The Sissies

by Evan Kennedy

Poetry. LGBT Studies. "Composed on bicycular excursions through San Francisco, Evan Kennedy's THE SISSIES aims to 'be subjugated' and speak as animal—wolf, ox, sheep, donkey. A ballpark seagull settling on the Giants' outfield. The casual, mannered pun on St. Francis of Assisi (patron saint of the city and of animals) and 'a sissy' undergirds Kennedy's argument against the 'crummy superiority' of humans, and for the 'dissolution of animal taxonomy.' The speaker strives toward, but does not reach, a creaturely 'when I say wolf I mean something else I want to reach,' a horizon continually vanishing. Amid echoes of the medieval argument against homosexuality as 'contrary to kynde' or against nature, Kennedy suggests that our species-exclusivity (homo, human) is our apparent peril—'we have only kept identical to ourselves.' Like the troubadour's desire for another's spouse, by definition unobtainable, or the longing for one's creator and that- other-shore, these poems bray and graze toward a fuller empathy with creatures, a beatific meekness in the face of queer-bashing, where the body can be 'stilled as meat.'"—Julian Talamantez Brolaski

"THE SISSIES sings the body stigmatic (pummeled, benevolent, maligned) though it knows better than to hold out for unearthly transcendence. As a peer, I am envious and relieved to read poetry that is bare-chested, electric, and rare in its merger of poetic intuition with rigorous thought. 'Let me speak as no one's captive,' Kennedy writes, unfettered by trend or pretense. This book makes me believe in our vocation again."—Corrine Fitzpatrick

"The triple body of the text, like any sanctified uni-trinity worthy the name, 'perform[s] a superhuman etiquette toward the rest of creation.' Here the trinity is queer/poet/urban cyclist whose body speeds with nervy fragility across cityscapes of bursting apotheosis. The body and its relinquishment, never- ending sources of mystical wonder, occasion subjective transcendence according to a cyclical that of the praise song, especially St. Francis of Assisi's famous prayer, paying pan-theistic tribute to all elements of creation, from the cockroach to the dog-masked boys that litter the uni-trinity of his life, which, like his body, his mind and his text, are an exhilarating eco-system, a linguistic 'wildlife sanctuary.'"—Maria Damon

Genres: Poetry

104 pages, Paperback

Published May 15, 2016

Reviews

[Matt McBride · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using his cycling through San Francisco as his center, Kennedy explores ways of identifying outside taxonomies and hierarchies. Kennedy states, "My point is,/ if you don't see us as millions, you're unable/ to address any of us." In the equivocation of The Sissies the barking dog is the man in a leather dog mask is all of us. Kenedy is looking for a non-exclusive subject position, one that recognizes us as just another pile of meat amongst piles of meat. This is a gesture of love where Kennedy "sequence[s] these feelings/ toward a higher order of praise," an order of praise that values everything. The homophobia the speaker faces shows what's at stake in systems based on the diminishment of sameness. Elliptical and beautiful. As Kennedy says, "I suggest everybody luxuriate in this meekness."

[Joseph William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly the best contemporary text I’ve found that distills the desire to escape the confines of your own body and dissolve all corporeal borders. Reads like a continuation of the works of St Francis, St Therese of Lisieux, John of the Cross, Mansur al-Hallaj, and other mystics, but put in a modern context. Gives understanding to suffering and violence without advocating senseless martyrdom. Nice.

[Coki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poesi och prosalyrik om gender, att finna sig i sin egen kropp, normer, kärlek, gemenskap. Dikterna bättre än de prosalyriska inslagen som är lite ostrama. Läste som den av kurs.

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had an index of all my journals, because I have no idea what journal I was writing in around 2013 when I think I remember Evan giving an amazing reason from some of this work, and this book is also amazing, but there is something I specifically vaguely remember, that seems missing, it probably got edited out, and I want to reread it!

[Zack]

Love Evan's poetry. And this is the best one yet!