Between 1905 and 1921 a group of outcasts lived together on a small island off the coast of New Bedford, Massachusetts. They came from many places, united only by the diagnosis of leprosy. Thirty-six patients were eventually sent to the leprosarium on rocky Penikese Island; fourteen are buried there. Outcasts by poet Eve Rifkah is their long-forgotten story.
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Editorial Reviews
Review
In Eve Rifkah's immense poem, Outcasts, we are given an unforgettable true story, as the poet imagines her way into the minds and feelings of an array of characters who may well stand for the entire human race. Isolated Penikese, an island leper colony tended by a loving doctor and his wife, is a microcosm of suffering and redemption. In the poet s skilled hands its carefully documented histories are made vivid, poignant, and memorable. This book is a major achievement. - X.J. Kennedy --From the back cover
Whispers of ancestors can be heard in the brooding winds of Penikese Island. Isabelle Barros, my paternal grandmother, is buried there in the tiny cemetery. Eve Rifkah's intuitive poems pay tribute to that little colony of people who virtually disappeared from history. The author's portrayal of Isabelle and her companions is stunning, as she breathes life into their shadowy forms. This beautifully crafted book is an affirmation of their existence. It is also a compassionate gift...for me and for all the descendants of Penikese. - Joanne (Barros) Santana-Montez --From the back cover
Whispers of ancestors can be heard in the brooding winds of Penikese Island. Isabelle Barros, my paternal grandmother, is buried there in the tiny cemetery. Eve Rifkah's intuitive poems pay tribute to that little colony of people who virtually disappeared from history. The author's portrayal of Isabelle and her companions is stunning, as she breathes life into their shadowy forms. This beautifully crafted book is an affirmation of their existence. It is also a compassionate gift...for me and for all the descendants of Penikese. - Joanne (Barros) Santana-Montez --From the back cover
About the Author
Eve Rifkah is co-founder of Poetry Oasis, a non-profit poetry association dedicated to education and to the promotion of local poets. She is an adjunct professor of English at Fitchburg State College. She lives in Worcester, Massachusetts, with her husband, musician Michael Milligan.
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