“Jones’ poetry often invokes a sense of intimate nostalgia — a warm thirst for a moment or a place that was, or that could have been. The verses change pace on a dime. They vibrate.” — Jairo Ramos at NPR: Code Switch.

“we tested our faith

in stories of birds

and bees

but

bees lied.” — Kima Jones from “Fresh.”

Who She Is

Kima Jones has received fellowships from PEN Center

…

I like talking with people who have changed religions. Here is one of them.  Kima Jones is a poet and a book publicist in LA that I met through Roxane Gay at a reading about a year ago. She always wears the most incredible lipstick, and her writing gives me the shivers. I knew she'd become a Muslim as a young woman, and I'd also been giving a lot of thought to the process of religious…