"Destruction Bay" by Lisa D. Chavez is a collection of poetry that will touch every emotion within you. From the wistful reminiscence of "Wild Horses" and the sensitive fragility of "Wanting You", to the deep-rooted anger of "Buried Things" and "The Drivers", Lisa D. Chavez reveals her sense of culture, the struggle of existence, and a survivor's honesty to her audience. While reading through this collection of poems, I could feel the experiences of life, and the emotional scar tissue that the journey through it leaves upon all of us. As I read these poems to my daughter each night, we saw the parallels between the lives of the characters in Lisa D. Chavez's poems, and our own. I have never been as moved by any collection of poetry as I was by "Destruction Bay."

I search for poetry that is grounded in the real world, the world where little girls grow up into strong women whose tough exteriors belie souls that long for love and respect. Lisa Chavez's poems are this and more. I read one every night before I go to sleep, and she takes me out of the comfort of my bed into a world where women are beaten, where men lose themselves in violence and drink - but where redemption is always a possibility, waiting just around the corner.

This is a powerful, haunting, eloquent collection of poems that takes events in American history, such as narratives of 19th century white women's captivity by native American's and events surrounding the 1893 World's Fair, and interprets them through contemporary lenses. The result is a unique blend of the present and past which, combined, tells a sometimes troubling story.
Chavez, a teacher of creative writing and literature at Albion College in Michigan, focuses on the personal struggles of men and women, both past and present, and reveals a social history that is almost timeless in it's harsh, complex, oppressive condemnation. A few lines from the poet "A Century Plant" will give the reader a sense of the struggles experienced by many in our society, past and present:"There is a fire on earth that burns much hotter and sweeter than hell. I've felt it. Eternity is now, a lingering death I face every day. Extinction a relief."
This collection is the story of men and women made captive for more than a century. Their captors have been racism, alcoholism, poverty, emotions, failed marriages and a multitude of other events that can strike any individual, any time, without warning and many times seemingly without reason. Their stories, whether from the past or present, will be eerily familiar to many readers. This is first rate narrative poetry from a poet that does her homework and understands the power of words...and history.