A Dove Under My Hand

Infused with sapphic desire, A Dove Under My Hand: Sapphic Writings by Marina Tsvetaeva presents three works: "Story of Sonecka," "Girlfriend Poems," and "Letter to an Amazon," all newly translated by Sonja Franeta. "Story of Sonechka," a novella, is composed of fragments, conversations, and verse exploring Tsvetaeva's romance with Russian actress, Sonia Holliday; it was one of the last works that Tsvetaeva completed before her death. The "Girlfriend Poems" are Tsvetaeva's love lyrics to Russian poet Sophia Parnok. Seven additional poems extend this lyrical cycle. "Letter to an Amazon" is Tsvetaeva's response to Natalie Barney's Pensées d'une Amazone, contemplating queer love and the tension between romantic passion and maternal instinct. Expertly translated, all these writings explore lesbian love in rich and complex ways, brimming with emotional intensity and literary intelligence. These works stand amongst the earliest to shine a light on queer love in Russia, at a time when both were taboo and rare. An afterword by Olgerta Kharitonova, publisher of the Russian zine Ostrov, offers a vivid, multi-faceted portrait of Tsvetaeva's meaning to queer women in Russia and its diaspora.