From poet Alex Lemon, a breathtaking collection of essays on life and death, masculinity and identity, love and parenthood, and pain.

As a child, Lemon survived brutal abuse. As a young man, he underwent almost debilitating brain surgery. Those health issues have lingered with him as an adult—and so too has fear. In the essays of Heartdusting, meditations on trepanation and Sophia Loren are haunted by the questions that have shaped Lemon’s life. What scars, emotional and physical, are left behind by the injuries of our lives? How do we move forward when trapped between the demons of our past and the angels of our better nature? In the process, Heartdusting blooms into a fascinating, headlong experiment in how to write about trauma.

Intimate and intensely felt, lending bright words and warmth to the nearly unspeakable, Heartdusting is an unforgettable lyrical expansion from one of our foremost young poets.