Jee Leong Koh Explained

Jee Leong Koh is a poet, publisher, and the founder/organizer of Singapore Unbound.^[1] He is Editor-In-Chief of Gaudy Boy, a press associated with Singapore Unbound and poetry editor of The Evergreen Review. He was raised in Singapore and currently lives in New York.^[2]

Koh's work "uses the rigidity of form to contain poetry that otherwise knows no bounds: love, sex and selfhood are all exposed, and equally explored."^[3]

Steep Tea was named a Best Book of the Year in 2015 by UK’s Financial Times.^[4] It was also a finalist for the 28th Lambda Literary Awards in the Gay Poetry category.^[5] The book engages with canonical female writers like Elizabeth Bishop and Eavan Boland while exploring "how being in a new place renders him critical of his past but also awakens his true identity."^[6]

Sections from The Pillow Book, a collection of zuihitsu, have been anthologized in Starry Island: New Writing from Singapore.^[7] The Pillow Book was also shortlisted for the Singapore Literature Prize.^[8]

Books

• Steep Tea (Carcanet Press, 2015)
• The Pillow Book (Math Paper Press, 2012)
• Seven Studies for a Self Portrait (Bench Press, 2011)
• Equal to the Earth (Bench Press, 2009)
• Payday Loans: Poems (2007)

References

1. Web site: About. Singapore Unbound. en-US. 2020-05-20.
2. Web site: Poet Jee Leong Koh had to leave Singapore to engage with it. 2015-03-15. The Straits Times. en. 2020-05-20.
3. Web site: Cha: An Asian Literary Journal - Country of Origin/Point of Departure: Gilbert Koh's and Jee Leong Koh's Poetry. www.asiancha.com. 2020-05-20.
4. Web site: Best books of 2015: Poetry. Crawford. Maria. 2015-10-27. www.ft.com. 2020-05-20.
5. Web site: Lambda Literary Awards Finalists Revealed: Carrie Brownstein, Hasan Namir, 'Fun Home' and Truman Capote Shortlisted. 2016-03-08. www.out.com. en. 2020-05-20.
6. Web site: Cha: An Asian Literary Journal - On Arrival and Return: Jee Leong Koh and Collier Nogues. Huen. Antony. September 2015. www.asiancha.com. 2020-05-20.
7. Web site: Starry Island: New Writing from Singapore. 2018-12-19. UH Press. en-US. 2020-05-20.
8. Web site: Poet of the Week: Jee Leong Koh. 2015-10-19. Brooklyn Poets. 2020-05-20.