In her quietly ferocious poems, Gemin reminds us again and again of the essential strangeness that lies within the domestic. Her examinations of the quotidian always lead to surprising and pathos-laden reckonings - with the self, with the past, and with the manifold contradictions and menace that exist within contemporary culture. As she memorably puts it in one of the collection's closing poems, If you're willing / to stand still enough / to be stung, you'll see / some astonishing things."" Gemin possesses in abundance the courage of this conviction."" - David Wojahn, author of Interrogation Palace ""Passion, hard drinking, bad-boy lovers, life lived on the brink of a dare - all this flares like embers un-banked and newly fed as the speaker of these poems, a woman who 'hangs lace in her kitchen windows' and has reached a safer, more sedate middle-age, calls her past back into being. Another Creature reminds us that we can remain, under the surface, the wild, hopeful, headstrong ""creatures"" of our youth. And Gemin demonstrates time and again how beautifully, how forcefully, those former selves can accompany and add dimension to the voice that lifts itself into and beyond nostalgia, into the limitless realm of poetry."" - Leslie Ullman, author of Slow Work Through Sand ""What verve and gumption, what generosity in these poems!... Gemin's voice is bold and nuanced, her art supple and sure. She moves with utter grace through the sound track of adolescence into the music of midlife with its subtle complications, and she gives us a beatific vision of ourselves. Gemin is a gem of a poet and this book is a true gift."" - Betsy Sholl, author of Rough Cradle
