Description:
This collection of poetry explores Dodici Azpadu's journey from her low-life origins in Red Hook, Brooklyn, to her transformation in New Mexico. These poems weave the elements of a life made whole on the frayed edges of the world.
Brief description: Dodici Azpadu is a gender queer, American-born Sicilian Arab. They live with their Jewish spouse in New Mexico, where they practice Shalom Bayit (Peace in the House). Recently, Azpadu has come out of retirement to teach a master class in fiction writing at the University of New Mexico. Their novel Living Room was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award, the Golden Crown Literary Award, and the New Mexico Book Award. In 2025, they published Dead of Winter, a historical fiction novel about the underbelly of the women's movement in the 1970s.
Review Quotes:
"Dodici Azpadu's Cloak is the cinematic view of the life of an outsider growing up in a Sicilian Arab family fresh from Ellis Island, unlearning a mother's language and learning that their nationality is 'American.' Each scene is rich in detail and emotion, from an infant bed, 'a dresser drawer softened with towels, ' to heading out into America 'to commit the crime of my life, ' wearing ties and living nonbinary long before the term was coined. A jazz singer's 'I can't make you love me' to the poet becomes 'I can't make the world love me.' Read Cloak. It's a gripping movie of a book." - Mary Oishi, Albuquerque Poet Laureate Emerita, author of Sidewalk Cruiseship
"Cloak speaks of how queer people of color survive their families and social barriers with dignity intact. There is not a whine or poor-me anywhere, but there is a good deal of in-your-face. These poems take me back, and they offer a roadmap for today. Everyday spirituality is a special secret in this treasure chest." - Linda Tillery, musician and producer