Hillbilly Drug Baby: The Poems

by Jesse-Ray Lewis Narrated by Daniel Etti-Williams

Overview

The prevalence of drugs in the Appalachian area of our country is no secret, but it is rare to be able to step into the mind and thoughts of someone caught in the middle of a drug-infested life and culture and see life as they see it. Jesse-Ray Lewis gives us the opportunity to do just that. The words are sometimes harsh and the visualizations raw, but they are reality for Jesse-Ray Lewis who grew up in Appalachia surrounded by violence, drug dealing, and addiction. He entered foster care at age 12 and aged out of the system in 2016 at age 18. The poems start out as an elegy, a mournful expression of his sad beginnings. Then they begin to show hope as the author attempts rise up out of that shattered childhood as a quest for answers and a search for a new beginning.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Raw and righteous, with indignant courage and an original voice. Jesse-Ray Lewis somehow poeticizes the brutal, all-too relevant struggle of a prodigal son in Appalachia. His work is uniquely framed by the horrifying, inspiring biography of a nobody with plenty to say. Hillbilly Drug Baby: The Poems is a dispatch from darkest American you won't soon forget." —Ran Henry, author, the definitive biography Spurrier: How the Ball Coach Taught the South to Play Football


"I come from a cave of broken hearts" is only one line from Hillbilly Drug Baby: The Poems, but it reveals much of what is to be found in this book of poetry. From raw pain to poignant reflection, poet Jesse-Ray Lewis plumbs the depths of despair with his words. Drawing them with a pen dipped in his own life's blood, he reveals glimmers of light and hope in the darkest of places. Lewis's journey from drug baby to user, to becoming a dealer, and finally, a seeker, is cast without apology in strong language. Some will find it difficult to read; it is from life. Unafraid, he probes our deepest fears—-what would it be like to live that life? To plumb the depths of hell? To find an earthly savior loving yet stern and one who probes the crusty exterior, digging deep to find the gentle heart which lies beneath." —Saundra Kelley, author, Southern Appalachian Storytellers: Interviews with Sixteen Keepers of the Oral Tradition and The Day the Mirror Cried, a prizewinning collection of stories and poems.


"Unafraid, he probes our deepest fears—what would it be like to live that life? To plumb the depths of hell?" —Saundra Kelley, author of Southern Appalachian Storytellers


"These poems wrench open the door to a world of suffering, loss, and hope. Written as Jesse-Ray struggled to find his place in the world after aging-out of the system, his poetry grapples with hard-won truths and the kindness of strangers." —Sabrina Carnesi, Committee Chair at In The Margins Book Awards

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169920987
Publisher:	Boutique of Quality Books Publishing
Publication date:	11/28/2018
Series:	Hillbilly Drug Series
Edition description:	Unabridged

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