Between a Bird Cage and a Bird House

The fall of the Iron Curtain in the early 1990s ushered in a new tide of European immigrants to the United States. These populations, which hailed primarily from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, were largely adrift in America's cultural melting pot. Laden with their belongings and informed by their experiences, these immigrants became citizens of a new diaspora searching for space to exist in their adopted home.

In Between a Bird Cage and a Bird House, author Katerina Stoykova follows that which "calls / the roaming mind / looking for land" with the shell of her homeland at her back. Through themes of domestic abuse, the death of a parent, the loss of a friend, and the search for cultural identity, the poems in this collection transcend the borders of language and nation-states. As a Bulgarian immigrant, Stoykova weighs the differences between safety and captivity, exploring how one can feel sheltered yet still not feel at home.

Through a series of addresses to her new domestic partner, America, the speaker in this collection expresses gratitude while simultaneously interrogating the landscape that has come to "home" her. With every line of verse, Stoykova's unique grasp on the turns of the English language brings a fresh perspective to immigrant identity and lays bare the terrifying and thrilling duality of living between two cultures.

A.
America, you are so big, I feel endless
What is the difference
Light without her body
Stained Glass Butterflies
America, do you remember
So much depends upon
America, what do you hide
Sus-toss
The Country Who no Longer Wanted Her Children
America, I visited
Visit
Conversation
The Way I Pray to St. Catherine
America, you made me in your image
He Catches a Magic Fish
A Man and a Woman in a Bedroom
Once
America, you watched me change
Honey, this is the scary truth
To the Foreign Woman... in the Post Office
Dear Numbness
America, here is the answer
Dear One
There once was a woman who wanted to be a better mother
America, there will be nothing left
Shame is a private punishment
I Shame, Therefore I Am
Wasn't it easier with less awareness?
America, I love doing stupid things
At some point you stopped
The entire day I loved someone
It's a Great Day to Burn, the Man Said
Some Catastrophes Approach Slowly
America, It's complicated
8th Floor Balcony Ghazal
So, You Miss Your Depression
I don't know
America, if your eyes are dry
Better
Darling
Everybody needs a pen
America, what you have
You'll be given everything, twice
By the end of your life
You look for proof
America, if there were a rule
The Body, the Collateral
and in the morning, we saw a moth
America, now I know
We Must Be Very Careful When Using the Word Home
Black Stone Over White Stone
America, I don't know
The Apple Who Wanted to Become a Pinecone
A Dream
America, would you be a part of me
Imagine a raw egg
Creative Spurt
As I'm writing this
America, I dally
Bo from the Choctaw Nation
What Happens to the Prophet
B.
Theorem: America is the greatest country in the world.
Proof
Conclusion
Alternate ending
Alternate conclusion
Acknowledgements and Notes
Brief Bio