Poetry. "WHAT KILLS WHAT KILLS US explores the human condition in all its glory and ferocity. Through Biblical allusion, Greek myth, and coming-of-age drama, this work revels in sheer grit and imagination. Olsson doesn't shy away from atrocity. His is an original use of language, manifested at times by a suspicion of language itself: 'what issued from his mouth seemed as wondrous as a bird / of paradise strutting about, its tail a flag for the next world, / so he kept talking.' Olsson's supreme gift lies in his ability to astonish the reader even as he opens our minds to the state of our own fragile humanity."—Judith Skillman

Author City: Washington, DC USA

Kurt S. Olsson grew up in Troy, New York. A former Peace Corps volunteer, he has published poems in many journals, including Antioch Review, Field, Poetry, and The Threepenny Review. He lives just outside of Washington, D.C., with his wife and two daughters.