Tender

Toi Derricotte is an award-winning poet whose work tackles difficult and universal subject matter such as violence, racism, motherhood, and self-identity through an autobiographical lens. She is the author of The Undertaker’s Daughter and four previous poetry collections,including Tender, winner of the Paterson PoetryPrize. She is the recipient of two Pushcart Prizesand fellowships from the National Endowmentfor the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation,among other honors. Derricotte is cofounder ofCave Canem, professor emerita at the Universityof Pittsburgh, and a chancellor of the Academy ofAmerican Poets.

In her fourth book, the award-winning Derricotte focuses on the aftermath of slavery, continued sexism and violence within the family. These poems plunge into the psychology of race and gender and other key components of identity. . . . Her work reaches out into the black and white and comes up with meaning that is often complex and rich—in short, gray. . . . Derricotte delivers frankness and hope through her thoughtful probing of encounters with complex racial and sexual relations.