I Am Evidence

Name: I Am Evidence
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SKU: 9781780376561
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winner of the Mslexia Women's Poetry Pamphlet Competition

By Courtney Conrad

Summary

Courtney Conrad's debut poetry pamphlet, I Am Evidence, explores the complexities of Caribbean migration, gender-based violence, and national politics. Drawing on her experiences migrating from Kingston to the UK as a teenager, Conrad interweaves vivid diasporic imagery, incisive political commentary, and deeply personal narrative. Her work confronts the legacy of colonialism and the harsh realities of violence and corruption she witnessed growing up in Jamaica, while also embracing themes of religion, bodily introspection, and cultural heritage that evoke the warmth and struggles of both her Jamaican and British homes.

The collection has received multiple awards, including the 2022 Mslexia Women's Poetry Pamphlet Competition and the 2023 Michael Marks Poetry Award, with several poems recognised by the Eric Gregory Award.
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Format: Pamphlet

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I Am Evidence

$19⁹⁹

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

A compelling read for those interested in contemporary poetry, Caribbean culture, postcolonial themes, and gender studies. Ideal for readers who appreciate powerful, socially conscious verse that challenges political and personal histories.

Courtney Conrad’s powerful work interrogates the tensions within Caribbean migration, gender-based violence and national politics. Migrating from Kingston as a teenager she is unflinching in her attempts to capture the vibrancy and violence of her experiences. Winner of the 2022 Mslexia Women’s Poetry Pamphlet Competition judged by Imtiaz Dharker.

Description

Courtney Conrad's powerful work interrogates the tensions within Caribbean migration, gender-based violence and national politics.

Migrating from Kingston as a teenager, she is unflinching in her attempts to capture the vibrancy and violence of her experiences in both the UK and Jamaica. Her poetry draws together subversive diasporic imagery, national political commentary, and shatteringly personal narrative in its exacting response to the political corruption and violence she witnessed as a young girl in Jamaica, in the wake of its colonial subjugation under the British Empire.

The themes of her work stretch across state- and gender-based violence, religion, raw bodily introspection, and lush cultural memorabilia that reimagines the warmth and blood of both her homes.

I Am Evidence was the winner of the 2022 Mslexia Women's Poetry Pamphlet Competition, judged by Imtiaz Dharker. It was also the winner of the 2023 Michael Marks Poetry Award and includes some work which won her an Eric Gregory Award in 2022. It is her debut pamphlet.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

"Courtney Conrad is one of the most promising voices to emerge in the British literary world," praises Raymond Antrobus, highlighting her voice of affirmation and truthful lyricism. Roger Robinson notes that I Am Evidence acts as a revitalising force within Caribbean artistic expression, using national language to reveal hidden narratives about Jamaica’s socio-political landscape. Malika Booker emphasises Conrad's continuation of a proud Jamaican poetic tradition, giving voice to resilience and empowerment among the working class with a distinctive oral style.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781780376561

Publisher: Bloodaxe Books Ltd

Format: Pamphlet

Date Published: 01 September 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Bloodaxe Books Ltd

Edition: Paperback original

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 3.0mm

Width: 148.0mm

Height: 210.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 32

Collections

Arts & Culture Courtney Conrad Non-Fiction Poetry

About the Author

Courtney Conrad is a Jamaican poet who now lives in London. Her debut pamphlet I Am Evidence (Bloodaxe Books/Mslexia, 2023)was the winner of the 2022MslexiaWomen's Poetry Pamphlet Competition judged by Imtiaz Dharker. It was also the winner of the 2023 Michael Marks Poetry Award and includes some work which won her an Eric Gregory Award in 2022.She received a Bridport Prize Young Writer Award in 2021. She was shortlisted for The White Review Poet's Prize, the Manchester Poetry Prize, Oxford Brookes International Poetry Competition and Aesthetica Creative Writing Award's Poetry Prize, and was longlisted for the National Poetry Competition. Her poems have appeared in Magma Poetry, The White Review, Poetry Review, Bath Magg and Poetry Birmingham Literary Journal. She is an alumna of the London Library Emerging Writers Programme, MPK, Obsidian, Griots Well Collective, Roundhouse Poetry Collective, and Barbican Young Poets.