not without small joys — Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah
"not without small joys is, beyond an examination of pleasure, also an examination of stillness, of what the world can afford us even within our solitude if we are willing enough, eager enough, if we open our palms and wait for an offering. These poems burst with the moments of joy within the larger moments of joy. There is such sweetness here, and it lingers well after the book is finished."
—Hanif Abdurraqib, author of A Fortune for Your Disaster and The Crown Ain't Worth Much
"It is undeniable, the sheer force of Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah's not without small joys, which powerfully conjures a world of tender care even in the face of brutality. Let "small" not mean subtle or diminishing, but rather a reclamation of Black vitality, which anti-Blackness seeks to destroy. This book is a call for Black revolutionary joy."
—Muriel Leung, author of Imagine Us, The Swarm, and Bone Confetti
Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah is a Ghanaian American poet, editor, and educator living out the diaspora in Boston, Massachusetts. He is both Black & alive. Born in 1993, Emmanuel currently teaches 11th grade English at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, and in the past has served as a teaching artist at organizations such as the Massachusetts Literary Education and Performance Collective, the Cambridge Arts Council, Northeastern University, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. When not kicking it with juniors, Emmanuel works as an instructor at the Boston-based nonprofit Grubstreet, and as an associate editor for Pizza Pi Press. Emmanuel’s poem, “kra-din” (Kweli Journal), is a recent recipient of the Pushcart Prize (XLIII). In his free time, he enjoys hot carbs, brightly colored chapbooks, and the long sigh at the end of a good book.
"not without small joys is, beyond an examination of pleasure, also an examination of stillness, of what the world can afford us even within our solitude if we are willing enough, eager enough, if we open our palms and wait for an offering. These poems burst with the moments of joy within the larger moments of joy. There is such sweetness here, and it lingers well after the book is finished."
—Hanif Abdurraqib, author of A Fortune for Your Disaster and The Crown Ain't Worth Much
"It is undeniable, the sheer force of Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah's not without small joys, which powerfully conjures a world of tender care even in the face of brutality. Let "small" not mean subtle or diminishing, but rather a reclamation of Black vitality, which anti-Blackness seeks to destroy. This book is a call for Black revolutionary joy."
—Muriel Leung, author of Imagine Us, The Swarm, and Bone Confetti
Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah is a Ghanaian American poet, editor, and educator living out the diaspora in Boston, Massachusetts. He is both Black & alive. Born in 1993, Emmanuel currently teaches 11th grade English at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, and in the past has served as a teaching artist at organizations such as the Massachusetts Literary Education and Performance Collective, the Cambridge Arts Council, Northeastern University, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. When not kicking it with juniors, Emmanuel works as an instructor at the Boston-based nonprofit Grubstreet, and as an associate editor for Pizza Pi Press. Emmanuel’s poem, “kra-din” (Kweli Journal), is a recent recipient of the Pushcart Prize (XLIII). In his free time, he enjoys hot carbs, brightly colored chapbooks, and the long sigh at the end of a good book.
"not without small joys is, beyond an examination of pleasure, also an examination of stillness, of what the world can afford us even within our solitude if we are willing enough, eager enough, if we open our palms and wait for an offering. These poems burst with the moments of joy within the larger moments of joy. There is such sweetness here, and it lingers well after the book is finished."
—Hanif Abdurraqib, author of A Fortune for Your Disaster and The Crown Ain't Worth Much
"It is undeniable, the sheer force of Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah's not without small joys, which powerfully conjures a world of tender care even in the face of brutality. Let "small" not mean subtle or diminishing, but rather a reclamation of Black vitality, which anti-Blackness seeks to destroy. This book is a call for Black revolutionary joy."
—Muriel Leung, author of Imagine Us, The Swarm, and Bone Confetti
Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah is a Ghanaian American poet, editor, and educator living out the diaspora in Boston, Massachusetts. He is both Black & alive. Born in 1993, Emmanuel currently teaches 11th grade English at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, and in the past has served as a teaching artist at organizations such as the Massachusetts Literary Education and Performance Collective, the Cambridge Arts Council, Northeastern University, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. When not kicking it with juniors, Emmanuel works as an instructor at the Boston-based nonprofit Grubstreet, and as an associate editor for Pizza Pi Press. Emmanuel’s poem, “kra-din” (Kweli Journal), is a recent recipient of the Pushcart Prize (XLIII). In his free time, he enjoys hot carbs, brightly colored chapbooks, and the long sigh at the end of a good book.
Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah is a Ghanaian American poet, editor, and educator living out the diaspora in Boston, Massachusetts. He is both Black & alive. Born in 1993, Emmanuel currently teaches 11th grade English at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, and in the past has served as a teaching artist at organizations such as the Massachusetts Literary Education and Performance Collective, the Cambridge Arts Council, Northeastern University, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. When not kicking it with juniors, Emmanuel works as an instructor at the Boston-based nonprofit Grubstreet, and as an associate editor for Pizza Pi Press. Emmanuel’s poem, “kra-din” (Kweli Journal), is a recent recipient of the Pushcart Prize (XLIII). In his free time, he enjoys hot carbs, brightly colored chapbooks, and the long sigh at the end of a good book.
