This April, we present two poems from Subhashini Kaligotla's forthcoming debut collection of poetry that blur the boundary between bird and man through delightful anthropomorphisms. These poems honor the mystery of the creature, be it man or bird, by reserving judgment through a steady, journalistic tone and by inviting us to admire the “elusive” one—“a still / from a silent-era film: // hyperbole of arch / glowering / at gulls.”

—Eugenia Leigh, Poetry Editor

Bird of the Indian Subcontinent