Read an excerpt: “Evolution of Stone”

Praise for Evolution of Stone

“In Evolution of Stone, Ghannam illustrates her identity with striking imagery and gorgeous language that leaves the reader feeling as though they have just flipped through a photo album as well as a book of poetry. A love letter to her “Palestinian ancestors,” her mother, and to herself, this collection is a vulnerable extension of Ghannam’s own heart with snap shots of her journey that showcase her powerful progression from daughter, to wife, to her well-deserved declaration of divinity as she writes, “I am new. I am fight…I make new worlds./I. Am.” Ghannam calls to her readers to look inside themselves and find their own strengths separate from and for the betterment of their surroundings—“This avalanche rages from the deep, and it sounds like my name.” A call to arms, a call to love, and a call to justice, this book is as timely as it is timeless.”

— Chanel Gomaa

About Lana Issam Ghannam

Lana Issam Ghannam’s poetry has appeared in The Revolution (Relaunch), Burrow Press Review, Mississippi Review, Prism Review, Raleigh Review, Spoon River Review, Sukoon, and The Cape Rock, among other journals. She is a first-generation Palestinian-American, born and raised in Central Florida. She received her MFA from the University of Central Florida in 2015, and her first poetry collection, Two Tongues, was published in 2019. Ghannam teaches English composition and lives in Florida with her husband and two sons.