The Smallest of Bones Nominated for the SFPA Elgin Award for Best Speculative Poetry Book

Bones, Bones as Far as the Eye Can See

Holly Lyn Walrath
2 min readMay 27, 2022

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“These tiny poems are large with insight, making me remember certain things I was sure I had forgotten. There’s a range of topics from love/romance, queer sexuality, religion, death, demons/ghosts, and more. Some of these poems will be ones I think of often. And one I already made a copy of and put it on my book cart. I want to look at it every day.” ​ — Ladies of Horror Fiction

I’m honored that my first full-length collection of poetry, THE SMALLEST OF BONES, published by CLASH Books (2021) is nominated for the SFPA (Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association) Elgin Award for best speculative poetry collection!

About The Smallest of Bones

A haunting ossuary of tiny poems covering a wide range of topics such as love, romance, relationships, queer sexuality, religion, death, demons, ghosts, bones, gender, and darkness. The Smallest of Bones guides those on an intimate journey of body acceptance, with sparse words dedicated to peeling back skin and diving bone-deep into the self. Raw, honest, and powerful, this collection is an offering to those struggling to find power in the darkness.

“Over the years, Walrath has easily cemented herself as Houston’s premiere horror poet, and The Smallest of Bones is her best work yet. Just watch out for splinters.” — Jef Rouner, Houston Press

I am also delighted that this book was picked up by Kipple Press — an Italian publisher who does beautifully translated versions of books from English to Italian. You can purchase an Italian version of this book from Kipple Press!

Il più piccolo fra le ossa

Leggere la raccolta di Holly Lyn Walrath, “Il più piccolo fra le ossa”, mi ha fatto pensare alle mie ossa. In antropologia culturale si uso il termine “heritage”, da “heirs”, eredi. Le mie ossa sono i miei eredi e per la prima volta ho pensato a loro. E, grazie o per colpa loro, ho pensato non solo alla mia morte ma a ciò che accadrà dopo la mia morte. Ciò che accadrà della mia discendenza ossea.

Forse alla fine di questo libro servirebbe una pagina bianca. Un foglio in cui il lettore o la lettrice possano scrivere, o anche solo pensare di scrivere, delle loro ossa e lasciare una traccia. Lasciare una traccia su ciò che lascia una traccia.

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Holly Lyn Walrath

I'm a writer, editor, publisher, and poet. I write about writing. Find me online at www.hlwalrath.com or on Twitter @HollyLynWalrath!