First, in the Saturday Rumpus Essay, Casandra Lopez threads together the fragments of self-identity, the love of cars her father and brother were born with, and a lost soul. Through the retelling of the death of her younger brother, Lopez explores the lasting wounds it caused for her and for her family, and how it feels to be related to the dead—it’s a brokenness that requires years of care and love—much like a beat-up car—to heal.
And Brandon Hicks illustrates some “On-the-Street Interviews,” asking questions about human cloning, why one might throw oneself off a building, and dream states.
Finally, in the Sunday Rumpus Interview, Derek Gromadzki speaks with poet Shane McCrae on the connection between language and rhythmic sensibility, the privilege of Confessionalism, and the importance of silence, even in the middle of a line. In the Language of My Captor, McCrae’s forthcoming fifth collection of poems, includes a short prose memoir that captures moments from the poet’s childhood.
