The first full week of January came in with a roar and a mountain of work. I already feel a bit behind in my goal to read more in 2026. But one title I can add to my reading list is Annie Woodford’s newest collection, Peasant. Peasant is a beautiful collection of work. But that’s not a surprise. Every poem I’ve ever read by Annie has been written with tenderness and a genuine love of the people and places she writes about, especially the natural spaces of our region, the fields and forests and everything that exists there. That is the kingdom that Annie writes about, and I’m always here for it.
Peasant is published by Pulley Press. I met Pulley Press founder and editor, Frances McCue, a few years ago when we were stationed in the same neighborhood on the AWP convention floor. I remember learning about Pulley Press then and their dedication to publishing writers and writing from rural places. And if you’re a writer from a rural place or just love to read about rural people and their spaces, you should definitely check them out.
Here is one of my favorite poems from Peasant.
A Song for the Daughters of Europa
Annie Woodford
Every time we pass that pasture
I point out the bull to my daughter,
who was never taught to know a bull
and therefore to spot one, when
needed, in a field of cows. But once
you’ve seen one, they will always stand out—
the massive neck, the muscled shoulders
more dangerous than any female Angus.
I name the bull for Granny, who named them
for me and believed in the red myth
and in getting over the nearest fence
fast as you can. I know now
this was her only way, the lesson
pressed in by the little stones
of her eyes. I see the girl she must have been,
her hay-straw hair fine, like mine.
and barely holding a rag curl,
her canvas sneakers well-washed
but still stained by farmwork.
She is out in the dawn, an hour before
school, where she is the fastest
at math. She’s calling down the milk
cow, the copper penny leaves
of the locust tree, her footprints left in frost.
Once she grabbed my hand
just as she grabbed the electric
fence and, when the shock passed
through her and into me, she laughed.
I feel so fortunate to be able to read with Annie next week at Atlas Books inside The Generalist. If you live in or near Johnson City, Tennessee, I invite you to come out on Sunday afternoon, January 18th. Our reading will start at 2:00 p.m. Huge thanks to Davis Shoulders for making this reading happen! I’m really looking forward to getting back to Johnson City, which has an amazing literary community, and it will be so much fun to read with Annie.
In case you missed it… Last week, I shared a poem by Stephanie Niu from her collection, I Would Define the Sun. And you can catch a recording of my October reading at the Decatur Book Festival here.
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Denton Loving 