The Hand of the Hand by Laura Vazquez

The Hand of the Hand brings us to a future or an alternate universe in which earth, animal, and human intertwine—where stomachs have meadows, milk pours itself over trees, and flies wash the dead. Vazquez pulls deceptively simple, bare language into puzzling formations, creating an ambient unease. By turns lyrical and absurd, The Hand of the Hand explores the mystery and strangeness of what it means to be both speech and body, tongue and dirt.

Laura Vazquez (1986–) is a French poet. A 2023 recipient of the Prix Goncourt, considered the highest literary honor in France, she has published seven poetry collections since her 2014 debut with La Main de la main, which itself won her the Prix de la Vocation for young poets. She leads the poetry journal Muscle, where she has published poets such as Cole Swensen, Kenneth Goldsmith, Michèle Métail, Ben Lerner, Tao Lin, Santiago Papasquiaro, and Frédéric Forte. Her poetry, characterized by its polyvocal and sonic play with spare language, has previously been translated into eight languages, not including English.