Published in 2022 by Random House, this highly anticipated collection explores moments of joy and loss in life and in the act of writing. Time functions in the poems like a body of water: a universal solvent capable of dissolving the laws of physics and space. Referred to as both a "mother" and a "motherfucker" in the poem "Not Even," time unravels to bring back and define what is lost, explore the landscape of self, and ultimately become a life-sustaining force. The deeply personal poems in this collection outline things as entrances and doorways that lead to transformation.
In "The Bull," the speaker is bewitched by a bull who is darker than the night and has kerosene-blue eyes. The speaker steps out of a safe place to communicate with the bull, reckon with his own identity and desires, and reach towards an animal-shaped entrance that is compared to the speaker himself.
"Beautiful Short Loser" brings together a variety of vivid images that are both serious and humorous in nature. These include dancing in the rain in a wedding dress, the trees from the speaker's place of origin, the speaker's friend Jaxson after getting top surgery, speaking with a police officer, and the suicide of the speaker's uncle. Though seemingly separate, these images are brought together to depict the gains and losses of the speaker's life.
“Rise and Shine” is an address to the speaker's mother that portrays a widening distance between them. The speaker recounts taking his mother's tips from her job, cooking for her a dish that she taught him to make, and leaving the house. Multiple lines make evident the substance addiction that the speaker struggles with.
Like "Beautiful Short Loser," the poem "Not Even" also brings together a variety of images in a conversational tone. Dealing with topics such as tokenism, grief, and the consequences of war, the transformations that the speaker undergoes (communicated through both the poem's form and its content) ultimately center on what it means to be enough. This poem also includes the line that gives the collection its title.
"Amazon History of a Former Nail Salon Worker" is a catalog poem that lists the purchases made by the speaker's mother in the last two years of her life. By letting the lists speak for themselves, the poet tells the story of his mother's gradual decline.
