Angela Jackson's latest collection of poetry borrows its title from a lyric in Barbara Lewis's 1963 hit single ""Hello Stranger,"" recorded at Chess Records in Chicago. Like the song, Jackson's poems are a melodic ode to the African American experience, informed by both individual lives and community history, from the arrival of the first African slave in Virginia in 1619 to post-Obama America. It Seems Like a Mighty Long Time reflects the maturity of Jackson's poetic vision. The Great Migration, the American South, and Chicago all serve as signposts, but it is the complexity of individual lives-both her own and those who have gone before, walk beside, and come after-that invigorate this collection. Upon surveying so vast a landscape, Jackson finds that sorrow meets delight, and joy lifts up anger and despair. And for all this time, love is the agent, the wise and just rule and guide.
| ISBN: | 9780810130517 |
| Publication date: | 28th February 2015 |
| Author: | Angela Jackson |
| Publisher: | Northwestern University Press |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 188 pages |
| Genres: |
Poetry by individual poets |