Speak Birth 1997 is Em Wright’s first collection of poetry. The volume includes poems that reflect on a pre–natal stroke the author survived and its relationship to their body and trans identity. Wright’s poems also reflect on physical fragility and medical intervention, and on connections of memory and family.
The book opens with a reflection from Melri Wright, the author’s mother, and is accompanied throughout by charcoal illustrations by Toronto-based artist Kalia Lenaghan. Speak Birth 1997 is hand-made in Guelph and designed by Steph Yates.
