a snake in her mouth

poems 1974-96

nila northSun

This collection by nila northSun’s includes poems from two chapbooks, Diet Pepsi and Nacho Cheese (1977) and Small Bones, Little Eyes (1981), and newer writings reflecting back on her later experience.  Her earlier poems established her firmly as a member of the Native American literary renaissance of the 1970s.  They made a sensation at the time with their deadpan recording of horrendous events and their wry, self-deprecating sense of humor, often at the expense of the author’s astonishing physical beauty.  Never boring, northSun remains reflective, often humorous, and unrepentant. 

“For more than 15 years, nila northSun has been writing some of the cleanest and most powerful poetry to be found in the growing body of contemporary American Indian literature.  The influence of her gritty, understated realism can be seen in the work of a whole new generation of Native American writers, such as Sherman Alexie. . . . Although it has been too long coming, this first major volume of nila northSun’s work has been worth the wait.”—Joseph Bruchac

i started this poem
with he’s mad & i don’t know
why
but the more i wrote
the more i realized
part of it is
we have house guests for
once in our lives
part of it is
one is a beginner photographer
who is snap crazy
he wants to do nudes of
me all pregnant
part of it is
i cleaned a little bit
of the house before they came
what it boils down to
is he doesn’t want me to pose
& i don’t mind if i do
             —“posing’

5½ x 8½ inches • 80 pages • ISBN 0-931122-87-2 • $8.95