{"product_id":"gardens-of-our-childhoods-paperback","title":"Gardens of Our Childhoods - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eJohn Belk\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Gardens of Our Childhoods\u003c\/i\u003e, the stunning debut by John Belk and winner of the Autumn Houe Press Rising Writer Prize, looks at the world of professional wrestling to excavate the real within the artificial and explore the projections we create, run from, and delight in. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBelk uses the spectacle of wrestling to stare deeply into American culture and masculinity, parsing the intersecting threads of patriarchy and gender, and unpacking identity formation and performance. As Belk pries into toxic masculinities, he leaves space also for tenderness, queerness, and resistance to normative structures, opening the potential for love and admiration. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePopulated by classic and contemporary wrestlers like André the Giant, Hulk Hogan, \"Stone Cold\" Steve Austin, Ricky Steamboat, Bruno Sammartino, Marcus \"Buff\" Bagwell, and more, this book is ultimately about the constant deconstruction and reconstruction of our identities that smudge fiction and reality. Like wrestlers in their operatic and winding storylines, we learn how to project and inhabit identities while growing into and fighting against the scripts we write for ourselves and those that are imposed on us.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eJohn Belk\u003c\/b\u003e is an Associate Professor of English at Southern Utah University where he also directs the Composition Program. His debut poetry collection, \u003ci\u003eThe Gardens of Our Childhoods \u003c\/i\u003e(Autumn House Press) was featured in \u003ci\u003ePoets \u0026amp; Writers \u003c\/i\u003eand was selected as one of the \"Best New Poetry Books of 2023\" by the New York Public Library. His chapbook, \u003ci\u003eThe Weathering of Igneous Rockforms in High-Altitude Riparian Environments\u003c\/i\u003e, is available from Cathexis Northwest. \u003c\/p\u003e\n        \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 74\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.3 x 8.3 x 5.9 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 18, 2022\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51766742810912,"sku":"9781637680353","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/43223fbcdd03e14b688b2f782e9e46b9.webp?v=1780298007","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/gardens-of-our-childhoods-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}