Calling a Wolf a Wolf

A POETRY BOOK SOCIETY RECOMMENDATION SHORTLISTED FOR THE FELIX DENNIS PRIZE FOR BEST FIRST COLLECTION 2018 I could not be held responsible for desire he could not be held at all Tracking the joys and pains of the path through addiction, and wrestling with desire, inheritance and faith, Calling a Wolf a Wolf is the darkly sumptuous debut from award-winning poet Kaveh Akbar. These are powerful, intimate poems of thirst: for alcohol, for other bodies, for knowledge and for life. 'The struggle from late youth on, with and without God, agony, narcotics and love, is a torment rarely recorded with such sustained eloquence and passion as you will find in this collection' FANNY HOWE 'Compelling . . . strange . . . always beautiful' ROXANE GAY , AUTHOR OF BAD FEMINIST AND HUNGER 'Truly brilliant' JOHN GREEN , AUTHOR OF THE FAULT IN OUR STARS 'A breathtaking addition to the canon of addiction literature' PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (STARRED REVIEW)

A POETRY BOOK SOCIETY RECOMMENDATION SHORTLISTED FOR THE FELIX DENNIS PRIZE FOR BEST FIRST COLLECTION 2018 I could not be held responsible for desire he could not be held at all Tracking the joys and pains of the path through addiction, and wrestling with desire, inheritance and faith, Calling a Wolf a Wolf is the darkly sumptuous debut from award-winning poet Kaveh Akbar. These are powerful, intimate poems of thirst: for alcohol, for other bodies, for knowledge and for life. 'The struggle from late youth on, with and without God, agony, narcotics and love, is a torment rarely recorded with such sustained eloquence and passion as you will find in this collection' FANNY HOWE 'Compelling . . . strange . . . always beautiful' ROXANE GAY , AUTHOR OF BAD FEMINIST AND HUNGER 'Truly brilliant' JOHN GREEN , AUTHOR OF THE FAULT IN OUR STARS 'A breathtaking addition to the canon of addiction literature' PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (STARRED REVIEW)

2017 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Gold Winner 2018 Levis Reading Prize Winner 2017 Julie Suk Award Winner A 2017 Nautilus Silver Award Winner 2017 Florida Book Award Gold Winner A 2018 First Horizon Award Winner Winner of the 2018 Eric Hoffer Small Press Award Shortlisted for the Eric Hoffer Award Grand Prize A 2018 Montaigne Medal Finalist A 2017 NPR Best Book of the Year A 2017 Library Journal Best Book of the Year A 2017 Entropy Magazine Best Book of the Year A 2017 The Coil Best Book of the Year A 2017 Sundress Publications Best Book of the Year A 2017 Indianapolis Monthly Best Book of the Year A 2017 Largehearted Boy Best Book of the Year A 2017 Volume 1 Brooklyn Best Book of the Year A 2017 Interview Best Book of the Year This award-winning debut boldly confronts addiction and courses the strenuous path of recovery, beginning in the wilds of the mind. Poems confront craving, control, the constant battle of alcoholism and sobriety, and the questioning of the self and its instincts within the context of this never-ending fight. From "Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before": Sometimes you just have to leave whatever's real to you, you have to clomp through fields and kick the caps off all the toadstools. Sometimes you have to march all the way to Galilee or the literal foot of God himself before you realize you've already passed the place where you were supposed to die. I can no longer remember the being afraid, only that it came to an end.

2017 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Gold Winner 2018 Levis Reading Prize Winner 2017 Julie Suk Award Winner A 2017 Nautilus Silver Award Winner 2017 Florida Book Award Gold Winner A 2018 First Horizon Award Winner Winner of the 2018 Eric Hoffer Small Press Award Shortlisted for the Eric Hoffer Award Grand Prize A 2018 Montaigne Medal Finalist A 2017 NPR Best Book of the Year A 2017 Library Journal Best Book of the Year A 2017 Entropy Magazine Best Book of the Year A 2017 The Coil Best Book of the Year A 2017 Sundress Publications Best Book of the Year A 2017 Indianapolis Monthly Best Book of the Year A 2017 Largehearted Boy Best Book of the Year A 2017 Volume 1 Brooklyn Best Book of the Year A 2017 Interview Best Book of the Year This award-winning debut boldly confronts addiction and courses the strenuous path of recovery, beginning in the wilds of the mind. Poems confront craving, control, the constant battle of alcoholism and sobriety, and the questioning of the self and its instincts within the context of this never-ending fight. From "Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before": Sometimes you just have to leave whatever's real to you, you have to clomp through fields and kick the caps off all the toadstools. Sometimes you have to march all the way to Galilee or the literal foot of God himself before you realize you've already passed the place where you were supposed to die. I can no longer remember the being afraid, only that it came to an end.