The Elsewhere Oracle

by Battiste, Michele

• ISBN13: 9781625571939
• ISBN10: 1625571933
• Format: Package
• Copyright: 2025-08-12
• Publisher: Black Lawrence Press

Summary

The town of Elsewhere has been lost to time. Hidden by a remote mountain, Elsewhere is unreachable to the outside world. Its history and townspeople have become subjects of ghost stories and cautionary bedtime tales. The possibilities and potential of Elsewhere— whether hopeful or tragic— live in shadows of the mountain, out of the corner of our eyes, and at the edge of dreams. Each of the 50 cards and poems of The Elsewhere Oracle represents a person, place, or artifact from Elsewhere. Together they tell the story of the forgotten town: the history of its disappearance, the ghosts that haunt its streets, and the monsters that linger in the woods and the lake. Here we encounter an inept town council, a perceptive orphan, a yearning torch singer, the robber baron who holds the town in his lunatic hands, and a whole host of characters embodying the best and worst of a community. Explore the town’ s landscape and history in the archive and woods, at the lake’ s edge, on the mountain and on a barstool, through farms and the factory, and along the High Street. Looking to Elsewhere, we can discover our own strengths and fears, ambitions and dreams, and the dark places that hold us back.

Author Biography

Michele Battiste is the author of four books of poems and an oracle deck, including Waiting for the Wreck to Burn (Trio House Press, 2019), which won the Louise Bogan Award for Artistic Merit and Excellence, and The Elsewhere Oracle (Black Lawrence Press, 2025). Michele’ s work has appeared widely, including in American Poetry Review, American Book Review, Women’ s Studies Quarterly, and elsewhere. Other honors include awards and fellowships from AWP, the Center of the American West, and Good Hart Artist Residency. She is Associate Director of Philanthropy for The Nature Conservancy in Colorado.

Table of Contents

Near Elsewhere: A Prelude The Factory The Gunsmith The Mountain The Barkeep The Lake The Orphan The Ceremony The Confectioner The Soot The Gardener The Well The Healer: Glori´ ana Trinity The Ossuary The Hunter The High Street The Immigrant The Almanac The Hermit The Wolves The Doctor The Artifact The Seer: Glori´ ana Trinity The Storm The Counselor The Menu The Robber Baron The Compass The Archive The Sheriff The Warren The Plague The Grave Keeper The Teacher The Drought The Meadow The Wildfire The Council The Pine The Freeze The Baker The Moon The Judge The Spring The Storyteller The Trickster: Glori´ ana Trinity The Torch Singer The Ghost The Farmer The Woods The Sun Anywhere but Elsewhere: Coda Art Attributions