January 1996 Poetry/Women's studies 6x9 in, 80 pp Paperback 1-885030-01-0 $11.95 list The Unbearable Heart Poems by Kimiko Hahn Winner of a 1996 American Book Award! Book Description . About the Author . Excerpt . Reviews . Events . Buy Books Now A 1996 recipient of the American Book Award, The Unbearable Heart is a superbly composed yet passionate book of grief, mourning, and the overcoming of a mother's death. Creating ever-deepening cycles of feeling and insight, the poems range across a stunning variety of poetic landscapes and voices, from Murasaki's Genji to Roland Barthes' masculinist post-structuralism. Kimiko Hahn's use of innovative forms continues her explorations of Japanese folk and classical themes and poetics, while her magnificently imagined voice of Kuchuk Hanem, the Egyptian prostitute described/silenced in Flaubert's travelogues, bravely ventures into new areas of meaning suppressed by Orientalism about the Middle East. Praise for The Unbearable Heart: "Reading The Unbearable Heart you have the sense of someone tearing the past apart and rebuilding with naked, raw hands. The work is furious, flawed and absolutely necessary."--Adrienne Rich "It may sound odd to call a book of elegies exciting, but while reading The Unbearable Heart you'll find yourself catching your breath as much as you weep. If the poet's work is to find a way to speak the unutterable, take this book as your guide."--Cornelius Eady "Hahn's gaze is confident and immediate"--Poetry Calendar