No Marketable Skills: A collection of poetry

This collection of original poems delves into many forms and voices juxtaposing an autobiographical perspective, where the author, an Italian-American lesbian reveals personal struggles, next to persona poems, which feature Frieda Kahlo, a feral briar, and Rapunzel's mother, among other subjects. The organization of the collection plays off the title, dividing the poems into parts named after the sections of a resume (name, address, education, etc.). The sections and the title have a sense of irony. The seemingly pessimistic viewpoint of the literal interpretation of "no marketable skills" fleshes out the hopeful perspective of qualities of a deeper merit and beauty that are often unappreciated, especially in the realm of financial compensation. The collection subtly looks at what it means not only to be a poet and claim this as one's (usually unpaid) work and priority, but also of what it is to simply be in this chaotic world.