The Naomi Poems

The debut collection from Bill Knott that influenced a generation of poets and rockstars is now back-in-print for the first time in almost 60 years and includes a new introduction by Richard Hell.

Bill Knott’s first book, The Naomi Poems: Corpse and Beans, was written under the pen name St. Geraud, the fictional persona of “a virgin and a suicide” who allegedly died two years prior to publication. The Naomi Poems was received to great acclaim and brought him to the attention of such poets as James Wright, who called Knott  an "unmistakable genius." It also went on to inspire generations of fellow writers—from James Tate to Mary Ruefle to Denis Johnson. While first editions have become treasured collector’s items today, and its poems mixed and remixed into numerous anthologies over the decades, The Naomi Poems is finally available in its original form for the first time since its original publication.

“Bill Knott writes stunning poems in which he wires the head to the heart in such surprising ways that the results are truly electrifying. More than anyone of his generation, he shows us just how wild American poetry can be.”—Billy Collins

“There’s no other poet like Bill Knott.”—Yusef Komunyakaa