Rachel McKibbens
{{Infobox person
| name = Rachel McKibbens
| birth_name = Rachel Anne Camacho
| birth_place = Anaheim, California, U.S.
| occupation = Poet, author
| children = 5
| partner =
}}
Rachel McKibbens is an American poet originally from Santa Ana, California.McKibbens, Rachel. [http://rachelmckibbens.com/ "Rachel McKibbens"]. rachelmckibbens.com. Retrieved on 15 October 2018.{{Cite web |last=Kushner |first=Daniel J. |title=Poetry, politics, and pie |url=https://www.rochestercitynewspaper.com/rochester/poetry-politics-and-pie/Content?oid=2604373 |access-date=2022-10-14 |website=CITY News |language=en}}
Early life
McKibbens was born Rachel Anne Camacho in Anaheim, California, and raised in Santa Ana.{{Cite web |title=Rachel McKibbens |url=https://www.coppercanyonpress.org/authors/rachel-mckibbens/ |access-date=2022-10-14 |website=Copper Canyon Press |language=en-US}} McKibbens was born during her parents' divorce proceedings and was briefly placed in foster care after she was born. She and her younger brother were separated in the foster care system before their father gained custody of them.{{Cite web |last=Grise |first=Emily |date=2021-04-02 |title=Line / Break with Rachel McKibbens |url=https://www.coppercanyonpress.org/line-break-with-rachel-mckibbens/ |access-date=2022-10-14 |website=Copper Canyon Press |language=en-US}}
Career
McKibbens is known for her poetry, essays, and short stories. She currently resides in upstate New York, where she teaches and writes.{{cite web |url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/rachel-mckibbens|title=Rachel McKibbens |website=Poetry Foundation}}{{cite web |last1=Flood |first1=Alison |title=Prize-nominated poet's debut cancelled as plagiarism accusations build |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/dec/06/prize-nominated-poets-debut-cancelled-as-plagiarism-accusations-build |website=The Guardian}}
In reviewing her book Pink Elephant, a critic for The Rumpus said "McKibbens awakens and haunts with selfless honesty."{{cite web |last1=Bernard |first1=Kristina |title=LIKE AN AMPUTEE'S PHANTOM ITCH |url=https://therumpus.net/2011/02/like-an-amputees-phantom-itch/ |website=The Rumpus}} Publishers Weekly gave a positive review of her book blud, saying "The poems feature razor-sharp imagery, and McKibbens exhibits an ear attuned to sonic texture."{{cite web |title=Blud |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-55659-524-0 |website=Publishers Weekly}}
Personal life
McKibbens lives in Rochester, New York, and has five children.{{Cite web |last=Lynch |first=Emily Hessney |title=Rachel McKibbens On a Thursday at Fuego |url=http://www.iheartroc.com/work/mckibbens/ |access-date=2022-10-14 |website=www.iheartroc.com}} In 2021, her father and brother died of COVID-19.{{Cite web |date=2022-10-13 |title=Covid Revealed Mysteries |url=https://radioink.com/2022/10/13/covid-revealed-mysteries/ |access-date=2022-10-14 |website=Radio Ink |language=en-US}} The story of their deaths, along with McKibbens' family history, became the subject of the 2022 podcast We Were Three, produced by Serial and The New York Times.{{Cite news |last=Updike |first=Nancy |last2=Pifer |first2=Jenelle |last3=Snyder |first3=Julie |date=2022-10-12 |title=We Were Three |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/11/podcasts/we-were-three.html |access-date=2022-10-14 |issn=0362-4331}}
Works
- Pink Elephant (Cypher, 2009; Small Doggies, 2016)
- Into the Dark & Emptying Field (Small Doggies, 2013)
- blud (Copper Canyon Press, 2017)
References
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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:Poets from California
Category:People from Anaheim, California
Category:People from Santa Ana, California
Category:Writers from Rochester, New York
Category:21st-century American poets