Nimrods

“Punchy prose alternating with incantatory poems, and sometimes melding into a haibun, Kawika Guillermo’s Nimrods magnifies perspectives on the father-son relationship and mixed race and ups the bar for the memoir genre. Irreverent, edgy, and—the only kind worth reading—brutally honest.” - R. Zamora Linmark, author of The Importance of Being Wilde at Heart

“Lucid about the contradictions, Nimrods is incandescent in its rage, grief, and beauty. This is the poetry-story-theory we need to survive our battered and entangled inheritances and find our way into another time, unsettled but livable.” - Larissa Lai, author of Iron Goddess of Mercy

"In this raw mix of poetry and prose, Guillermo chronicles his early life and experiences in academia as a bisexual, mixed-race man.  . . . An affecting, unmistakable narrative: one in which Guillermo catalogs his difficulties, considers their effects, . . . and learns to find hope anyway. Though not for the faint of heart, this chaotic, fascinating self-portrait lingers." - Publishers Weekly

"With stylistic techniques ranging from biblical verse to punk lyric, Guillermo paints an empathetic, yet resentful picture.” - Julian Forst, The Ubyssey

"As the story of one man’s life, Nimrods is worthwhile due to its unconventional approach as well as Guillermo’s honesty, creativity, emotional maturity, and overall skill as a writer. As something even bigger, it is an effective meditation on the power of perseverance and the possibility of reconciliation between the people we once knew and the people that we are now." - Logan Macnair, The British Columbia Review

"A dizzying blend of 'auto theory, queer punk poetry, musical ekphrasis, haibun,' and believe it or not, 'bad Dad jokes,' it is never boring" - Gregg Shapiro, Out South Florida

"With its mixture of prose and poetry, Nimrods brings to mind Kathy Acker's Blood and Guts in High School, as well as, due to its visual layout, print zines like Search and Destroy that acted as the dominant form of communication for punk subculture in the pre-Internet days." - Scott R. Stalcup, Journal of American Culture

"Heartbreaking & discomfiting. . . ." - Jason S. Polley, Cha Journal