In this lyrical collection, the myth of Persephone is cracked open and retold from the inside out, through the eyes of Persephone, Demeter, Hades and the poet herself. These poems speak not of abduction, but of agency. Not of silence, but of voice.

Blending ancient myth with modern femininity, "Pomegranate Seeds and Misdeeds" is a reclamation of power and a conversation between Persephone and every woman who's ever been told to stay soft, to stay small, to stay silent.

"Oh sweet Persephone,

Even mortal women must break from

their mothers to become something new.

So when you peeled that pomegranate

and ate its seeds, did it taste of freedom?

Did the darkness offer you something

that springtime and light never could?

The gods always pegged you as one thing,

but not him. He recognized the duality

within you. He saw you and saw a queen.

I hear the nymphs cried for you and asked

if you were afraid. I hear thorns grew at

your feet and when your ichor bled into

the Underworld, you warned the Gods

against a woman's contradictions and said,

it is me they should fear."

-from pomegranate seeds and misdeeds