The title Copia was taken from photographer Brian Ulrich’s photography project of the same name (notifbutwhen.com).
“Retail Space Available” and “Ghostbox” were based on interviews with photographer Brian Ulrich, about his experiences photographing sites for his project Dark Stores, Ghost Boxes, and Dead Malls.
“with/out” is after Janice N. Harrington’s poem “Heat,” from her book Even the Hollow My Body Made Is Gone (BOA Editions, 2007).
Both “Niagara” poems are based on images from the photo series of the same name, by Alec Soth (alecsoth.com/photography/projects/niagra/), as well as interviews with the photographer about his experiences on the project.
Some of the phrases in “Let the future begin this way:” were taken from photographer Danny Lyon’s book Pictures from the New World (Aperture, 1988) and The New American Ghetto by photographer Camilo José Vergara (Rutgers University Press, 1997). The last four lines are from Romans 10:15.
The Yiddish lines in “Yiddishland” come from Di folks-shprakh, by Y. Klepfish (Warsaw: Farlag “Progress,” 1909–1910) as cited in Adventures in Yiddishland by Jeffrey Shandler (University of California Press, 2006).
“To Whom It May Concern:” contains language from an NPR story by Daniel Zwerdling, called “A Bright Spot of Life on the Icy Continent” (March 15, 2008).
“The Book of Dissolution” was inspired by James Griffioen’s photographs and account of his explorations of the former Detroit Public Schools Book Depository/Roosevelt Warehouse, as recounted on his blog (www.sweet-juniper.com).
“Post-Industrialization,” “All That Blue Fire,” “Outside the Abandoned Packard Plant,” “And After the Ark,” “Inside the Frame,” “Outside the Frame,” and “Borderama” were commissioned by Virginia Quarterly Review for the Spring 2011 issue, entitled Ruin & Rebirth. These documentary poems resulted from a reporting trip to Detroit with Jesse Dukes and Kate Ringo in August 2010, and would not exist had it not been for their hard work on the project, and the support of Ted Genoways. There are many other Detroit residents who gave us their time, stories, and expertise, for which I’m grateful: Dan Austin, Terry Blackhawk, Alvin Brewer, Delores Casey, Arnold Collens, Sean Doerr, Wendy Ford, Oren Goldenberg, Vicki Hooks Green, Lolita Hernandez, Jerry Herron, Greg Lenhoff, Andy Linn, Emily Linn, Peter Markus, Joan Nash, Suzanne Scarfone, Nick Tobier, Stuart Trager, and Shar Willis.
“Porto, Portare, Portavi, Portatus” contains lines from John 16:12, Acts 7:43, 1 Timothy 6:7, Genesis 18:12, and Luke 7:14.
