These poems have at their heart the charged, archetypal figure of the mother. Conflicted by the twin desires of self-destruction and self-preservation, the figure is both terrible and beautiful. This collection of poems shows a family in the aftermath of violence. James Allen Hall explores themes of loss, the intersection of grief and desire, and the ways in which history, art, and politics shape the self.<BR>We meet the speakers mother in many guises - she is the rogue Republic of Texas, the titular character of Rosemary's Baby, a nineteenth-century artist's model, a fake entry in an encyclopedia, the lost queen of King Lear. With clarity, wit, and compassion, the speaker discovers the facets of his mother - her own abuse, her years of adultery, her struggle to remain independent - so that he may come to terms with his own sexuality.