Now that the days are longer, enjoy the extra hours of sunlight with a new book by an NER author! Part 1 of our April roundup includes a memoir about gradual hearing loss, fresh perspectives on the biblical figure of Eve, and much more. Be sure to shop these releases on our Bookshop.org page, and keep an eye out for Part 2.

Matthew Vollmer’s family memoir All of Us Together in the End is out now from Hub City Press. Against the lonely backdrop of the pandemic and his mother’s premature death, Vollmer probes memory and explores the ways in which loved ones maintain contact with us, even when they’re no longer with us. Vollmer’s essay “Keeper of the Flame” was published in NER 33.1 and was selected for Best American Essays 2013.
From Norton comes Marilyn Hacker’s latest collection of poems, Calligraphies. These poems move between Paris and Beirut, combining Hacker‘s knowledge of French, Arabic, and English. Through this exploration of language, Calligraphies meditates on identity, revolution, and mourning. Hacker has contributed to several issues of NER, most recently as a translator and guest editor of Polyglot and Multinational: Lebanese Writers in Beirut and Beyond in issue 43.2.


NER contributors Nomi Stone and Luke Hankins coedited Between Paradise and Earth: Eve Poems, which was recently published by Orison Books. This anthology brings together recent and contemporary poems about the biblical figure of Eve, offering new perspectives and opportunities for her while refusing traditional narratives. Stone’s poem “Wonder Days” was published in issue 38.4, and a translation by Hankins appeared in NER 31.3.
Hot off the press from Milkweed, John Cotter’s memoir Losing Music is already moving readers. Author Justin Taylor praised the work, saying, “Losing Music is a fascinating, heartbreaking, deeply personal story from one of the most talented essayists around. It’s a book about art and illness, the betrayals of the body, and what is kept and what is lost as time goes by.” NER 42.3 featured four monologues by Cotter, including “Lemon Fresh,” which was performed by the author here.


Out now from Atria is Maggie Smith‘s highly-anticipated memoir You Could Make This Place Beautiful. Beginning with the ending of her marriage, this deeply vulnerable work builds on themes of family, labor, and patriarchy. New York Times best-selling author Glennon Doyle writes that Smith “reminds you that you can . . . survive deep loss, sink into life’s deep beauty, and constantly, constantly, make yourself new.” Smith’s poem “The Hum” was published in issue 40.1.
Find more books by NER authors on our Bookshop.org page.