the enduring light in the absorbing collection is love Kirkus Reviews irl is a ravishing and provocative odyssey across the landscape of life Matthew David Wachsmans collection of poems is a fullthroated celebration of our ability to love reason cure support and honor each other It is also an unflinching exploration of why we can and must do better He inspires us to believe in ourselves while laying out the possible implications of our failure to act These poems are a map of the psyche offering insight into what motivates us and how to better understand respect each other Dating love fighting making our community better growing up and growing old irl is the story of us in all of our chaotic majestic glory It includes a poem about an invented word a word that means a feeling so much greater than love There are five poems inspired by George Floyd including A Permanent Stain about the enslavers who desecrate Wachsmans family past Miraculous looks to the future every human on earth is making in each moment Wachsman calls us out for selfinflicted wounds but refuses to let go of the very real possibility that with love and courage we will prevail We must