Hang-Dried Flowers, by Beni Tobin

Poetry, chapbook, 24 pages, from Bottlecap Features. Hang-Dried Flowers is Beni Tobin’s second chapbook, following their previous chapbook My Family Tree Caught Fire. Returning to natural themes, Beni invokes garden imagery to broach the cyclical nature of life, death, and new growth. Throughout the poems, there is a focus on mental health and its impact on romantic relationships. A few of the poems in this collection draw inspiration from online writing communities and familiar works of fiction. Beni Tobin’s words invite the reader to find comfort and kinship in the universal language of nature, reminding us that we are never truly alone and that difficulties often lead to growth. Beni Tobin (she/they) is a non-binary queer author living in Santa Barbara, California with their spouse, two children, and three dogs. Their writing is influenced by their experiences as a parent, a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, and an apostate of evangelical Christianity. They have been previously published as part of the Motherly Collective and write across multiple genres including science-fiction, fantasy, horror, and, of course, poetry. When they are not writing, they enjoy playing games with their children, taking their dogs to the beach, and dancing.