'' nsertboy'' is a 2014 debut poetry collection by

Danez Smith Danez Smith is an American poet, writer and performer from St. Paul, Minnesota. They are queer, non-binary and HIV-positive. They are the author of the poetry collections '' nsertBoy'' and ''Don't Call Us Dead: Poems'', both of which have receive ...

, published by YesYes Books. The book won the

Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry The Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry is an annual literary award presented by the Lambda Literary Foundation to a gay-themed book of poetry by a male writer. At the first two Lambda Literary Awards in 1989 and 1990, a single award for LGBT Poe ...

and the

Kate Tufts Discovery Award The Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are a pair of American prizes based at Claremont Graduate University. They are given to poets for their collections of poetry written in the English language, by a citizen or legal resident alien of the U ...

Smith's first poetry collection, the book's poems address body politics and the various levels of violence suffered by the poems' speakers ranging from societal to personal. It also addresses Smith's many intersecting identities as an

LGBTQ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (sexuality and gender), questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, Asexuality, asexual, ...

black man.

Critical reception

The book won the

John C. Zacharis First Book Award The John C. Zacharis First Book Award honors the best first book of poetry or fiction by a ''Ploughshares'' writer. The award carries a cash prize of $1,500, and feature publication in the "Postscripts" section of the Winter issue. It was started ...

from ''

Ploughshares ''Ploughshares'' is an American literary journal established in 1971 by DeWitt Henry and Peter O'Malley in The Plough and Stars, an Irish pub in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since 1989, ''Ploughshares'' has been based at Emerson College in Bost ...

''. The book was also a finalist for the

Norma Farber First Book Award The Norma Farber First Book Award is given by the Poetry Society of America "for a first book of original poetry written by an American and published in either a hard or soft cover in a standard edition during the calendar year". Poetry Society of ...

. ''Boston Globe'' mentioned the book in a list of the best poetry books of 2014.

Lambda Literary The Lambda Literary Foundation (also known as Lambda Literary) is an American LGBTQ literary organization whose mission is to nurture and advocate for LGBTQ writers, elevating the impact of their words to create community, preserve their legaci ...

lauded Smith's affirmation of black identity and his reflections on painful, violence experiences in his own life. The reviewer also noticed the trajectory of healing and optimism which Smith's poems embark on: "Smith shifts from associating his body with harm, to learning how to warmly embrace other men ... In '' nsertboy'', Danez Smith calls for a world in which black boys and men are loved. A world where they are told they are beautiful and believe it." ''

The Rumpus ''The Rumpus'' is an online literary magazine founded by Stephen Elliott (author), Stephen Elliott, and launched on January 20, 2009. The site features interviews, book reviews, essays, comics, and critiques of creative culture as well as origi ...

'' appreciated Smith's adherence to the black literary tradition and his subsequent subversion of poetry as a predominantly white space and canon of work. Ultimately, the reviewer concluded "It’s a special book that cuts through the white noise of American culture." ''Pank'' observed Smith's construction of the personal and political as a simultaneous act: "In '' nsertboy'', Smith ignites a discussion about life as a queer person of color in today’s racially charged, orientation conscious society. Through the arteries of movement, music, and religious (or non-religious) experience, Smith allows us to imagine life from his perspective in a way that only the most powerfully evocative poetry can."

References

{{reflist Lambda Literary Award–winning works 2014 debut works 2014 poetry books African-American poetry LGBTQ poetry 2014 LGBTQ-related literary works

Contents

Critical reception

References