“We turn to poetry in our greatest moments of joy and sorrow to help us tune in to our emotions and connect with others,” writes Johnston. In Praisesong for the People, poetry brings us together to celebrate the people across the state who make this land feel like home.
Edited by Amanda Johnston, the 61st Texas Poet Laureate and first Black woman to receive this honor, this vibrant anthology collects the work of 70 emerging and established poets across the state. Commissioned to write original poems celebrating everyday people, the poets in Praisesong for the People: Poems from the Heart and Soul of Texas are as diverse as the landscapes they inhabit, and reflect the intersecting identities of Texas’s population across age, gender, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disability, and immigrant communities. In these poems, their voices gather in a heartfelt chorus to praise the people in their communities who offer small kindnesses, asking nothing in return.
Praise the bus driver who ferries us safely across town. Praise the abuela who dries our tears. Praise the librarian who protects young curiosity. Praise the therapist with an open door, the teacher fluent in the language of affirmation. With story, testimony, and song, these poets give our unsung community heroes their flowers.
Featuring praise poems by Kendra Allen, C. Prudence Arceneaux, Sara Bawany, Gaby Benitez, Claire Bowman, Lauren Brazeal Garza, KB Brookins, drea brown, Marie Brown, Jenny Browne, Joe Brundidge, Cloud Delfina Cardona, Paola Carrasco, Camari Carter Hawkins, Avery C. Castillo, Julieta Corpus, Victor Leo Cruz, Logen Cure, Terry Dawson, Audrea Diaz, Tarfia Faizullah, Icess Fernandez Rojas, Carrie Fountain, Mag Gabbert, Jasmine Games, Daniel García Ordaz, Chera Hammons, Alicia Harmon, SG Huerta, Amanda Johnston, Katelin Kelly, Aris Kian, Ella Kim, Jennine “DOC” Krueger, Dr. Rosalee Martin, Kaitlyn Marzetta McClung, Jasminne Mendez, Lupe Mendez, Zell Miller III, Jonathan Moody, Bo Hee Moon, Lisa L. Moore, Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton, mónica teresa ortiz, Sebastian Páramo, Bianca Alyssa Pérez, Emmy Pérez, Phillip Periman, Kenan Phillip, Julie Poole, Amanda Puryear El, Octavio Quintanilla, jo reyes-boitel, Gerard Robledo, Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson, Jan Seale, ire’ne lara silva, Shasparay, Naomi Shihab Nye, Ebony Stewart, Nomi Stone, Robert Tinajero, Sam Treviño, Pat Tyrer, Alexandra van de Kamp, Eddie Vega, Annar Veröld-Miranda, Edward Vidaurre, April Sojourner Truth Walker, and Sasha West.
With an introduction by Texas Poet Laureate Amanda Johnston.