Jake Skeets
Introduction
When choosing to explore more diverse authors and creators, I feel it's important to bridge the gap between what we know and the new information those new creators will expose us to with common knowledge or experience as a gateway to navigate that new information. That's exactly what drew me to Jake Skeets and his work. Skeets' work dives into a number of complex themes such as tensions with masculinity and queer identity, as well as the struggles of Navajo people in the society of the Southwestern United States. I personally have no direct experience with Navajo culture, however, I have experience with the other complex themes of his work, and I felt that intersectionality could help me to better engage with it.
A Brief Biography
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| Jake Skeets (3) |
Jake Skeets is a 35-year-old Diné (Navajo) writer from Vanderwagen, New Mexico. In Navajo tradition, it is traditional to introduce people by including their clan heritage; Skeets is part of the Black Streak Clan and born for the Water's Edge Clan, and he was appointed Poet Laureate of the Navajo Nation in 2025.
(3). Jake has stated in interviews that he grew up in a less traditional home, his father worked blue collar jobs which he left for at four in the morning, and his mother commuted to jobs farther away from their home, because those closer would not hire her due to her race. Due to traumatic events of his youth, such as his uncle's suicide, and the tense environment of his youth, many of Skeets' writings cover topics like boyhood and manhood, masculinity, and beauty and brutality. Out of respect for his heritage in his clans and tribe, he specifically avoids telling traditional stories of his culture, because many of them require the accompaniment of a specific circumstance or ceremony to be told, but he draws inspiration and elements from them
(1).
Author's Works & Reviews
Eyes Bottle Dark with a Mouthful of Flowers
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| Eyes Bottle Dark Cover (2) |
Skeets does so in his most well-known, debut collection of poetry, Eyes Bottle Dark with a Mouthful of Flowers, which was published in 2019. The collection offers a look into the harsh conditions of growing up both Indigenous and queer in the West, in the fictional border town of Drunktown, New Mexico. The poems span a wide variety of themes, such as boyhood and manhood, alcoholism, queer identity and eros, and systemic, industrial violence. According to Paul Cunningham in the Harvard Review, "Skeets’s poems often force readers to become scavengers for meaning," due to the unique presentation of the words on the page, scattering them around the page and making artistic use of its white space (2). The cover of the book is a real picture of Jake Skeets' uncle, who committed suicide by jumping in front of a train (1).
Horses
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| Horses Cover (4) |
Skeets continues to discuss harsh but real topics in his second collection of poetry,
Horses, which was published in 2026. Skeets' second collection broadens its lens. While it continues to focus on the Southwestern United States, and carry themes like queer eros connecting with the natural world, the work also includes the topics of climate change. The title itself comes from an incident in 2018, where almost 200 horses were found dead in the dried mud of a stock pond in the Navajo Nation. Many of the works in
Horses include traditional Diné language, stories and songs, and intentionally reduce focus on the singular "I" point of view to focus on the content of the poems. In an interview with Milkweed, Jake Skeets says, "In
Horses, queerness becomes relational and mirrors the poetics I’m working toward where the land becomes witness, and the body becomes a carrier of meaning"
(4). Publishers Weekly says in their review, "the collection draws connections between the land and its inhabitants to demonstrate human and nonhuman entanglements"
(5).
Sources
Hi Kaleb! I like that you chose to focus on a collection of poems which makes this post very unique, and it's interesting that you chose a queer and indigenous author as well. It sounds like this covers some very serious and emotionally provocative topics that might make for a very eye-opening experience while reading. You mention how Skeets' work forces readers to be scavengers of meaning, so I think it could be interesting to hear how different people interpret the meaning of his work as well.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting that you chose an author who is both indigenous and queer, instead of one or the other! It was very respectful to follow Navajo tradition by introducing the author with what clan he's from, and it was fascinating how his indigenous identity played into his work about queer identities and masculinity.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you explained the themes in Skeets poetry and connected them to his personal background and Navajo heritage. Very intriguing stuff!
ReplyDeleteI liked how the biography of Jake is formatted. I also find it neat how Skeets Hindus his poems as well, especially the Eyes Bottle Dark with Mouthful of Flowers.
ReplyDelete