All That Teethes Within: Poems

"Poet Laureate of Ohio Kari Gunter-Seymour's collection All That Teethes Within translates the poignant complexity of loss into words. This exploration of grief as an Appalachian woman overflows with sadness and anger towards the forces that cause societal and environmental damage in the region-the devastation felt after a loved one passes suddenly, the opportunity lost to poverty or gender inequality, and the piece of one's identity that vanishes or fades with age. Serving as a benediction, the collection begins with an homage to the speaker's sister, whom we later learn died of suicide. Gunter-Seymour then forges onward by interrogating other types of loss and destruction, quietly weaving in elements of nature- "hills and the hollers, whippoorwill birds and the corn stalks"-to counter her profound pain. Small joys found through friendship, the land, grandchildren, and wildlife, round out this manuscript, until Gunter-Seymour closes with a final blessing that summons her sister once again, serving as a benediction on how to survive by speaking the truth of our grief and our joy. Over the last two decades the suicide rate in the US has steadily grown despite extensive awareness campaigns, wide implementation of suicide prevention programs and initiatives, and increased mental health advocacy. The poems in this collection are searching for clues by exploring family history and culture, the sibling relationship, shared heartbreaks, and society's often skewed ideas concerning mental health, in an attempt to reach a place of understanding and deal with the ever-present lingering anxieties that are left to sort out and tame from a sibling's suicide. All the while, life goes on and those left behind must find ways to navigate the world as a survivor of major trauma. This collection asks questions of the reader and hopes for, if not answers, then self-reflection. Each poem is offered up as an elegy to the sister, and to the Appalachian landscape which the poet champions th