Whitework

Poetry. The poems in WHITEWORK, Ashley McWaters' debut collection, explore sewing as synecdoche for the whole of women's work, particularly the creative work traditionally deemed acceptable for women. Braiding together the myth of Athena and Arachne, a Victorian teacher-pupil relationship, and the act of writing itself, this pristine and haunted collection explores concerns about ego and alter-ego, the shock of beauty, and the nature of female creation. Devoted to formal experiment, and taking up erasure (both textual and historical) as a central motif, the book acts simultaneously as homage and artifact. At once preserving the language of the female and its historic omission, WHITEWORK celebrates the unspoken through supernatural means--with the muted vocabulary of a Poetry Queen. If you think it's gentle, do look again; McWaters has a sharp needle. Reader, beware.