Instruments of the True Measure

Laura Da’ is a poet and public school teacher. A lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest, Da’ studied creative writing at the University of Washington and the Institute of American Indian Arts. She is Eastern Shawnee. Her first book, Tributaries, won a 2016 American Book Award. In 2015, Da’ was a Made at Hugo House Fellow and a Jack Straw Fellow. She lives near Seattle with her husband and son.

Laura Da' aligns 'cross hatchings on a map' with blood memory to create a cartography of resistance. Da's vivid poems awaken startling clarity in understanding American history's imprint upon our bodies—and that we, too, are 'quartered' by its wrath. Instruments of the True Measure is a necessary journey, a must-read.""—Sherwin Bitsui ""Da' juxtaposes birth, removal, loss, illness, and survival with linguistic precision, carrying us deep into the story of America's beginning in a wholly new way.""—Karenne Wood ""'Negotiating phantom obliterations on map velum' along the lines where Tecumseh stamped earthquake fault, sure, Da' delivers a poetic sincere to the equations of time, space, place, and footing on this immaculate journey in soul-shaking, killer verse. Looking for a contender? This is it.""—Allison Adelle Hedge Coke