Karla Strand, a gender and women’s studies librarian, introduces a monthly column dedicated to promoting the work of women and girls in knowledge creation and preservation. This initiative aims to highlight innovative projects and share new publications from historically excluded authors.
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Each month, Strand provides a curated list of new book releases from diverse voices in literature. Her goal is to disrupt the traditional narrative in the publishing industry, which has predominantly featured white, cisgender, heterosexual male authors. By focusing on writers who identify as women, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, queer, trans, nonbinary, disabled, and others from marginalized backgrounds, she seeks to promote inclusivity in literature.
April also marks National Poetry Month, a perfect occasion for Strand to share her rejuvenated passion for poetry. She showcases some remarkable poetry collections she has encountered and is joined by Violet Pandya, who contributes her own selections.
For instance, in 2021, Strand experimented with summarizing each poetry collection in just three words, a practice that resonated positively with readers and continues. This exercise encourages creativity and reflection while maintaining brevity.
The following poetry collections represent a diverse array of voices and themes, spanning 2025 and 2026:
**February 2025**
- *All That We Ask of You Is to Always Be Happy* by Bridget Bell. CavanKerry Press.
Keywords: Blink, echo, escape
**May 2025**
- *Bloodletting* by Kimberly Reyes. Omnidawn.
Keywords: Technicolor, timeline, (re)telling
- *The Path of Most Resistance: Poems on Women in Science* by Jessy Randall. Goldsmiths Press.
Keywords: Hypatia, Georgia, Mae J
**July 2025**
- *Eke: Poems* by Wahidah Tambee. Singapore Unbound.
Keywords: Fragments, interruptions, iterations
- *End of Empire* by Marissa Davis. Penguin.
Keywords: Myth, spirit, life
**August 2025**
- *Joy Is My Middle Name: Poems* by Sasha Debevec-McKenney. W.W. Norton & Company.
Keywords: Urgent, textured, shameless
- *Regaining Unconsciousness: Poems* by Harryette Mullen. Graywolf Press.
Keywords: Entangled, exhausted, exhaled
**September 2025**
- *Burn Me Back* by Peggy Robles-Alvarado. Four Way Books.
Keywords: Swelter, read, exhale
- *The Intentions of Thunder: New and Selected Poems* by Patricia Smith. Scribner.
Keywords: Moonlight, accident, unshuttered
**October 2025**
- *Mercurial, or Is That Liberty* by Rachelle Rahmé. Fonograf Editions.
Keywords: Immovable, permeable, present
- *The Natural Order of Things: Poems* by Donika Kelly. Graywolf Press.
Keywords: Thaw, imagine, metamorphose
**November 2025**
- *Landguage/Mirror Me* by Marina Blitshteyn. BUNNY.
Keywords: Name, portrait, self
**December 2025**
- *Southwest Reconstruction* by Raquel Gutierrez. Noemi Press.
Keywords: Departures, ingress, ascension
**January 2026**
- *The Book of Alice: Poems* by Diamond Forde. Scribner.
Keywords: Origin, revelation, exodus
**February 2026**
- *Fifty Mothers: Poems* by Preeti Vangani. River River Books.
Keywords: Body, loss, duet
This sampling from upcoming poetry titles is intended to inspire readers to explore new voices and broaden their literary horizons.