Acquainted with the Cold

Poetry. Restless and exhilarating, Lexa Hillyer's inaugural collection showcases preoccupations with the intersection of the natural world and the urban setting. Assorted odes addressed to the months of the year constellate the collection, determining the emotional seasons of the book. These are poems of longing and mystery and meaning-making. Through her poems, Hillyer invites the reader to live life more fully, to delve into the wild possibilities open to us all.

"In ACQUAINTED WITH THE COLD we are introduced to an important new voice in poetry. Lexa Hillyer's poetic gifts and ambitions are fierce. Full of vivid imagery and memorable music, these poems surprise, move, and sing. I feel I have been waiting a long time to read this wonderful collection."--Laura Kasischke, author of National Book Critics Circle Award-winner Space, in Chains

“‘The skyline has gone away,’ Lexa Hillyer writes. ‘These are its bones.’ The poems in Hillyer’s debut collection Acquainted with the Cold explore a gorgeous and vanishing world, a world made of ice and rain and breath in the dark. With luminous language and an authoritative voice, these poems reveal that Lexa Hillyer is a new young poet to watch.”—Nicole Cooley, author of Kinereth Gensler Award-winner Milk Dress