I can’t imagine a more fitting book to enjoy right now (in the icy tundra and snow days that many of us are currently inhabiting). Hushed and reverent, mysterious and playful, the poems in Sarah E. Colona’s Hibernaculum want to share their quiet magic with you (and also to tuck you into bed with a dark fairy tale or two).
NOTE: After the interview below, read “Now I Understand,” “The Custody of Ghosts,” and “Whispered into a Statue’s Ear,” all of which appear with the permission of the author. Order your copy of Hibernaculum here.
Q: Silence and secrets appear in so many of the poems in Hibernaculum. As a writer, how do you view the quiet, the whispered, and the unsaid? How do you decide what to say or not say? How does secrecy work in your poems?
A: Thank you for the opportunity to discuss my work, Hannah. I’ve never outgrown an early fascination with storytelling: fairy tales, myths, parables, and family moments. In all stories, there’s a bit that remains untold.
I remember listening to conversations held over my head. Like other children, my siblings and I would try to decode the adult world’s euphemisms and facial expressions. A teacher’s hitched brow could play like a sermon. Even at home, some truths were tucked away until maturity yielded understanding.
