchant critique of so-called race in these so-called United States. Please believe, there ain't no sophomore slumping for this super talented poet." Mitchell S. Jackson, author of Survival Math
About the Author
Nate Marshall is an award-winning writer, rapper, educator, and editor. He is the author and editor of numerous works including Wild Hundreds and The BreakBeat Poets: New American Poetry in the Age of Hip-Hop. Nate is a member of The Dark Noise Collective and co-directs Crescendo Literary. He is an assistant professor of English at Colorado College. He is from the South Side of Chicago.