Tell Me About Heaven is the first collection of poetry from Grace Dougherty. Throughout the 27 poems included, which were written in Los Angeles and New York from March 2021—August 2022, Dougherty quietly weaves narratives with imagery which, to her, belong to a specific time and place -- recalling smelling Baltimore on the 5 south—but become universal in the hands of her readers. She leans into stereotypical language of the millenial girl, “Whoever said having a crush is like jail/literally had a PhD,” whilst simultaneously addressing the everyday violences that come with being a young woman. In parts self deprecating and yet tongue-in-cheek, Dougherty places herself as a multitude of roles as an expression of self realisation. The six chapters, which are not chronological nor explained as otherwise, guide readers through to a feeling of reconciliation. Tell Me About Heaven doesn’t quite take you to the place titled, but rather gestures at the possibility of the place, and wonders what freeway might get you there.
Tell Me About Heaven is published by pois é based in Los Angeles, November 2022.