Toxic Flora

For Kimiko Hahn, the language and imagery of science open up magical possibilities for the poet. In her haunting eighth collection inspired by articles from the weekly “Science” section of the New York Times, Hahn explores identity, extinction, and survival using exotic tropes drawn from the realms of astrophysics, mycology, paleobotany, and other rarefied fields. With warmth and generosity, Hahn mines the world of science in these elegant, ardent poems.

from “On Deceit as Survival”
Yet another species resembles
a female bumble bee,
ending in frustrated trysts—
or appears to be two fractious males
which also attracts—no surprise—
a third curious enough to join the fray.
What to make of highly evolved Beauty
bent on deception as survival—