Separation Anxiety

by Janice Lee

Separation Anxiety marks the first collection of poetry from acclaimed prose writer Janice Lee, and is a meditation on inhabitation and existence beyond the human. Weaving wisdom from her shamanic practice and the interstices of language, and in the difficult moments anticipating the deaths of her beloved dog companions, Lee weaves a complex and entangled text that explores inherited trauma, the presence of ghosts, interspecies communication, the dream world, grief, and human/animal separation.

Genres: Poetry

182 pages, Paperback

First published August 2, 2022

About the author

JANICE LEE (she/they) is a Korean American writer, teacher, spiritual scholar, and shamanic healer. She is the author of 8 books of fiction, creative nonfiction, & poetry: KEROTAKIS (Dog Horn Press, 2010), Daughter (Jaded Ibis, 2011), Damnation (Penny-Ante Editions, 2013), Reconsolidation (Penny-Ante Editions, 2015), The Sky Isn’t Blue (Civil Coping Mechanisms, 2016), Imagine a Death (Texas Review Press, 2021), Separation Anxiety (CLASH Books, 2022), a finalist for the 2023 Oregon Book Award, and A roundtable, unanimous dreamers chime in, a collaborative novel co-authored with Brenda Iijima (Meekling Press, 2023). An essay (co-authored with Jared Woodland) is featured in the recently released 4K restoration of Sátántangó (dir. Béla Tarr) from Arbelos Films. She writes about interspecies communication, plants & personhood, the filmic long take, slowness, the apocalypse, architectural spaces, inherited trauma, and the Korean concept of han, and asks the question, how do we hold space open while maintaining intimacy? Lee teaches workshops on inherited trauma, healing and writing, and facilitates guided meditations bringing together elements from several different lineages as a mesa-carrying practitioner of the Q’ero tradition of medicine work and as a practitioner of Engaged Buddhism (in the tradition of Plum Village and Thich Nhat Hanh). She also incorporates elements of ancestor work, Korean shamanic ritual (Muism), traditional Korean folk practices, plant medicine & flower essence work, card readings & divination, and interspecies communication. She currently lives in Portland, OR where she is the Operational Creative Director at Corporeal Writing and an Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Portland State University.

Reviews

[Mini · Rating 4 out of 5]

the plants may have protested but no one listens to what sounds like silence

This poetry collection is a beautiful nod to all the things that make us human. Lee has a way with words that create intimacy with the reader and draw them into her world of spirituality and appreciation for the human experience. I have not read her prior pieces, but after reading Separation Anxiety I am drawn to hearing more from her unique voice and exploring the world from her point of view. I am not a deeply deep-thinking person, and even less in touch with my spiritual side, however, this is a gorgeous work I would recommend to anyone seeking a deeper meaning in the every day.

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Thank you to Clash Books for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

[Andrew Byrds · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is a medicine, a shoulder, a whirlpool in your guts pulling down and inviting you to embrace the waters of enlightenment. dogs, music, and death: all gifts, all encompassing.

[Shilo · Rating 5 out of 5]

"hearing the geese / flying overhead / what I admire most / is how much / they don't give a fuck / / to human better / hold onto that rope / and pull"

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stunning meditation on existence that is wildly intimate and simultaneously universal. Best read in a landscape that evokes your demons and teaches your life lessons (the hi desert for me).

[Abby Molenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

a hidden gem . I picked this one up in a second hand bookstore and was roped in by the title.
I thoroughly enjoyed the concepts of human emotions/struggles being compared to parts of nature, and the feeling of tranquillity at the end of the book.

[Francesca · Rating 5 out of 5]

some of the most arresting poetry i have encountered in a long time! will look forward to returning to this <3

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A steady, vulnerable staredown with trauma and grief. These poems float through the specter of death and comes out on the other side, reborn and alive.

[Carlotta · Rating 1 out of 5]

the few good stanzas don't make up for lines like:

'the dogs poop in unison
facing
in opposite directions
momentary alignment'

good lord.