Questions for Wolf, Shannon Quinnâs debut poetry collection, explores desire and memory, examining the damaged lives of characters whose street smarts are their only defense against self-destruction and loss of hope. Quinnâs poems delve into a world of âinner city mortificationsâ as she contemplates lost innocence and how the longing to be great rather than merely good can drive people to pursue a life along societyâs margins. From adolescent girls getting a taste of adulthood around a bonfire in âBonfireâ to the sex workers who hold their own on the dark streets of Quinnâs hazy, almost mythical universe, readers are transported through the âpeculiar urban sprawl of being a girlâ and presented with a celebratory defiance of the expectations projected onto women.
Questions for Wolfis a collection of dark yet delicate poems, celebrating the myth and magic associated with female sexuality and agency. Themes of lost innocence, damaged lives, addiction, and destitution intermingle with a celebration of life outside the margins, as Quinn weaves beautiful narratives out of the ugly bits of life. Images of childlike purity combine with tragedy as the collection follows a motley gang that includes âthe morphined, the moon-shined,/the induced amnesiacs and the bicycle thievesâ as they stage a revolution against polite society and âpulverize the idea of being good instead of great.â
Stark natural imagery combines with Quinnâs magic-infused metaphors as she describes liquid skies filled with stars and the simultaneously soothing and oppressive force of water as it alternates between the serene waves of a fresh hit and the sound-muffling burden placed on revolutionaries âchained to the ocean floorâ. Bears, dogs, elephants, and other strange beasts including carnivorous sheep take shadowy shape throughout the collection as Quinn delves into our animal urges and confronts societyâs tendency to enforce order but offer no guidance. âWhere were our birders when we needed them?â she asks in âAnimal Secretsâ, but this probing discontent reveals fewer answers than questions.
Despite being a collection exploring wounds and sorrows, Questions for Wolfis also fundamentally about redemption as Quinn explores the strength it takes to reclaim a shattered life. Quinn dares herself to transform grief into something beautiful, and the result is an eloquent statement about hope against all odds.