Poetry. "I regard Lease as the best poet of his generation. This is a poetry filled with stories that are built to last. This is a poet who will become a major voice in American poetry."—David Shapiro

Joseph Lease gracefully delves into American culture—narrating American lives, struggling with unjustified war, anxiety, and the broken promise of democracy. Lease braids humor, political bite, and lyric beauty, taking us to a place of warning, critique, and elegy.

Author City: Oakland, CA USA

Joseph Lease’s critically acclaimed books of poetry include TESTIFY (Coffee House Press, 2011), BROKEN WORLD (Coffee House Press, 2007), and Human Rights (Zoland Books, 2000). His poem “‘Broken World’ (For James Assatly) ” was selected for The Best American Poetry 2002 (Scribner), edited by Robert Creeley and David Lehman. His poems have also been featured on NPR and published in The AGNI 30th Anniversary Poetry Anthology, BAY POETICS, NO GENDER, DENVER QUARTERLY, Colorado Review, FENCE, Paris Review, TALISMAN, and elsewhere. Originally from Chicago, Lease lives in the Bay Area and chairs the MFA Program in Writing at California College of Arts in San Francisco.

Reviews and Other Links
Lorelei Lee's The Last Book I Loved @ The Rumpus
James Meetze @ NewPages
Anne Elena Eyre @ Eoagh: A Journal of the Arts
Sheila E. Murphy @ Jacket2