Ten Poetry Books for the Twenty-First Century By Disabled Authors

As the editor of Wordgathering for the past thirteen years and the facilitator  of the Inglis House Poetry Workshop for ten years prior to that, I am occasionally asked to what  books of poetry by disabled writers I would recommend to those who were just  approaching the field of disability poetry.    

Here is my list of ten I’d recommend to get started with.  I’m not claiming that these are “the best” or even the most influential, but simply that having read these, a writer will have a pretty good grasp of disability poetry as it has taken shape in the United States.  I’ve listed these in the order of publication because it seems to me that an understanding of what has already been accomplished is important in considering what contemporary disability poetry is attempting. 

1. Jim Ferris, The Hospital Poems (2004)  – This was one of the first books totally given over to disability poetry.  Ferris set the stage for much subsequent writing not only by unabashedly putting himself as a person with a disability but also introducing some of its

basic themes, particularly the medicalization of disability. It is also extremely readable.

2. Kathi Wolfe, Helen Keller Takes the Stage (2007) – Wolfe’s poems rescue Helen Keller from inspirational icon by repackaging her as a sassy real life social activist with all too human impulses.  Written in Keller’s voice, the book is another one that is an accessible read.

3. Jillian Weise, The Amputees Guide to Sex (2007).  Daring when written, Weise’s book put the assertion that disabled women are sexual beings on the front burner.  The recent reissue of its 10^th anniversary addition attests to its staying power and tremendous influence.

4. Laurie Clements Lambeth – Veil and Burn (2008). Still unsurpassed in its depiction of the onset of multiple sclerosis, it is a lyric essay on light, photography, pain and sexuality. One of the first books that demonstrates how the experience of disability can impact form.

5. Jennifer Bartlett, Sheila Black & Michael Northen, Beauty is a Verb (2011) – The only anthology in the list, this groundbreaking book corralled together 36 of the top disabled American poets pairing their work with essays becoming the impetus for subsequent anthologies. It is still a go-to reference.

6. Stephen Kuusisto, Letters to Borges (2011) – It was a toss up between this book and Kuusisto’s first book Planet of the Blind, but this series of epistolary poems charts new territory by illustrating how disability poetry can claim a revered literary pioneer while demonstrating the sophistication/inventiveness that disability poetry is capable of. 

7. Brian Teare, The Empty Form Goes All the Way to Heaven (2016)  – By bringing in Buddhist influences and the art of Agnes Martin, Teare’s poems expose the blurred lines between disability and “normalcy” and challenge the notion that there is only one way to read a poem. Not an easy read, but very rewarding.

8. Constance Merritt, Blind Girl Grunt (2017) – The only poet of color in this group, Merritt’s book reveals the essentially white nature of disability poetry until recently. Her incorporation of blues rhythms and sensibility shows alternative routes disability poetry can take. The poems are mesmerizing and difficult to put down.

9. Molly McCully Brown, The Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and the Feeble-minded (2017) – Using the records from an institution for housing the disabled, Brown exposes their treatment, setting it against the notion that born a century ago she would have been one of the residents.

10. D. J. Savarese,  A Doorknob for an Eye (2018) – Savarese work gives lie to the belief that a non-speaking person with autism cannot be a poet.  This slim volume of ekphrastic poems centering on the work of autistic artists provide insights that only one who has shared those experiences and perspecitves can provide.