Carla M. Cherry’s fourth poetry collection, These Pearls Are Real, is a medley of poems exalting the joys of childhood, falling in love, grappling with gun violence, cultural appropriation, police brutality, and the neglect of people suffering mentally illness. Her epic poem, “A Daughter Speaks” is an homage of the courage of Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Therese Patricia Okoumou, and the ordinary people across various identities who gave us hope for a brighter future during the dark years under Trump. Several new poems in this second edition join the original work, including “She Wanted To Become a Nurse”, a tribute to Breonna Taylor.
"These Pearls are Real" by Carla M. Cherry
Carla M. Cherry is a native of the Bronx, NY. A graduate of Spelman College, New YorkUniversity, and Lehman College, she has been teaching in the New York City public schoolssince 1996. Her poetry has appeared in various publications, including Anderbo, Eunoia Review,Dissident Voice, Random Sample Review, Firefly Magazine, Picaroon Poetry, StreetlightPress,MemoryHouse, Bop Dead City, Ariel Chart, Anti-Heroin Chic, The Racket, and RaisingMothers. She has published four other books of poetry through iiPublishing: Gnat Feathers andButterfly Wings, Thirty Dollars and a Bowl of Soup, Honeysuckle Me, and Stardust and Skin. Sheis an M.F.A. candidate in Creative Writing at the City College of New York.