""Friendly Fire," Katrina Roberts cycle of fifty-two sonnets, proves the durability and flexibility of the lyric today. A taut narrative scaffolding supports Roberts brief, searing meditations on family, farm labor, friendship, illness, parenting. Colloquial language lends verve. Literal images evoke the texture of farm life. Roberts explores abstraction ( Forgiveness ) with apt metaphor: I shelter the grudge, build / a rustic cabin for it in my chest, pound rusty nails / in to anchor a porch where I sit glaring. At the close of Malignant, the narrator asks a timeless question: what lies in wait for us? Read Friendly Fire for Roberts sensual and wise rendering of the here and now." -Robin Becker, author of "Domain of Perfect Affection" "Katrina Roberts poems do not admit easy phrasings; instead, they are assembled word by word, each chosen with informed deliberation and a sense of pace. I have followed the track of her lines with heightened attention, eager for her next surprise." -Billy Collins
"This is a gorgeous, amazing book. I ve been an admirer of Katrina Roberts poems for years and these poems confirm my long-standing affection. Buy this book now." -Sherman Alexie, winner of the National Book Award 2007
Katrina Roberts is the author of "Underdog, The Quick," and "How Late Desire Looks." She is the Mina Schwabacher Professor in English and the Humanities and the Paul Garrett Fellow in the Humanities at Whitman College.