Judas Goat

Poems

De: Gabrielle Bates

Narrado por: Gabrielle Bates

"Stellar . . . with great humanity, grace and precision."—Nicole Sealey, author of Ordinary Beast

Gabrielle Bates's electric debut collection Judas Goat plumbs the depths of intimate relationships. The book's eponymous animal is used to lead sheep to slaughter, while its own life is spared, and its harrowing existence echoes through this spellbinding collection of forty poems, which wrestle with betrayal and forced obedience, violence and young womanhood, and the "forbidden felt language" of sexual and sacred love. These poems conjure encounters with figures from scriptures, domesticated animals eyeing the wild, and mothering as a shape-shifting, spectral force; they question what it means to love another person and how to exorcise childhood fears. All the while, the Deep South haunts, and no matter how far away the speaker moves, the South always draws her back home.

In confession, in illumination, Bates establishes herself as an unflinching witness to the risks that desire necessitates, as Judas Goat holds listeners close and whispers its unforgettable lines.

©2023 Gabrielle Bates (P)2023 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Unforgettable Images…and more

It’s always been her stunning imagery that captures the unbridled passion in her poetry. But, listening to the audio book makes for a visceral reminder of Gabrielle’s beautifully musical words and sonic soul blasts.