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posted on 2023-08-04, 18:56 authored by Stephen Zerance"My flesh keeps the soul hostage," the speaker announces in the poem, "The Bathed One." This Aztec philosophy is what Skintight revolves around: the idea that the flesh was a mold, a simple barrier that holds the soul back from joining the gods that traveled with the sun. Identity plays a crucial role in this book--each poem representing change and personal growth. The self, much like putty, can be turned into myth. Skintight creates a world where the self can be redefined, transformed, and at the end, free.