#chapbooks

The good child's own book, or Stepping stone to knowledge. 1830.

We Feed the Dead is a story told in poems, reflecting on death, loss, regret, and how we sustain ourselves despite it all.

Introduction (Soup #1)

FLP CHAPBOOK OF THE DAY: Ruin Me Before the Party Ends by Chloe Rodriguez

On SALE: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/ruin-me-before-the-party-ends-by-chloe-rodriguez/

Ruin Me Before the Party Ends is a sharp, intimate exploration of memory, identity, and the ghosts we carry from past loves and forgotten places. Through a series of vivid and surreal odes, the collection delves into the tangled landscapes of love, longing, and the personal histories that shape us. With wit and vulnerability, the poems invite readers into a world that balances the chaotic energy of youthful rebellion with the quiet ache of growing up. From the neon glow of Miami’s forgotten dive bars to the haunted swamps of Florida, each poem is a search for meaning in the spaces that elude us—whether in the fleeting pleasure of a fast-food quesadilla, the fading memory of dive bars and strip clubs, or the tender grief of a mother’s absence. Ruin Me Before the Party Ends is an invitation to a party where nostalgia, loss, and the desire for connection are all tangled together, and where the end always feels just around the corner, with each poem a desperate attempt to hold on before it all slips away. #poetry #memory #identity #loss #place #love #belonging #womanhood #girlhood #Florida

Chloe Rodriguez is a poet, writer, and a South Florida Native. Chloe has a BA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing and a minor in Philosophy from Florida International University. She is currently an MFA candidate for Creative Writing with a focus in poetry at Florida State University, where she is also a Graduate Teaching Instructor.

PRAISE FOR Ruin Me Before the Party Ends by Chloe Rodriguez

Through lushly rendered descriptions, compelling lyricism, and a stark awareness, these poems masterfully tour us through life’s varied and complex landscapes: the natural and the urban, childhood and womanhood, the visceral and the spiritual, the romantic and the profane, innocence and decadence.

–Richard Blanco, 2013 Presidential Inaugural Poet, author of Homeland of My Body

Chloe Rodriguez’s Ruin Me before the Party Ends is a wild invitation to one “manic pixie dream girl’s” riot of color, lights, and dive bars, and through it all, she asks “What is it be a woman?” A little girl sees the pink neon sign for a pole dancing club. Is that it? A late-night deejay, Delilah, hands out romantic advice. Should we take it or is it just another trick? Are we all as lost as Laika in the outer reaches of the cosmos? Or are we post-pop princesses ready “to hang up the combat boots?” There are so many women inside one woman, and Chloe Rodriguez has invited them all to her party. A rock ‘n’ roll debut!

–Barbara Hamby

Chloe Rodriguez‘s poems resonate with both large personal and Americana iconograghy. Her poems zing and sing with tremendous energy. They are beautifully crafted and elegant on the page. Her voice is unmistakable and resonates with gusto and bravado. Congratulations on her entrance to the church of American poetry, a much welcomed and brilliant debut!

–Virgil Suarez

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