There’s a new buzz on the poetry scene—Jawn Van Jacobs’ debut chapbook, bastard bee, is now available for pre-order through Finishing Line Press, and it’s already making waves. Described as both deeply personal and powerfully political, the collection takes a refreshing, unflinching look at masculinity through the lens of queerness, tenderness, and nature’s most misunderstood creatures.
Set to release on August 8, 2025, bastard bee is a hybrid of pastoral grace and punk defiance. Van Jacobs blends natural imagery—bees, dragonflies, robins—with raw explorations of gender and emotion. The collection encourages readers, especially queer men, to shed hardened expectations and embrace a masculinity rooted in care, love, and vulnerability. As Van Jacobs puts it, his poetry is a counterpoint to traditional notions of strength, replacing armor with openness.
Critics are already singing its praises. John Wojtowicz calls the chapbook “sticky with spring” and alive with “bold magic,” while Katie Budris notes its masterful juxtapositions: bourbon and bullets, robins and kindness, bourbon and blossoms. Ron Block draws comparisons to medieval exempla and even hears echoes of Emily Dickinson in the chapbook’s lyricism, concluding that bastard bee offers not just poems, but spells of protection.
Jawn Van Jacobs is no stranger to readers of Low Hanging Fruit. A standout voice from South Jersey, his past contributions have lit up our pages with the same lyric, outlaw energy that hums through every stanza of bastard bee. His poems are a little drunk on language, often singing in a register few dare to hold.
For anyone curious about the evolving intersections of queerness, nature, and poetic form, this chapbook is not to be missed.
Pre-order bastard bee here:👉 Finishing Line Press - bastard bee by Jawn Van Jacobs
Follow the poet on IG: @jawnvanjacobs
